Tag / data centre

by Matt Seaton

Netwise to further expand London East facility

We’re very pleased to officially announce further development and expansion plans at our Netwise London East (NLE) facility.

The ink is now dry on a deal which sees us take full control of the freestanding units on the south side of the Datapoint estate – occupying Units 5, 6 and 7 – adding another ~12,000ft2 of available data centre space.

The total NLE facility footprint now spans ~38,000ft2, and is expected to house around 500 racks across all active data halls once fully deployed.

Unit 7
Unit 7 joins prior phase developments at London East; Unit 6, Phases 1 and 2, and Unit 5, Phase 3 (the latter of which is still under development)

Initial refurbishment works are already underway in the newly acquired space, with adjustments being made to increase the front compound, and to install perimeter security to our exacting specifications.

This comes just 12 months after beginning work on our first expansion project at NLE (Phase 3), which is expected to see initial completion and client occupation in 2026, as Data Hall 5 comes online. The modular deployment of the initial expansion project will continue into 2027, with the onlining of Data Hall 6.

Updates continue to flow into our much-lauded build blog, which allows readers to follow along with a behind the scenes look at progress in active development phases. This newly planned phase of expansion works will flow into the build blog in due course.

Unit 7
The initial renovation works are well underway, to prepare the space for our future conversion works

We now have full operational occupation and control over the south side of the Datapoint estate, with both buildings either side of the active facility forming part of the London East footprint. This gives us full control over the entire freestanding building, with the full perimeter and all external areas now under Netwise authority.

The addition of Unit 7 will see the total footprint of the London East facility grow by nearly 200% since Phase 1 began in 2020.

Unit 7
As with both prior development projects, this new space will also carry with it a host of additional amenities for clients to enjoy

Plans for the internal fit-out of this new space are still pending. Early stage plans centre around an additional two data halls (7 and 8), which are likely to become high-density spaces to cater for increasing demand from the HPC and AI/ML sectors, particularly for inference applications that require edge facility locations in critical markets.

Unit 7
The new space will enable continued growth and expansion at our high-demand London East data centre, which sits within the UKs most important data centre ecosystem

Total power delivered to the site is to be significantly increased, with final plans and figures as-yet unannounced.

"This is an incredibly exciting time for Netwise, as we deploy further space at our flagship London East facility. The demand for high-quality data centre space in London only continues to grow, so ensuring we have maximum availability at all times - for existing and emerging deployment trends - is vital."

Matt Seaton, Director

We continue to invest heavily in the development of our portfolio across the board, as the market expands more broadly, placing increasing demand on the infrastructure that drives the modern economy.

Unit 7
Adding Unit 7 to our London East estate is the final piece of our property control plan for this location

This multi-pronged approach to growth and development within the organisation has been a cornerstone of the Netwise formula since day one, with an in-house team capable of managing a wide range of ongoing projects concurrently.

"Our aim has always been to take full control of the south side of the Datapoint estate. Adding Unit 7 to the London East footprint sees this plan through, giving us maximum flexibility over where we take the next chapter of the London East story. We're extremely excited to see continued growth here at our flagship London data centre. With Netwise turning 16 this December, we have much cause for celebration."

Matthew Butt, Managing Director

Having additional capacity available in London’s ever-popular data centre ecosystem is vital for growth-minded operators in this sector, as demand for critical infrastructure continues to outpace sector build rates. Staying ahead of the curve and building world-class facilities that clients from all across the globe can rely on is of paramount importance as we look towards the next decade.

You can follow along with early stage progress on our build blog – keep an eye out for updates as we head into 2026.

by Matt Seaton

A look back at 2024

As we close the doors on yet another record-beating year at Netwise, we can now take a look back at the last 12 months of change and development, which have been host to major leaps forward in a wide range of areas within the organisation.

We always knew that 2024 would be a big year, and we were not wrong. In the last 12 months, we have made great strides in the development of our London East facility, which continues to grow into one of London’s most compelling independent data centre offerings.

Exterior
Perhaps the most important project of 2025 began late in 2024 – our expansion project at NLE, which will see the onlining of two new data halls this year

Here are some of the headlines from 2024:

  • Netwise turned 15 – having been founded in 2009, Netwise turned 15 in 2024, which is a great milestone and a testament to the unwavering stability of the organisation.
  • We fully deployed Data Hall 4 – Data Hall 4 reached completion in early 2024, allowing for continued client deployments throughout the year. The build process for Data Hall 4 can be found on our #BuildBlog.
  • The deployment of Data Hall 3 began – in the closing stages of 2024, we began pre-stage works on Data Hall 3, which is the final hall for deployment in the current footprint at London East (ahead of the large-scale expansion in 2025). This will be the final hall as part of the Phase 2 development cycle, and will be documented on our #BuildBlog in the coming months.
  • We closed NLC in the summer – the summer of 2024 saw the closure of our legacy site in Bermondsey, Netwise London Central. This was a very large project that had been under planning for many months prior to execution, resulting in an extremely smooth closure process once the work schedule began. This included extensive decommissioning works, while also continuing with the Phase 2 development schedule at London East.
  • We migrated all live systems from NLC to NLE – as part of the NLC closure, we migrated all client systems from NLC to NLE. This was a very complex operation spanning eight evenings in total, with the entire operation being completed extremely smoothly, thanks to the extensive planning phase, and the in-house expertise of our world-class team. In total, 126 enclosures were moved out of NLC.
  • We upgraded our core network – all of our on-net nodes received an extensive upgrade in the first half of the year, increasing overall capacity and improving performance for clients that utilise our world-class transit network.
  • Lee Smith joined as Junior Engineer – in Q4, we expanded our team with the joining of Lee, our new Junior Engineer, who is already and integral part of our in-house electrical engineering team. Expect a full introductory post very soon.
  • The NLE expansion project officially started in Q4 – very late in 2024, we broke ground on the next phase of development at NLE. The installation of the mezzanine structure within the new footprint began in December – you can expect plenty of #BuildBlog updates as Phase 3 progresses in 2025.
  • Works began on the full redevelopment of our customer portal – we have big plans for our customer portal in 2025 and beyond, as we begin a full rework of the UI/UX. We’ve teamed up with the same outfit behind our company rebrand and main website redesign from 2019 for this project, and we hope to have more news on this later in the year. The design of this new portal began in the closing stages of 2024, as a collaborative project including our development team.

Aside to the somewhat unique task of closing NLC, the main focus of the year has absolutely centred around the continued expansion of our flagship data centre, NLE. This likely comes as no real surprise, given the pace at which our services are being taken up in the market, and the unabating growth within the sector as a whole. Our current forecasting sees no slow up in this ongoing trend, and as such we will continue to invest heavily in our future at NLE and beyond.

Matthew Butt, Managing Director, and Matt Seaton, Director, stood outside of NLC on the day of its final closure
The closure of NLC in the summer was a notable milestone for Netwise, as focus shifts to the ongoing development of NLE

Looking past the more tangible projects in 2024, financial performance has again been exceptionally positive, which further solidifies our position as a leader in the market, providing unmatched stability for our growing roster of clients, and of course enabling our expansion in the years ahead. Base revenues for the year have grown by 21% – despite the distraction of closing NLC in the summer – which in our fifteenth year of operation is all the more remarkable.

Mezz
The internal fit-out of Phase 3 is now well underway, which will house Data Halls 5 and 6, along with a host of exciting new amenities

In short, 2024 has been another incredible year for Netwise, setting us up for another truly exceptional year in 2025.

So, how are things looking for the year ahead? We’re expecting more of the same, with a major focus on the completion of Phase 2 (Data Hall 3), and the larger expansion project as part of Phase 3, which will run in tandem throughout the first few months of the year (Data Halls 5 and 6, plus amenities). While we can’t comment too far in advance on other plans for the year, we do have some very exciting developments in the works, that could see further expansion plans confirmed before the end of 2025 – watch this space!

by Matt Seaton

Netwise to expand London East facility

This month we’re very happy to officially announce the next major phase of development and expansion at our Netwise London East (NLE) data centre.

We’re facilitating this expansion by pushing into the adjacent building on the Datapoint estate, which sits alongside our existing four-hall facility. This will result in a single expanded facility housing six high-specification data halls.

Exterior
The new space will be a direct continuation of the design language already employed in the existing spaces at NLE
Exterior
The initial unit refurbishment works to prepare the space for the main technical fit-out have begun

The initial fit-out phase began in July, with the main internal schedule of technical works set to begin in early 2025. This project will expand NLE by 168 racks, increasing the total internal area of the building by around 13,000ft2.

The new building is being fully refurbished – both inside and out – following the departure of the previous occupants, ahead of the main work schedule which will start thereafter.

Interior
The new space will house an additional 168 racks, across two data halls, alongside a range of other client and staff amenities

This is our first major step towards developing NLE into a campus-style facility, which spans multiple buildings on the same estate. The two units will become a single operational building, with multiple pass-through points for clients and staff, as well as for the sharing of core services.

Alongside the additional rack capacity, this new space will also introduce further amenities and technical features, including increased capacity for staff, a second loading bay and storage area, more on-site parking and EV charging, as well as improvements to our water handling capabilities.

There will also be flexible space held for future use, which will provide additional service options for potential wholesale customers, for things such as private on-site NOC capabilities.

Exterior
This new addition to NLE will create an impressive frontage, and allow for the segregation of facility entrances for staff and clients
"This represents another seven-figure investment by Netwise in its own future, and the future of its clients. To be announcing this level of growth at NLE only a couple of years after the first clients moved in is something we're very proud of; it's a testament to the strength of this sector, and our own position within it."

Matt Seaton, Director

The uptake of services at NLE has been extremely impressive since it soft-opened in the spring of 2022, with the phased fit-out schedule just keeping pace with demand. The current building now has three of the four data halls deployed. The final hall in this building is scheduled to be online by the end of 2024.

Interior
A view inside the new space, as early-stage works begin – this includes a new roof, as the shell is prepared ahead of occupation by our internal fit-out team

The two new halls coming as part of the facility expansion project will be larger than the halls in the current building, housing 84 racks per hall at maximum rack density – a 33% increase per hall. These new halls will house three containment pods each, giving greater scope for private space options.

In June, the Netwise London Central (NLC) facility officially closed, having served clients for 10 years. The forthcoming expansion at Netwise London East would become one of the main driving factors behind the decision to shutter NLC, as many core components within the site reached end of life.

The large seven-figure reinvestment required to adequately refresh NLC has instead been diverted to the new facility, which has the forward-looking scope to springboard Netwise into the next phase in its growth cycle.

Matthew Butt, Managing Director, and Matt Seaton, Director, stood outside of NLC on the day of its final closure
Matthew Butt, Managing Director, and Matt Seaton, Director, stood outside of NLC on the day of its final closure, after a decade of active service

The NLE expansion comes as Netwise continues to welcome an exciting range of new clients into its facilities, as well as facilitating the growth of its long-standing customers.

"We always knew that we'd be expanding NLE in time, to facilitate our growth trajectory, however to be at that stage already is a tangible demonstration of our performance and reputation in this industry. I'm very excited by this next phase, particularly as we come out the back of the NLC closure, which required considerable care and attention."

Matthew Butt, Managing Director

The expansion of NLE will bolster our position as a leading data centre operator in the high-demand East London / Docklands region, as we further the already significant investments made in our flagship facility, which has been in operation since mid-2022.

Interior
The entire Netwise team is extremely excited to see this next phase take shape

While finer details of the technical plans are still expected to develop over the closing months of 2024, the overarching plans are already locked in, and can be discussed with interested parties that may be looking to utilise bulk space in the new side of the facility.

Exterior
This expansion will dramatically increase the total size of the NLE facility, taking the total internal area to around 26,000ft2 – external compound space will also be increased for parking and plant areas

The Netwise team cannot wait to show you around the new side of the facility as it develops. And as always, the #buildblog will be back in action, documenting the entire build process, so be sure to keep an eye out for new posts.

by Matt Seaton

A look back at 2023

Another 12 months in the books, and another record-breaking period for Netwise, which we’re immensely proud to share with our clients and stakeholders as we look ahead to another equally exciting year.

As we step into 2024 for the first time this week, we’ll take a moment to look back and appreciate the year gone by; the first full year of live operation at Netwise London East.

The headline is that development works have continued at pace at our London East facility, as we prepare to bring Data Halls 3 and 4 online in early 2024, enabling our next phase of growth and expansion.

General
Engineering works continue at NLE

At the point of closing out 2023, we’ve pushed development works into all corners of our London East facility, with upstairs now fully deployed (Data Halls 1 and 2), and downstairs deployment underway (Data Halls 3 and 4). The site has been a hive of activity over the past year, and we have plenty to show for it.

Notable projects from 2023 include:

  • We fully deployed Data Hall 2 – the second active Data Hall within NLE welcomed its single long-term tenant in 2023; a major milestone for both parties. We enjoyed watching the space fill out with a wide range of cutting-edge hardware in Q4 2023.
  • Phase 2 works have ramped up – while we technically included the build of Data Hall 2 in the Phase 2 works schedule, the real meat of this phase comes in the form of Data Halls 3 and 4. These two new halls are being readied for occupation in early 2024, with the closing stages of 2023 seeing real traction in this area; Data Hall 4 now has its primary cooling system deployed, as well as much of the core electrical distribution infrastructure.
  • Josh Carvalho joined as Engineering Manager – in September, we expanded our team with the joining of Josh, our new Engineering Manager. Expect a full introductory post very soon.
  • NLC again exceeded its design PUE, reaching a remarkable 1.09 – back in 2022, London Central achieved a real-world PUE of just 1.11, beating the design PUE target of 1.12. In 2023, we managed an incredible 1.09. We’re extremely excited to see where we can get NLE as occupancy rates rise rapidly, looking towards the design target of just 1.05.
  • We added a range of niceties and features to NLE – we rolled out a range of new features at our London East site, such as on-site EV charging, recycling and general waste points, Dyson hand dryers throughout the building, improvements to lighting, additional Naturewall cladding; all of which we hope will improve customer experiences inside the facility.
  • Our next round of software development works began – in the closing stages of the year, we set in motion a wide range of software development works, including improvements to our customer portal (for power and bandwidth monitoring), an in-house IP management tool, and the roll-out of our own QR code check in system, the latter of which has been working well for us since its full roll-out in the summer.

The general focus over the past 12 months has been to expand into the current footprint at NLE more completely, moving from the initial deployment phase of a single hall, to making use of all four halls within the current building. We now have active works underway across every sector of the site.

London Central has also seen its fair share of input, largely in the form of ongoing maintenance operations, with activity across many critical systems. NLC is also now home to our significant stock of APC racks, which are being pre-staged there before heading to NLE for active service.

Beyond the exciting physical development works, we’ve posted exceptional financial growth metrics again in 2023, which will support our ongoing expansion aspirations, and of course contribute to continued rock-steady reliability for clients all around the world. Base revenues for the year grew by just over 30%, which for our fourteenth year of trading is something we’re extremely proud of.

UPS
Adding to our core power infrastructure over the past 12 months has certainly formed a main component of our ongoing expansion activities

We have some very exciting news to share about additional future expansion at London East very soon – enabling Phase 3 of development – taking us to new heights at our ever-evolving Canning Town address.

by Matt Seaton

Sustainability in-focus: beating our design PUE figures for a second year running

We are very excited to announce that our London Central (NLC) facility has once again exceeded expectations in terms of energy efficiency. NLC’s design PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) is an impressive 1.12, but the annualised real-world PUE for the last 12 months was a staggering 1.09 – an improvement over the already remarkable 1.11 achieved the year prior.

NLC is our facility in Bermondsey, London, which we opened in 2015

For those unfamiliar with the concept of PUE, it is a measure of how much energy a data centre uses for computing compared to how much energy it uses for supporting load, such as cooling, UPS losses, fire systems etc. The goal for data centres is to have the lowest possible PUE, as this indicates the highest level of energy efficiency.

Even just meeting our design PUE would be impressive for a London data centre, but to exceed this by such a significant margin is something we’re hugely proud of.

We have consistently demonstrated our commitment to sustainability and energy efficiency across all aspects of our operation. This latest achievement is a testament to our ongoing efforts to reduce our carbon footprint and promote sustainable practices in the industry.

A real-world PUE of 1.09 ranks among the lowest PUEs reported by data centres worldwide, indicating that the facility is operating with a high level of energy efficiency and with minimal energy waste.

We believe that data centres have a significant role to play in mitigating the impacts of climate change, and we are proud to be leading the way in this effort. Our innovative approach to energy management, combined with our state-of-the-art technology and cutting-edge infrastructure, has enabled us to achieve these outstanding results.

Furthermore, the design PUE of our latest data centre, Netwise London East (NLE), is just 1.05. Reaching a facility’s design PUE target does require a high level of capacity utilisation, which takes time following launch (though helped by our modular design and deployment philosophy), however we couldn’t be more excited to see where our real-world figures lands at NLE in the coming months and years.

NLE opened in 2022, in Canning Town, and is on-track to be one of the most efficient data centres in the world

We would like to take this opportunity to thank our team and our customers for their continued support. We remain committed to driving innovation and sustainability in the data centre industry and look forward to continuing to push the boundaries of what is possible.