Node4 – Derby Data Centre

Colo-X analysis

Despite the recent string of acquisitions and focus on the managed services business to offer a full service, single source solution for enterprise users, Node4’s three regional data centres provide a key platform for the company’s infrastructure platform.

Node4’s Derby data centre was their first to be developed, having opened in 2004 and as such offers 330 racks at a relatively low power density of 16Amps per rack, with now limited expansion opportunities here. The site still offers decent options for rack space or both half and quarter racks. Quality is good and the site benefits from the presence of Node4’s head quarters building in the office accomodation on the first floor.

Node4 Derby facility description

Node4 are a Derby based managed services provider offering a broad range of connectivity, cloud, colocation and collaboration services to the mid-market, targeting companies preferring a single service provider.

The company operates three UK data centres; their Derby site is the original (opened in 2004) and smallest , offering 330 racks. Their second facility is in Wakefield which opened in 2009 to provide 450 racks and the latest is in Northampton, which is the largest site at 700 racks and opened in 2013. All in all the company now offers some 1500 rack footprints, or nearly 5MW of IT load over 80,000 sq ft of gross space.  All facilities are ISO27001 and PCI DSS certified.

The three data centres are home to Node4’s own cloud platform where they provide private cloud solutions on dedicated infrastructure as well access to hyperscale environments across their own network where client needs require it.

Colocation services remain an important part of the Node4 mix, but via a combination of acquisitions and growth its the managed services side of the business that is growing faster. Node4 has continued to expand data centre capacity though in both their Northampton and Wakefield data centres, most recently spending £2m on capacity upgrades in 2017, whilst we do not believe they can expand Derby beyond its current capacity.

Colocation solutions in Derby include racks, half and quarter racks, with the facility about 80% occupied.  Network choice comes from Node4’s own backbone or the various national networks installed, offering a carrier neutral option.  Power density up to 16Amps per rack, with higher densities probably better suited to their larger and more modern Northampton data centre located nearby.

The facility is located on Pride Park, close to the home stadium of Derby County Football Club and about half a mile east of the city’s mainline railway station.

Technical stats