Horizon Data Center Solutions adds space in Carrollton

Plano-based Horizon Data Center Solutions just added a second data center and plans to add more in the rea and in other states in the next year in response to rising demand. The year-old company operates 25,000 square feet in Carrollton. It just added 12,500 square feet of data center space in Carrollton (at a building owned by San Francisco-based Digital Realty Trust) and plans to add the same amount of space in the Dallas area early next year, said co-founder and chief executive Lance Smith.

Horizon also hopes to add up to 10,000 square feet in Houston and 5,000 square feet each in Austin and Oklahoma City early next year, as well as up to 25,000 square feet in California and Virginia in the thirdquarter of 2009, he said.

Horizon has retained the Dallas-based GVA Cawley brokerage firm to help identify national and international locations and provide feasibility analysis for Horizon, said Bryan Loewen, director of GVA Cawley Mission Critical Connect. In general, GVA looks at potential risks to man-made and natural disasters and the cost, reliability and redundancy of power.

Horizon sees a potential demand of more than 500,000 square feet of data center space for clients needing more power to run computer applications or emergency systems, Mr. Smith said. Its customers include Children's Medical Center, Commercial Metals, Coolersoft, a Sony Entertainment subsidiary and energy and financial services companies.

The Dallas-Fort Worth area is a top data center market because of its abundant and cheap land, reliable power sources and low risk of natural disasters such as earthquakes and hurricanes. The area has about30 data center buildings with more being built.

GVA Cawley has seen an "exponential increase" in business in the past four years as data center demand has outpaced supply in the Dallas area and nationally, Mr. Loewen said. Nationally, the demand is partly due to more government regulations on financial services firms, health care companies and government contractors.

Source: Dallas Morning News, November 10, 2008, by Sheryl Jean