Iowa chosen for next Microsoft data center
Updated 1:25 p.m. PDT with more details and a photo of an aerial view of the site. Also updated at 3:37 p.m. PDT with confirmation on the container approach.
The Iowa city of West Des Moines now has two things to celebrate.
The same week that hometown hero Shawn Johnson captured gold on the balance beam, the city has learned that a bunch of new jobs are headed its way.
Microsoft announced on Thursday that it has picked the city as the site for its latest massive data center.
I reported earlier this week that the company was close to announcing where it would build its next facility. Apparently, they were very close.
"We are very proud to welcome Microsoft to Iowa," said Gov. Chet Culver said in a statement Thursday. "In making its decision, Microsoft recognized what we in Iowa have known all along: our workforce and quality of life is top-notch."
The company expects to add about 50 jobs initially. Microsoft didn't go into a lot of detail about why Iowa was chosen over other sites, saying in a statement simply that it met its criteria for such facilities--factors that include cheap power and access to high-bandwidth networking. Nor is the company saying much about its plans for the site.
Microsoft declined to say whether the site will be equipped with traditional server racks or use the container approach I wrote about earlier this week. (Update: Late on Thursday, Microsoft confirmed that it will use the container approach.)
The site will be the company's fourth large-scale data center. A facility in Quincy, Wash., opened in April, while centers in San Antonio and Chicago are due to open later this year.
Here is an aerial view of the site in West Des Moines, Iowa, where Microsoft plans to put its latest massive data center.
(Credit: Microsoft )
During her years at CNET News, Ina Fried has changed beats several times, changed genders once, and covered both of the Pirates of Silicon Valley. These days, most of her attention is focused on Microsoft. E-mail Ina.
One neighborhood in the middle of Des Moines, and parts of the downtown area did flood, and it wasn't the first time.
Glad they are getting this big investment from Microsoft in her home town too.
Dunno where they intend to park the DC, but I suspect they were at least smart enough to look at a flood map first.
Although it is not quite as bad as a Walmart coming in, these sorts of permanent jobs for locals that a MS DS are definitely on the lower end.
Err, no it isn't. It's just that Des Moines, Iowa is only known for six things:
* The Iowa State Capital
* The Insurance Industry
* Magazine and Periodicals Publishing
* The Iowa State Fair
* The Annual Carp Festival
So it stands to reason that we're not exactly talking Silicon Valley here, y'know?
Sometimes however, it's for practical reasons. Google parked their main datacenter in Oregon, at a small town known as The Dalles. It is close enough to Portland (about an hour's drive) to get competent help, but at the same time is close enough to the Bonneville Dam and Power Station to get all the juice they could possibly want at a decent price.
I used to live in Des Moines awhile back, and the map location Ina displayed is (IIRC) just outside of city limits (for tax purposes), and in a largely rural area. OTOH, it'll probably take the average worker no longer than 30-45 minutes (max) to drive there from South Des Moines, Carlisle, Indianola, Norwalk, or any of the other nearby bedroom communities.
There is another factor to keep in mind. Both Kansas City, Chicago, and Omaha are within a few hundred fiber miles of West Des Moines (183, 345, and 125 and more importantly one way delays of 1ms to 3ms). This gives them redundant access to a couple major R&E networks that they happen to be members of (NLR, I2) both of which have recently started talking about routing commercial traffic. This would also give them multiple paths to major exchanges (both domestic and international) throughout the country (3 paths to MANLAN, 2 paths to STARTAP, etc), and so forth. If they are serious about cloud computing this is a prime location for a well connected data center with high redundancy.
I agree ab't the centralized location - nice and redundant. They're in an area that really isn't prone to floods, IIRC. Tornadoes and severe electrical storms may present a problem, but otherwise it looks fairly good as a site (esp. when coupled with the lack of serious tech industry in the area to compete for the jobs).
I find it interesting that you said Des Moines is only known for 6 things, then you listed 5. I thought maybe Magazine and Periodicals Publishing were separate, but no (see http://www.matc.edu/about/faq/difference.html). How about Presidential caucus activity as the sixth?
Of course its not Silicon Valley! Where in Silicon Valley would you find 1) 42 acres of land, 2) cheap power (or cheap anything for that matter), combined with 3) over 400,000 people within a 60 minute drive. However, I did have trouble finding the community of South Des Moines that you mentioned. ;-)
A couple of other interesting facts: It is just under a 60 minute drive from Iowa State University, where the first electronic digital computer (Atanasoff-Berry Computer) was developed. Also, Des Moines has been ranked number 4 on Forbes' list of Best Places for Business and Careers for the last 2 years in a row (http://www.forbes.com/2008/03/19/best-business-cities-biz-bestplaces08-cx_kb_0319places_land.html).
- Glenn From Iowa (no, I don't live in Des Moines, but in the Technology Corridor of Iowa - http://www.tech-corridor.com/)
I left out the rampant Methamphetamine usage at the last minute. ;) (okay, yes I didn't type in the caucuses, but that's only a quadrennial thing so it got ditched at the last minute).
South Des Moines is more unofficial than official - it's centered along 9th St. from just south of the Raccoon River (call it Thomas Beck road, say) down to Army Post Road, and bounded east and west by SE 14th and SW 14th, respectively. Heavily Italian and more than just a little Catholic, it includes Lincoln High School, etc etc. Nice folks for the most part.
You are right about the cheap cost-of-living. a decent house that can be had there for $40k would normally cost you $60k in St. Louis or Omaha, $160-200k in Salt Lake City, and $800k in LA.
PS: ISU is UofI's *****. You know it, I know it, just admit it and get on with life. ;)
/P
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by NancyLyons
August 27, 2008 3:51 PM PDT
- Microsoft isn?t the only technology business headed to the Midwest! With lower operating costs including staffing and overhead-related expenses, the Midwest is becoming a popular location for ?insourcing.? My own web development firm, Clockwork Active Media Systems, is based in Minneapolis and we are regularly competing and winning business from clients who would rather see their money go towards results rather than helping to subsidize firms located in more expensive areas of the country such as New York City or Los Angeles. Besides the lowered costs, when you choose to work with a company located in a less expensive American city, you are also helping to stimulate the economy and provide job opportunities. The lower costs and fewer hassles you experience are directly reflected in the products and service you are able to offer your clients, and can mean the difference between someone choosing you over your competition.
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(25 Comments)Nancy Lyons
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Clockwork Active Media Systems
http://www.clockwork.net/