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The Chicago data center market is among the top 5 in the world for the most optimal locations based on high-demand categories including fiber connectivity, market size cloud availability, disaster risk factors (minimal), infrastructure, and more.
In this three-part blog series, we will explore the top reasons why Chicago is a great location for your overall IT and colocation strategy.
The importance of data center location
If you’ve ever purchased property or are involved in real estate you’ve probably heard ‘There are three things that matter in real estate: location, location, location.” That is equally true with data centers.
In addition to price, up-time, and scalability, location is perhaps the key consideration when choosing a data center partner. A data center can be built anywhere with power and connectivity, but proximity is a critical aspect to consider: the closer a data center is to your business, the faster your business’ overall internet speed will be.
Top 3 reasons to consider Chicago for your next data center.
Low risk of natural disasters
The first reason is the fact that Chicago is not in a location prone to major natural disasters. It is not near any fault lines or volcanoes, in the path of hurricanes or wildfires, and no major tornado has touched down anywhere in the city for over 50 years. Even though the city is along Lake Michigan, the water levels have been lowering and there is no substantial flooding risk in the downtown areas either. While there can be snowstorms, the area is prepared for the ice and snow with an underground power infrastructure and proper planning. The risk of natural disasters is much lower in Illinois than in most of the country and is ranked as one of the states with the least natural disasters.
Centrally located
Chicago is also centrally located in the country, that’s equally as accessible to New York City as it is to the west coast and being at the foot of Lake Michigan has made it a major transportation hub. The railroads had needed to pass through Chicago to get from the Northeast to the West to go around the Great Lakes. It is now those rail lines that carry much of the transcontinental fiber between the East and West coasts. This confluence of transportation and data makes Chicago a perfect location for easy physical access and network connectivity from around the country, and even around the world.
Lake Michigan
Finally, the location along Lake Michigan gives the city other benefits that you might not think of. First, data centers can use a lot of water for cooling and the lake provides affordable (some of the lowest municipal water costs in the country) and ample water supply. Then, the lake also provides a more moderate temperature, especially closer to the lake, which further eases cooling demands. The cooler temperature in the summer and warmer, moister air in the winter can greatly extend the amount of “free cooling” that can be done with air side or water side economization methods.
725 S. Wells Street Chicago
Overall, these top three reasons make Chicago a perfect location for data centers and are just a small sampling of the many reasons why the ColoHouse data center at 725 S. Wells Street is an ideal location for your overall IT and colocation strategy.
Stay tuned for part 3 of the blog series to discover more reasons why Chicago is a great location for your IT infrastructure. In part 2 of the series, we will be focusing on Chicago’s infrastructure.
ColoHouse’s Chicago data center facility offers you a footprint in one of the most connected cities in the world. To get more information about our Chicago data center or if you are interested in visiting our data center, schedule a tour now via +1 305-731-2225 or use our contact form.
