I’ve seen the future of the Internet. In fact, I’ve been in it. And it’s coming to Michigan.
I’m talking about Switch’s SUPERNAP data centers in Las Vegas — the highest-rated data centers in the world. Switch is one of our newest clients here at Martin Waymire. Later this year, Switch will open SUPERNAP Michigan in Gaines Township south of Grand Rapids.
A few weeks back, we toured SUPERNAP Las Vegas with some reporters from West Michigan. We saw what is coming to Michigan, and it’s astounding. Here’s a glimpse of the media coverage:
Your Clicks Processed Here
At more than 2 million square feet, the Las Vegas SUPERNAP data center campus provides unrivaled colocation, connectivity, cloud and content ecosystems, and represents innovation, security and reliability for some of the world’s largest and most recognized brands, including eBay, Intel, Shutterfly, Machine Zone (Game of War), Amegen, Dreamworks, HP, Intuit, Hitachi, JP Morgan Chase, Sony, Boeing, Cisco, EMC, Google, Amazon, Time Warner, Eli Lilly, Activision (Call of Duty), Fox Broadcasting and hundreds more.
Chances are good that at some point during the day when you are on the Internet, your transactions, commands and “clicks” are being managed through technology housed in SUPERNAP data centers — whether you are playing a game with others around the world, watching a movie, creating a calendar, buying a product from your favorite retailer, or exploring/communicating with hundreds of companies from dozens of industries. SUPERNAP data centers are also perfect technology ecosystems for the most advanced research imaginable, the kind being done by Michigan’s three top research universities, the auto industry, and others powering our state’s economy and seeking the next major advances in medicine, agriculture, advanced manufacturing and engineering.
The “Gold” Standard of Data Centers
SUPERNAP data facilities are at the top of the data center industry for multiple reasons:
- Unsurpassed security.
- 100 % Industry-leading “uptime,” which means no technology down-time.
- Proprietary heating, cooling and energy-use systems resulting from 218-plus patents and patents pending for advanced technologies held by Switch CEO and Founder Rob Roy.
- Planet and environmentally friendly: SUPERNAP data centers run on 100-percent renewable energy.
- Switch recently became the only carrier-neutral data center provider in the world to receive two “Tier IV Gold Certifications” for operational excellence from the Uptime Institute. Minus a lot of technical jargon, that means SUPERNAP data centers are the highest-rated on the planet.
- Unmatched attention to detail, and a “wow” and “whoa” factor you might experience at the coolest attractions at Disney World or Universal Studios in Florida.
SUPERNAP Michigan at the Switch Pyramid
As you may know, SUPERNAP Michigan is already under construction at the “Switch Pyramid” (the old Steelcase Pyramid, which has sat empty for about six years).
The initial construction budget is $400 million. More than 100 workers and eight contractors from West Michigan are busy inside the Switch Pyramid right now doing all the things that must be done to meet operational timelines. All on-site contractors are from West Michigan as part of the company’s commitment to hire locally.
On completion, SUPERNAP Michigan will be the largest data center campus in the Eastern United States. It will provide clients who locate there with super-fast connectivity to major population centers east of the Mississippi River, like Chicago, New York, Boston and Washington, D.C.
“The Internet of Everything”
In the future, the Internet will run virtually everything — or perhaps more accurately, everything will run through the Internet. That’s given rise to the term “The Internet of Everything.” First coined by Cisco, it means adding connectivity and intelligence to every device to give them special functionality. Think smart refrigerators and washing machines connected to the Internet. Driver-less cars managed through the Internet. “Smart” watches (already here!) and blenders, sprinkler systems, furnaces, ovens … you name it.
The technology to run this level of functionality will be located, secured and managed in SUPERNAP data centers. With SUPERNAP Michigan soon coming online, our great state will be a major player in the Internet of tomorrow and the Internet of Everything.
We saw it, and it’s awesome.
