Tag / expansion

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

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

Growth and expansion at our London Central data centre

Growth

As is the case with any modular data centre, available capacity scales with demand. This means that space is built out in stages as the available pool depletes.

This is a design and build technique employed at our London Central data centre, along with many other top modern facilities around the world.

We’re very happy to be in a position whereby the next stage of fit-out works in Data Hall 1 are now well underway.

Our team has completed all containment works for the next three serviceable pods in Data Hall 1, with Pod 3 expected for occupancy in early Q1 2018.

 

Market growth in London

London is now home to the largest retail colocation market in the world, with 7.45 million square feet of data centre floor space.

In Q3 2017 alone, demand for data centre services in London surged by 46.77%, by far the most impressive increase across the FLAP market this period.

This upward trend follows on from wider market analysis, whereby global demand for data centre services is swelling year-on-year as organisations continue to adopt outsourcing strategies for their critical IT infrastructure.

As this demand grows, so to does the pressure for data centre operators to act ethically in the sourcing of their energy, with global consumption expected to exceed 500TWh by 2020. With our own capacity expansion plans in mind, both at our London Central site and future facilities, we have elected to switch to 100% renewable energy across our private estate.

 

Growth at Netwise

Uptake over the past 12 months at our London Central facility has been nothing sort of fantastic.

While this does fall in line with general market expectations, it also stands testament to our growing position as London’s leading independent data centre operator, with a wealth of new enterprises joining us in 2017.

Our modular-by-design data centre allows us to scale up operations as demand for services increases, which is why we are now rolling out Pod 3 ready for occupation, with 4 and 5 on standby for completion as required later in 2018.

Power Upgrade

This all comes as part of a wider internal investment program which has seen our service delivery infrastructure bolstered dramatically this year, across our entire portfolio.

Our recent power capacity upgrade works came to a close this November, a much-anticipated project enabled through a close working relationship with UK Power Networks.

London Central is now perfectly positioned to expand to full capacity in Data Hall 1, along with the fit-out and operation of Data Hall 2 in due course.

We’d love for you to join us as we continue to grow alongside our wide and varied customer base.

Learn more about our Green Data Centres and our Green Colocation services.