University of Cambridge
Project

University of Cambridge datacentre

A world-class two-storey datacentre powering the world's brightest minds at the University of Cambridge.
  • Customer
    University of Cambridge
  • Procurement Route
    Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU)
  • Completion Date
    July 2014
  • Quantity Surveyor
    Davis Langdon LLP
  • Value
    £15m
  • Form Of Contract
    NEC
  • Project Manager
    Davis Langdon LLP
  • Area
    2,200 sq m
  • Program Duration
    52 weeks
  • Architect
    TTSP
  • ME Engineer
    Arup
University of Cambridge - 1

Introduction

With ‘smart city’ advances and the Internet of Things (IoT) putting huge demands on the requirement for data storage, technology companies need to build adaptable datacentres to meet the fast, ever-changing market demands.

The University of Cambridge adopted the latest building design and construction techniques, including highly efficient ‘chilled water’ hybrid cooling technology to deliver a green datacentre with a 10% less carbon emissions.
University of Cambridge data center

The project

We constructed a new two-storey datacentre for the University of Cambridge to centralise the university’s data storage needs in one location.

The datacentre was constructed on a green field site and housed four data halls on two floors. Supported on piled foundations, the building accommodated approximately 240 racks, associated ancillary space and a plant, providing 3.2 MW of power.

External works included providing the necessary infrastructure connections as well as security fencing around the perimeter of the site.

A soft landing requirement was within the contract and saw the team remain on the project for a year to assist the facilities management team with operations.

“The ISG offering was reviewed against a number of criteria and ultimately delivered on both cost and quality of proposal. Specialist datacentre expertise was needed throughout the project lifecycle, particularly as the site set up stage was challenging and required a professional approach from the outset.”

Ian Tasker, Datacentre Manager, University of Cambridge

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