Apple To Spend 750 Million In Galway

JONJO THE MISER

Great news,Apple is to spend 750 million on a new data centre in Galway creating hundreds of jobs, take that Dublin.
Hopefully more companies will follow and locate in the west.

eet fuk

As a Dub, I think this is great news. I hate how centralised everything is.

stimpson

It only takes a couple of shaved monkeys to run a data centre.

zl1whqvjs75cdy

*Awaits corporation tax rant*. Great news for Ireland and for the West.

whiskeyman

Low lie, the fields of Athenry,
Where once we watched the data centres fry...

circadian

Fantastic, the last thing I want is recruiters offering me positions at some cult.

Aongus Von Bismarck

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

Great news,Apple is to spend 750 million on a new data centre in Galway creating hundreds of jobs, take that Dublin.
Hopefully more companies will follow and locate in the west.

Hundreds of jobs during its construction. I can't imagine a data centre needs hundreds of employees. Unless they intend to power the centre by having red-faced Galwegians furiously pedalling fixed bicycles.
'Faster Paddy Joe, someone is creating an iTunes account'.

DoYouEvenLift

Aren't there plans to also develop some small island off the west coast of Ireland for tech as well? I remember someone posting about it on here and calling it sillicon valley-esque

Tefral

Besides the construction jobs, there won't be many once this is complete. The biggest employee presence usually at a data centre is security staff.

Phoebas

cronin_j wrote: »

Besides the construction jobs, there won't be many once this is complete. The biggest employee presence usually at a data centre is security staff.

100 people to operate it when complete according to Newstalk.
Not to be sniffed at.

Eugene Norman

circadian wrote: »

Fantastic, the last thing I want is recruiters offering me positions at some cult.

but do they hire Micky D employees?

Aongus Von Bismarck

cronin_j wrote: »

Besides the construction jobs, there won't be many once this is complete. The biggest employee presence usually at a data centre is security staff.

In fairness, it is good news regardless of the number of jobs. It shows real confidence in Ireland's electricity and broadband networks.

Eugene Norman

Aongus Von Bismarck wrote: »

Hundreds of jobs during its construction. I can't imagine a data centre needs hundreds of employees. Unless they intend to power the centre by having red-faced Galwegians furiously pedalling fixed bicycles.
'Faster Paddy Joe, someone is creating an iTunes account'.

The data centre and the power plants will need employees.

It's true that a lot of it is security. However there will be tech roles.

circadian

Eugene Norman wrote: »

but do they hire Micky D employees?

It's a cult they'll take anyone they can get. A good hygene engineer is hard to come by.

Cuddlesworth

Phoebas wrote: »

100 people to operate it when complete according to Newstalk.
Not to be sniffed at.

They don't have to be on site and are most likely already employed.

A bare handful of on-site techs(very low level hardware guys) and security staff is all thats needed.

Eugene Norman

circadian wrote: »

It's a cult they'll take anyone they can get. A good hygene engineer is hard to come by.

That's not my understanding of Apples corporate hiring policies. Anyone they can get won't fly. So maybe stick to flipping burgers?

Eugene Norman

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

They don't have to be on site and are most likely already employed.

A bare handful of on-site techs(very low level hardware guys) and security staff is all thats needed.

Clearly more people will be hired by whatever security company gets the deal specifically for this. Securitas, or whomever, are not going to suggest that they'll use the same guys who keep an eye over Super Macs and they'll at least pop over once a day.

circadian

Eugene Norman wrote: »

That's not my understanding of Apples corporate hiring policies. Anyone they can get won't fly. So maybe stick to flipping burgers?

Stick to guessing.

Eugene Norman

circadian wrote: »

Stick to guessing.

I'm not.

Cuddlesworth

Eugene Norman wrote: »

Clearly more people will be hired by whatever security company gets the deal specifically for this. Securitas, or whomever, are not going to suggest that they'll use the same guys who keep an eye over Super Macs and they'll at least pop over once a day.

Cameras into an existing control center(on Apples site), 1 guy on the gate 24/7. So maybe 4 extra staff in terms of a security company.

I don't think people realize how little physical interaction there is with a modern datacenter.

Cookie_Monster

For the project in Athenry, Apple will recover land previously used for growing and harvesting non-native trees (and restore native trees to Derrydonnell Forest).

they spin that like it's a good thing? I don't see how destroying a productive commercial forest (and carbon sink) in favour a facility that is a massive energy sink and heat producer is a great idea. but as usual, "we wern't moar jobzz" is all that really matters to Ireland Inc.

billbond4

Yeah and even the figure of 850million is missleading, thats the whole cost of the datacenter which will be running apple servers.
So just wondering how much the building will cost to build as thats the real figure of the investment?

Egginacup

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

Cameras into an existing control center(on Apples site), 1 guy on the gate 24/7. So maybe 4 extra staff in terms of a security company.

I don't think people realize how little physical interaction there is with a modern datacenter.

I've worked for many tech companies and have visited datacentres all over the place and they're eerie fucking places. One place in particular was nightmarish. One security guy and one or two others kind of just checking on a few basic things. The actual server farm was one of those lights-out operations, just the hum of hundreds of servers, switches and routers and tape backup robots rolling around on their pre-assigned routes loading tapes to and from storage cabinets.

Arsemageddon

Egginacup wrote: »

The actual server farm was one of those lights-out operations, just the hum of hundreds of servers, switches and routers and tape backup robots rolling around on their pre-assigned routes loading tapes to and from storage cabinets.

Ah yes, the low, sinister drone of Skynet hatching it's plan to exterminate humanity and take over the world.

stevedublin

stimpson wrote: »

It only takes a couple of shaved monkeys to run a data centre.

Whats wrong with unshaven monkeys?

awec

Anyone know why it's costing so much?

RobertKK

Apple are spending €1.7 billion on two data centres in the EU. Costing €850 million each, the other is in Denmark.
All will be run on renewable energy.

JohnnyChimpo

stevedublin wrote: »

Whats wrong with unshaven monkeys?

The loose hairs get stuck in the servers fans, major fire hazard. jfc man have you never been inside a fully monkey-operated data centre?

18MonthsaSlave

awec wrote: »

Anyone know why it's costing so much?

an IBM 160core/4TB x86_64 server in a rack costs the guts of 100k euro.
If you could actually sell on enterprise servers no datacentre in the country would be safe. A box van reversed up to the door of a datacentre could remove 10 or 20 million euros worth of servers. Fortunately hot enterprise servers aren't easily sold on.

Harry Palmr

Why does Galway get all the good stuff?

keithclancy

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

Great news,Apple is to spend 750 million on a new data centre in Galway creating hundreds of jobs, take that Dublin.
Hopefully more companies will follow and locate in the west.

Company that pays f*ck all tax in Ireland plans to hire 100 people to run a data center.

Woo hoo.

Lapin

awec wrote: »

Anyone know why it's costing so much?

Harry Palmr wrote: »

Why does Galway get all the good stuff?

Because we're worth it.

mary90

300 Jobs to be created. Supposedly that doesn't include jobs created for construction. Not bad for the area at all! I can't post the link but the Galway Advertiser confirmed it earlier this afternoon.

conorhal

awec wrote: »

Anyone know why it's costing so much?

Well if the accompanying picture is anything to go by it's a campus that consists of about 10 inter-linked data-centers, fill those with racks of equipment and include the cost of that, the plant equipment etc (possibly the land value also) and while expensive it looks like the right ballpark as figures go.

18MonthsaSlave

300 temporary construction jobs and there is no way they are going to be employing 100 full time staff. Of the staff they do employ a large proportion will be on low wages.
Datacentres do not create huge amounts of jobs.
The only good thing about them is that they do create sustainable jobs due to the amount of capital invested but if too much grant-aid was given then it is the government who is paying for the staff, not the company.

Akrasia

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

they spin that like it's a good thing? I don't see how destroying a productive commercial forest (and carbon sink) in favour a facility that is a massive energy sink and heat producer is a great idea. but as usual, "we wern't moar jobzz" is all that really matters to Ireland Inc.

They're replacing those trees with other trees, apple trees if you will,

and this means they'll need to hire even more security staff to keep those pesky local children from plundering the orchard.

afatbollix

Is that because they have loads of clouds?

Could run all there cloud services.

awec

Random question. How much profit would the builder(s) expect to make on a job like that?

mary90

Sorry, it was actually the Connacht Tribune

"Apple executives clarify 300 full-time jobs on-site in Derrydonnell when facility up-and-running. Construction jobs are separate to that"

Low wage jobs are better than no jobs at all. It all looks good for the west to be attracting them to invest in the first place no?

18MonthsaSlave

awec wrote: »

Random question. How much profit would the builder(s) expect to make on a job like that?

How many Irish builders do you think have the skills to build this datacentre.
Also, as it is for consumer data I don't think the datacentres will feature the levels of security a business datacentre would possess. The datacentre next door to me is built with layers and you only get entry to the innermost layers if you have sufficient security clearance.
The pictures of the datacentre also make it appear to be very low rise.

18MonthsaSlave

mary90 wrote: »

Sorry, it was actually the Connacht Tribune

"Apple executives clarify 300 full-time jobs on-site in Derrydonnell when facility up-and-running. Construction jobs are separate to that"

Low wage jobs are better than no jobs at all. It all looks good for the west to be attracting them to invest in the first place no?

Personally I'd prefer a native software development company trading overseas employing 25 or 50 developers; that's a small acorn from which a great oak tree might grow.

RomanKnows

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

300 temporary construction jobs and there is no way they are going to be employing 100 full time staff. Of the staff they do employ a large proportion will be on low wages.
Datacentres do not create huge amounts of jobs.
The only good thing about them is that they do create sustainable jobs due to the amount of capital invested but if too much grant-aid was given then it is the government who is paying for the staff, not the company.

What about all the providers of ancillary services to the centre? Delivery spares, designing and building the electricity sub station, installing the fibre?

Only today the ESB announced they are hiring 300 new electrical apprentices. They are hiring engineering, telecoms and IT staff like they are going out of fashion. They must think Ireland is on the road to future growth. You don't make an investment in people like that without strong evidence of going to need them.

This is more good news for Ireland. The recovery is happening. This is bad news for people who believe in leftie and shinnernomics.

Drift

It depends on how they go about the build - there's a few contractors capable. Clean rooms are common in pharma, biomed and lexlip! Builder's finish M and E wouldn't be particularly onerous if Apple were getting someone else to do the final fit-out.

Of course that doesn't mean it will be an Irish contractor. Every big contractor in Europe is probably on the phone this morning to see how they get a chance to tender! I've no idea what percentage profit!!

18MonthsaSlave

I'm sitting between two massive datacentres. Once built they don't do much except consume electricity and occassionally let out puffs of black smoke when the diesel generators are tested.

Drift

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

I'm sitting between two massive datacentres. Once built they don't do much except consume electricity and occassionally let out puffs of black smoke when the diesel generators are tested.

You should run a few pipes in underneath each of them - heat the house for free!

awec

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

How many Irish builders do you think have the skills to build this datacentre.
Also, as it is for consumer data I don't think the datacentres will feature the levels of security a business datacentre would possess. The datacentre next door to me is built with layers and you only get entry to the innermost layers if you have sufficient security clearance.
The pictures of the datacentre also make it appear to be very low rise.

Well I'd imagine large parts of it are pretty standard construction.

Drift

awec wrote: »

Well I'd imagine large parts of it are pretty standard construction.

Could be just a big shed if they want to go that way.

18MonthsaSlave

awec wrote: »

Well I'd imagine large parts of it are pretty standard construction.

They're not the parts when the big money is earned.

18MonthsaSlave

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

They're not the parts when the big money is earned.

300 jobs for co. Galway is very big news though regardless of how big paying they are why do you feel the need to try and run it all down as if its nothing.

Then there are all the job during construction and all the local businesses that will benefit from a big new facility and all the people working there.

There are lots of people being forced to live in Dublin or worse again leave the country, this may be an opportunity for some to return home and that can only be a good thing.

18MonthsaSlave

Huxley Unimportant Timber wrote: »

300 jobs for co. Galway is very big news though regardless of how big paying they are why do you feel the need to try and run it all down as if its nothing.

Then there are all the job during construction and all the local businesses that will benefit from a big new facility and all the people working there.

There are lots of people being forced to live in Dublin or worse again leave the country, this may be an opportunity for some to return home and that can only be a good thing.

300 jobs over the period of construction, not 300 jobs in one go and I know that the 100 jobs in the datacentre itself is an exagerattion and many of those jobs will be low paid.
Very few people here actually work in our datacentres. They all access the servers remotely once they are set up and many are actually not even working on the servers from this continent.
Our datacentres would be a lot more heterogeneous than what Apple will be building too.

awec

Huxley Unimportant Timber wrote: »

300 jobs for co. Galway is very big news though regardless of how big paying they are why do you feel the need to try and run it all down as if its nothing.

Then there are all the job during construction and all the local businesses that will benefit from a big new facility and all the people working there.

There are lots of people being forced to live in Dublin or worse again leave the country, this may be an opportunity for some to return home and that can only be a good thing.

Indeed, any job is good news. I would also imagine the pay for a lot of the roles will be good enough as a lot of the roles will require skilled, educated workers.