Forecasting the Trends for the 2019 Data Center Industry

We, at Prasa, have a December tradition. Every December, all our data center experts gather together and pick each other’s brains on what each of us thinks about the data center industry trends that are going to dominate in the upcoming year. As the discussion progresses, it keeps getting more and more interesting and detailed. Over the years, this exercise has become more than a convention; it has turned into an Idea-generator!

Last month (December), we had that get-together and not-surprisingly, the responses for ‘Data center trends 2019’, came out to be wide ranged and hugely discussed. So, today I am going to share the upcoming trends we think will dominate the industry in 2019.

Edge computing at the core of the data center industry

Edge computing will make the data center industry much more expansive and yet integrated. Edge computing has already taken over the industry and that is not going to change anytime soon. Edge computing was a $1.17 billion market in 2016 and is expected to grow to $6.7 billion in 2022. Edge computing will continue to grow and develop in the coming years, and we, at Prasa, are also making sure of that.

The Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G to change the IT infrastructure

Our experts think that as we gear up for 5G, and as we continue to integrate our lives with the internet of things, data centers are becoming more important than ever. These upcoming technologies will mean a lot more data than we produce today and will need a much faster processing than we do today. Thus, in the coming year, we will see many more micro data centers crop up near the population centers.

Data center workforce will be on the frontline

We as a data center industry are also evolving in the way we think about our workforce. We are transitioning into a new generation of IT leaders. And we expect these leaders to be from a non-traditional background, as companies take a more vital role in training. This also signifies the problems IT educational programs suffer, in keeping up with the pace and innovation of the data industry.

The discussion at Prasa went on for quite some time bringing out some amazing questions and responses from the team, which did not make it to the final list – including usage of localized cloud, the innovation around batteries, and the change we expect in the power and cooling segments. It makes me proud as a punch to have a team with such futuristic thought and vision.

I would love to hear from you on what trends you expect are going to dominate the data industry in 2019.