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Shane Dove
Data centre and communications specialist Node4 is marking the next stage of growth with the expansion of its flagship data centre. The company will open a new hall at its Northampton facility to support its rapidly growing customer base in the region.
When the data centre opened in 2011, it put the town on the map as a hub for IT innovation. With approximately 3,809 sq m, it was the company’s fourth and biggest facility with a capacity of 720 racks. It combined the latest in power, fire control, security, cooling and humidification technologies.
Just two years on from the opening, work has begun on a new 450 sq m hall that will add space for a further 200 racks. The expansion is designed to boost Node4’s offering in response to the unprecedented growth within cloud computing and hosted IT services. The company has promised new features to improve efficiency including best of breed cooling technology which will ensure Node4 continues to lead the field as demand rises.
News of the new data hall, which is due to open in September follows the recent announcement of a management-backed buy out of Node4, a deal that will see the company continue to take bold steps in its upward trajectory.
Shane Dove, Sales Manager at Node4, said, “Node4 has always been a company that quickly reacts to the needs of its customers, so it was really important for us that we adequately prepared ourselves with the means to expand. There has been great demand for data centre and outsourced IT services in the South Midlands, Northamptonshire, and indeed nationwide and we are investing in the site to address this market. The expansion further cements our commitment to the local area and to providing leading edge technology to local companies.”
Northampton Data Centre
Node4 is positioned to benefit from the town’s tremendous growth as a nationwide hub for companies operating in the South East and London areas. As the region continues to grow, Node4 will continue investing in helping companies develop and serve its ever-demanding growing markets.
Shane continued, “We have seen a lot of interest from clients wanting large scale primary and disaster recovery (DR), so we commissioned the new hall with a design that better accommodates caged areas for customers who require private, segregated space. Our Northampton facility lends itself very well to these types of solutions within our own data centre footprint which is quite rare.”
The new hall offers the latest advances in security, resilience and power efficiency including a cold aisle containment system, a revolutionary ‘cool wall’ air conditioning system and power-efficient LED lighting. Fire safety is provided by VESDA early warning fire/smoke detection and IG55 argon/nitrogen fire suppression.
To guarantee maximum uptime the data centre has dual internet feeds and numerous connectivity options. Power is provided by dual redundant feeds to each rack from separate busbars, panel boards and an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system and an N+1 generator backup with 72 hours of fuel onsite.
Shane concluded, “The new technologies and advanced cooling equipment that we are implementing with the Northampton data centre’s expansion will improve our efficiency and further reduce our carbon footprint.”
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LDC, one of the UK’s leading regional mid-market private equity houses, has completed a significant investment to support the management buy-out and continued growth of Node4, the leading regional data centre, managed IT and communications specialist.
Node4 provides a wide range of data centre and managed IT services, including colocation, connectivity, managed hosting, communications & hosted telephony, and a range of cloud services, to a UK-wide network of around 700 fast-growing SME customers.
Established in 2004, the business is headquartered in Derby and operates four state-of-the-art data centre facilities – two in Derby, one in Northampton and a further site in Leeds – which all offer the latest in technology and security measures, ensuring that even the most mission-critical IT applications are hosted securely and protected. Node4’s regional data centre infrastructure ensures that it has relatively close proximity to its UK SME customer base, setting it apart from its London-centric competitors by providing a high touch, local service proposition.
Node4 has experienced significant growth in recent years as a result of expanding its data-centre portfolio supported by its market leading service offering, underpinned by a continued growth in IT outsourcing and an increasing demand for hosted IT. The business has an annual turnover of more than £13million and employs over 60 people across its regional footprint.
The deal will provide further capital to help accelerate the continuing growth of Node4, primarily through continued new data centre development, whilst also facilitating the potential acquisition of complementary businesses operating in the data centre and cloud services markets. The transaction also enables the other co- founding shareholder to fully exit the business.
LDC has backed Node4’s existing management team led by Managing Director and co-founder Andrew Gilbert, who will retain a significant shareholding.
The deal was led by LDC’s Regional Managing Director Martin Draper, together with Investment Directors Andy Lyndon and James Robinson. Martin Draper will join the board with immediate effect.
As part of the transaction, the existing management team will be further supported by the appointment of David Goldie as Non-Executive Chairman and Bernie Waldron as a Non-Executive Director. Previously Chief Executive of TalkTalk Group and Chairman of Opel Telecom, Mr Goldie has a strong track record of working with fast growing entrepreneurial businesses and brings significant expertise in the wider managed hosting and IT services industry. Mr Waldron has held a number of senior positions at IBM across Europe and brings substantial M&A and IT services experience to the business.
Commenting on the investment, Martin Draper, LDC’s Regional Managing Director said:
“Node4 is a well-established market leading regional data centre services business, operating in a rapidly growing market that is being driven by a growing demand for hosted IT services by SMEs across the UK.
“We are partnering with a high-quality management team led by Andrew Gilbert, who has considerable knowledge and experience in the regional data centre services market having founded the business back in 2004. The company provides a high-end service to its regional customer base, and is supported by a well invested infrastructure. Going forward, we will work closely with the team to execute the next phase of the business’ growth and development.”
Andrew Gilbert, Managing Director of Node4 said:
“LDC’s investment and support brings additional strategic input and financial backing to our business and reflects the confidence both parties have in Node4’s future potential. Looking forward, we anticipate that LDC’s support will allow us to further strengthen our UK regional market leading position, invest for future growth both organically and through acquisitions, as well as continuing the provision of high quality data centre and cloud services for all our customers, existing and new.”
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Cloud computing makes affordable platform for Virtualised Desktop Infrastructure
A new generation of tech savvy workers is ushering in the evolution of the desktop to allow for BYOD to become commonplace among companies. Bring your own device is the growing trend among employees looking to gain access to their workplace networks on their own devices, as they look to use their personal laptops and tablets at their desk, through the use of a virtual desktop infrastructure.
Andy Chrismas, Node4 Cloud Sales Manager said, “The new generation is demanding a dual persona for both their devices and desktops, with the ability to access workplace documents and perform all of the workplace tasks, while in an instant gaining access to personal files and photos and social media material.
“Recent technological advancements such as VMWare’s Horizon Suite are unlocking the ability for mobile devices to gain access to all of the workplace applications, enabling the transfer from workplace desktop to personal device seamlessly. New entrants to the workplace are now accustomed to the ‘always on, always connected’ style of work and therefore need platforms that facilitate that much easier. This style of working, and indeed the technology that enables it to be carried out, are becoming a standard workplace option that forward thinking companies can’t afford to ignore. Workers require flexibility and BYOD as a part of providing that.”
This BYOD phenomenon is facilitated by the cloud, a platform now being widely adopted in business. As mobility and 24 hour accessibility become increasingly important in business, the cloud and BYOD are an inevitable part of business practice development.
However, BYOD can exacerbate existing problems that may be in place. Andy continued, “I have heard BYOD referred to as Bring Your Own Disaster! The problem is that many companies are buying one size fits all cloud systems, without fully understanding the capabilities and specificities of the cloud.”
Security is one of the major issues concerning those dealing with an increased desire for BYOD accessibility, particularly the management of data and risks of unknown third party access via mobile apps and transferring data via consumer based solutions with no policies or understanding where your corporate data is. However, these can easily be avoided through a conscientious approach that acknowledges the value of data to a company and puts in the adequate safeguards. According to Node4, companies need a supported transfer onto the cloud and onto BYOD access to avoid such solutions being taken on before an IT system is sufficiently compatible.
Andy continued “Node4 make a consultation period a requirement before installing cloud for a company. We need to make sure that the cloud environment we install for them enhances their business and helps them grow. Our tailored systems allow the ease of transition that will see work transfer fluidly between personal devices and workplace devices, facilitating the adoption of BYOD and allowing advancements to drive growth.”
Node4’s method of an assessment is to ensure a company understands what cloud based service means to them, highlighting the key areas of improvement and cost savings.
While cloud services are gaining universal recognition as the future of business IT, there are significant pitfalls when looking to transfer onto a cloud.
Even among technology experts, the understanding of cloud computing can be less than extensive. While the principles behind the technology are widely grasped, perhaps less understood are the specific benefits the technology can have for a company, and how different these benefits can be.
According to Andy Chrismas, Cloud Sales Manager at data centre and communication specialist Node4, a consultation period should be embarked upon by companies looking to make the transition into the cloud.
He said, “There are so many companies offering a website where a few clicks can set up a self service cloud. Although this process might be work for a single workload or small amount of resource, when you are looking to take advantage of a cloud environment with multiple applications, this becomes more complex. When backup, disaster recovery, security and reporting are involved in a cloud infrastructure spanning multiple locations, a simple website can’t give you these solutions. This is where you will need to take the more bespoke approach with the assistance of experts.
“The beauty of the cloud is its adaptability and fluidity, which allow benefits to companies of every size and type. However, a one size fits all cloud will inhibit the benefits offered by the bespoke service Node4 offers.”
Node4’s n4Cloud service stands apart as a compelling offering due to its assessment phases, which ensure a business and its aspirations are fully understood before engagement. Once this information is gathered through an initial consultation, Node4 then undertakes a technical analysis to understand the existing capabilities of the company, as well as impact and risk analysis for a new system. They can then return with a cloud that is designed with specific relevance to the business, allowing progress and growth in line with the company vision.
Andy continued, “Some companies run into trouble when adopting the cloud because they overlook the important steps that enable a smooth transition to the creating of a virtual infrastructure. Any resulting teething problems are unnecessary and are borne out of a badly planned move to the cloud. The understanding we build among customers allows a bespoke service that guarantees IT is used as a strategic part of the business rather than a cost centre. Users of the n4Cloud buy a service rather than a product. Our service integrates the transition to the cloud with the progression of the company, meaning it will offer new horizons and opportunities, rather than being an inconvenient process without tangible practical benefits.”
A Milton-Keynes based company that provides Computer-Aided Facilities Management (CAFM) software solutions to blue chip companies has incorporated a back up solution, otherwise known as redundancy, into its business offering and now also has greater bandwidth thanks to Node4.
Ostara Systems Ltd, providing a hosted solution, wanted to own its equipment and not be fully-dependent on a service provider. In colocating with data centre and communications specialist Node4, Ostara now has a secure and robust environment, and redundancy systems within its offering. Node4 has added to Ostara’s services through the provision of services via its data centre in Northampton which is within close proximity to Ostara’s office. Furthermore, Node4’s Tier 3 classification is a major advantage for Ostara, given that most of its clients require it.
The solution provided by Node4 has also made cost savings for Ostara as regular maintenance on its own of its infrastructure was becoming time-consuming and costly.
Steve Sartain, Development Director at Ostara Systems Ltd said, “Since joining Node4, I’ve found the technical expertise to be of a very high standard. Node4 can prove an excellence beyond what we can economically and practically do ourselves, and there are no hidden veils. For example, trying to connect a 50 megabyte pipe to the internet and maintaining it would be more expensive in terms of the lack of economies of scale if we were to connect and maintain it ourselves. With Node4’s technical expertise, you are given confidence and security and this confidence comes from having conversations with people with technical skills- people who know what they’re talking about! ”
Neil Harrison, CEO at Ostara Systems Ltd said, “We expect to remain with Node4 in the long term because we believe that it has the space and the ability to assist us as we expand. Node4 is also a very customer-centric company. The assistance we’ve had has been very positive, very fast and we’ve always felt taken care of. ”
Paul Bryce, Business Development Director at Node4 said, “Node4 is delighted to have provided Ostara with a secure and resilient environment from which to run its hosted solution and there is room available if it wants to incorporate more rack space in future. We have a very good working relationship with Ostara.”
