This summer, the second Zurich campus (ZRH2) of Vantage Data Centers, a worldwide supplier of hyperscale data center campuses, will open. When paired with Vantage’s flagship Zurich campus (ZRH1), the highly secured and carrier-neutral campus will provide 24MW of critical IT capacity, giving clients 64MW of capacity for their computing needs.
Situated in Glattfelden, 30 kilometers north of Zurich’s city center, this data center campus is the company’s 33rd worldwide. It would be ideally located 15 minutes from Zurich Airport and little over 20 kilometers from Vantage’s ZRH1 campus in Winterthur. The expansion of Vantage Data Centers’ EMEA portfolio is made possible by recent investments totaling more than $400M (CHF 370M).
ZRH2 will offer a combined 226,000 square feet (21,000 square meters) of space for Vantage’s clientele, which includes cloud providers, hyperscalers, and major corporations. It goes live at a time when the business is seeing a rise in demand for high-performance computing (HPC) applications and artificial intelligence (AI) throughout the globe.
According to David Howson, President of Vantage Data Centers, EMEA, “Zurich is a rapidly growing data center market due to its strategic central location and its global financial leadership, and we expect to continue developing in this market based on customer demand. The need for highly effective, hyperscale data centers is growing in Europe and throughout the world to support next-generation applications, such as cloud transformation, high-performance computing, and strong AI models. Vantage is eager to open the doors of our newest data center this summer and is ready to fulfill that demand from both existing and potential clients.”
Environmental Sustainability
Vantage Data Centers has made a commitment to using a comprehensive strategy to environmental sustainability in order to achieve net zero carbon emissions throughout its worldwide portfolio by 2030. ZRH2 would provide industry-leading power use efficiency (PUE) and water usage effectiveness (WUE) to enable energy-efficient operations, in keeping with the company’s ‘Sustainable by Design’ blueprint.
Vantage has installed water source (WSHP) and air source (ASHP) heat pumps within ZRH2 as a conscientious neighbor and responsible business citizen. By converting waste heat, these heat pumps would save energy by conditioning office areas without requiring external energy sources. Additionally, ZRH2 will provide waste heat to a hotel and conference facility in the area.
ZRH2 will also make use of a green roof and rainwater infiltration to reduce its negative environmental effects. It will have a distinctive wood-finished front that complements the neighborhood’s style and feel while being very resilient to the severe seasonal changes in the area.
During the busiest construction period, Vantage Data Centers will employ over 400 people, adding around 25 positions for campus operations.
