Simplifying the Cloud: 2 Use Cases for Colocation Success

In this series, we have defined cloud computing, shown its business value, and delineated the first steps to the Cloud. In this post, we’ll introduce businesses that have successfully transitioned to cloud computing using C Spire’s colocation services.

As businesses evolve and grow, the demands of their IT grow along with them. When new IT equipment is needed, businesses must first consider where the equipment will reside. For businesses that have existing data centers with available power, cooling, and space capacity, the decision is often an obvious one. But when a data center is at or near capacity, a business must decide between building a new facility or outsourcing to a colocation provider’s data center.

For the purposes of this post, the definition of a colocation data center is when:

• The provider owns and manages the entire physical infrastructure (e.g., fire, security, cooling, and power).
• Space is generally leased by the rack, by the cage, or by the room, depending on the need.
• The end-user (tenet) owns and manages their IT equipment, but the data center also offers technical services.

Below are a couple examples where customers took their first step towards cloud computing by using C Spire’s colocation services.

Customer A, a regional insurance carrier primarily serving the southeast, was looking for an alternative disaster recovery (D/R) solution. Business growth and expansion was driving a greater need for flexibility and nimbleness in its operations, and its current D/R managed services provider was unable to meet expectations. Customer A decided it was more economical to manage D/R itself, so they evaluated the costs of building their own D/R facility and quickly decided it would be less expensive to subscribe to a secure colocation service. Customer A looked at alternatives across the U.S. and narrowed the field to three highly secure and purpose-built commercial facilities in the southeast U.S. They ultimately chose C Spire’s Tier 3 certified facility in Starkville, Mississippi. As a result, Customer A realized a 50% reduction in operational costs while leveraging a more secure operating facility.

Due to business growth, Customer B, a prominent heath care provider in the southeast, was running out of space in its existing data center. They reviewed their cost model and realized that a large portion of valuable technical resources and floor space were devoted to maintaining systems unrelated to its core business, such as email, desktop services, and legacy systems. Many of these systems were also running on older equipment, raising reliability concerns and making it increasingly difficult to manage and maintain. Customer B evaluated alternatives and decided it was more economical to allow a third party to help manage these non-core systems. They chose C Spire’s highly secure data facility to host their web services and email application via the Cloud. They also moved their older equipment to C Spire’s data center, utilizing a colocation model. This move freed up valuable space in their data center while leveraging the economics of a virtualized shared service model. Further, seven full-time technical resources now have time to focus on advancing the enterprise’s critical business systems and new projects.

If your business is outgrowing its current facilities, colocation is an ideal first step towards moving your data systems to the Cloud. These testimonials are just a couple of examples of how countless businesses are reducing technical resource costs while migrating to cloud computing through C Spire business solutions.