Data center builder plugs in to Quincy’s cheap power, land

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Data center builder plugs in to Quincy’s cheap power, land

By Mike Irwin
World staff writer

Thursday, September 29, 2011

QUINCY — A California data-center developer announced Wednesday that it’s bought 63 acres for up to nearly half-a-million square feet of computing space.

First tenant? An industry analyst speculated that it could be Boeing.

Vantage Data Centers will build a three-phase data center Quincy campus that includes an initial server farm of 133,000 square feet. Groundbreaking will take place in October with completion in August 2012.

Additional phases will include a 105,000-square-foot enterprise technology center that combines office and data center space and, later, a 235,000-square-foot expansion for extra computing space.

The company joins other tech-industry leaders such as Yahoo, Intuit, Microsoft, Sabey and Dell in locating centers in Quincy because of cheap power, cheap land and a mild climate. Vantage currently has a similar facility under construction in Santa Clara, Calif.

The Quincy project could aim Vantage towards becoming a direct competitor of the Sabey Corp., which attracts high-tech tenants to fill its data center spaces. The new center would now position Vantage to compete head-to-head with Sabey’s project — Intergate.Quincy — already under construction.

TechFlash, a leading industry watchdog and website, reported Wednesday that the first phase of Vantage’s project has been fully rented and speculated the anchor tenant would be Boeing.

Writing on the website, analyst Anthony James said Vantage touted the tenant as a Fortune 50 manufacturing and technology company. Boeing makes sense as a tenant, wrote James, because it’s one of the few Fortune 50 companies that fits the manufacturing-technology profile.

“Our Quincy facilities will surpass all expectations of today’s data centers,” said Vantage CEO Jim Trout. “Our customers will now be provided with global options for connectivity, network resources and clean and green power.”

Mike Irwin: 665-1179

irwin@wenatcheeworld.com

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lonedog3 1 year, 7 months ago

all the more reason to move any airport facilities to The Moses Lake area. Why spend millions here when all industry is landing in Grant County.

wenchamberguy 1 year, 7 months ago

Pangborn is closer than the Moses Lake Airport to Quincy (27.3 miles versus 33.5 miles according to Google maps). Pangborn currently HAS good commercial air service, Moses Lake has none. Move airport facilities? How exactly do you move an airport?

massageangel 1 year, 7 months ago

Both areas already have an airport. Having said that, it may be closer in miles but the road between Moses Lake and Quincy includes I90 which has multiple lanes and a faster speed limits. I90 is also better maintained in inclement weather. Moses Lake also already has landing strips in place due to larger aircraft landing there for the military. Big Bend Community College has also had an aircraft training program as well so easier to staff a fuller service airport than Wenatchee. This is from the Million Air web site, a company located at the Moses Lake Airport.

With 4,700 acres (19.02 km²) and a main runway 13,500 feet (4,115 m) long, Moses Lake is one of the largest airports in the United States. Moses Lake is famous for good flying weather, as it is located on the east side of the Cascade Mountains, in the semi-arid desert of central Washington State.

Grant County International Airport is an alternate landing site for the NASA Space Shuttle and used often for flight test programs and military training. Currently Million Air Moses Lake is a testing site for the Flight Test Programs of Boeing 787 (Dreamliner) and 747-8F (Frieghter) and 747-8I (Intercontinental - Passenger).

The main campus for Big Bend Community College is also located adjacent to the airport.

wenchamberguy 1 year, 7 months ago

All true, all irrelevant. The economic value of an airport is that it lets you get to somewhere quickly and conviniently. They have a great runway at Moses Lake. but if you don't have a commercail carrier, it doesn't matter. The relatively short, easy drive to Spokane or Tri-Cities makes it nearly impossible for Moses Lake to sustain air service.

lonedog3 1 year, 7 months ago

simple instead of dumping millions into a small family airport with 3 comercial flights spend the $27 million on an airport that already has an inprover runway, lighting system and is close to a major interstate corridor. In moses lake we wouldnt have a greedy little port group steeling property insisting on destroying homes rather than use a perfectly good alternative. Sad to say a small group of has been wanna be politicians insists on destruction rather than actually improving the airport so families can land and take off with their cessnas and gliders,

lonedog3 1 year, 7 months ago

typical washed up political wanna be response! you would rather strip American citizens in these hard econonical times of their hard earned homes by buildine an unneeded road right through the middle of their neighborhood?? I would have hoped that the Port of Douglas was more responsibile than that. I guess not. It is a shame to hear that families and their homes mean so little to the Port of Douglas County

Thoughtful 1 year, 7 months ago

This article is about data centers in Quincy. It's strange that the discussion topic is all about airports instead.

davebugg 1 year, 7 months ago

Airports, and transportation in general, pertain to infrastructure which is one of the criteria, along with the cost of power, that a company will look at when locating a business to an area of the country.

wenchamberguy 1 year, 7 months ago

This artilce is good news about the local and regional economy. Unfortunately. lonedog is always looking for a chance to bash the airport

lonedog3 1 year, 7 months ago

And east wenatchee and Douglas county do not apparently have what the companies have or desire. And that is why all new MAJOR manufactures and companies are locating into Moses Lake, Quincy and even Warden Not at "cessna central" here in Douglas County.

wenchamberguy 1 year, 7 months ago

One major reason Grant County has seen so much activity is their power policies. The policies in Douglas and Chelan Counties are different (I am not being critical of any policy, just pointing out the difference). Sabey has a major project in Douglas County (dare I say near the airport?) that could expand in the future. YAHOO! has a small data center in Chelan County and the Chelan County PUD is currently reviewing their industrial rate structure. The most exciting part about this project is that phase 2 has an office component to it that means more long terms job at the facility.

lonedog3 1 year, 7 months ago

no not bash the airport just the egos of the douglas county port authorty. that feels the need to destroy family homes instaed of a few trees on a route that Douglas County is already planning on making a MAJOR THROUGHFARE with-in the next five years. So tell me why does the Douglas County Port Authority feel the need to destroy homes?

marco 1 year, 7 months ago

If Grant County is the best airport why do they not have a commercail carrier? Oh ya cuz there is NO DEMAND!!! The last time the had commercail service it was funded by grants, soon as the grants ran out, the service went away.. Why, because they cant make any profit since there is no demand!