Linxdatacenter has confirmed its status of one of the largest commercial data centers providers in Russia. The company has ranked third in the CNews Analytics’ rating “Largest Russian DC providers in 2018.” The rating has been based on collected data about the quantity of rack footprints put into operation, area and power of commercial data centers. The CNews analysts report that the Russian market of commercial data centers has been rapidly growing in 2017-2018. This trend is expected to continue in the next several years. The quantity of commercial rack footprints put into operation has increased by 19% in comparison with 2017. Linxdatacenter has remained in one of the top positions of the rating.

In 2018 Linxdatacenter passed the audit by Uptime Institute, the main certifying organization in the field, confirming in the process high quality of provided colocation services. With this audit, Linxdatacenter Saint Petersburg became the first data center in the North-West of Russia granted Management & Operations Stamp of Approval.

As part of the business development strategy, a new service was added to Linxdatacenter’s portfolio: outsourced data center management. This service enables the customer to audit their data center with assistance of qualified independent specialists or to hand over its management to the Linxdatacenter engineer team. The service includes thorough checkup of all engineering systems and equipment aimed at identifying faults, need for repair or upgrade, as well as analysis and setup of operation and maintenance processes.    

“Data center management is a complex process requiring constant attention and staff qualification. Operating such an object without sufficient preparation and knowledge can lead to serious errors, financial and reputational losses for the business,” says Taras Chirkov, DC manager at Linxdatacenter Saint Petersburg. “Our goal was to develop a solution allowing our customers to optimize their resources and time, focus on their key operations.”

In 2018 Linxdatacenter also implemented an equipment disposal service enabling DC customers to discard unused network and IT equipment. Complete set of necessary accounting documents helps the customer to write off obsolete equipment in full compliance with the Russian law. For security purposes the disposal process can be monitored either with CCTV or by the attending representative of the customer company in person.  

Summarizing results of the year, the company reports that its turnover on colocation services was 934.3 million roubles including VAT in 2018, which is 7% more than in 2017. Total turnover was 1,128 million roubles including VAT, indicating a 109.1% growth in comparison to the previous year.

Research of the DC market in Warsaw and analysis of demand for colocation services showed that future development of this business in the region did not appear promising, and therefore the decision to sell the Warsaw data center has been made. The transaction that has taken place in the end of 2018, will allow Linxdatacenter to strengthen its position in the DC market of Moscow and Saint Petersburg. The profit gained from the sale of the European DC will be directed towards further expansion of the company’s sites in Moscow and Saint Petersburg.  

“Development of an IT company depends directly on its ability not just to react quickly to the market demands but also to anticipate customers’ expectations,” comments Olga Sokolova, General Director Linxdatacenter Russia. “We consider it vital that our customers are certain of the quality of our services and our readiness to answer their business needs. Among the solutions we are currently developing is assistance to our customers in partial replacement of their outdated equipment with cloud resources enabling them to manage their IT infrastructure rapidly and flexibly.”