Modular data center design can have many different interpretations, but for Keystone NAP, it means using containers inside an old steel factory.
Source: Containers transform steel mill into modular data center
FAIRLESS HILLS, Pa.—A data center outside Philadelphia is using containers as a solution to the space problem common to large data centers. The Keystone NAP data center, is housed in a 60,000 ft2 (5500 m2) former steel factory. Its equipment is housed in shipping container-like units the company calls KeyBlocks. For multi-tenant colocation provider Keystone NAP, the modular design approach best uses the three-floor building, said cofounder Shawn Carey. The primary benefit is being close to an abundant source of power—three existing grid feeds delivering more than 2 MW—in a strong steel-and-concrete brownfield building. The former steel mill had its own power supply. Carey estimates that installing a comparable power supply would cost close to $10 million.
