Apple data centre, Derrydonnell Co. Galway

Cian_N · 24-02-2015 12:48am #1

I'm sure most people are aware of this new data centre that apple are setting up in Co. Galway. It is been set up in woodland which was previously owned by Coilte, but was recently sold to the IDA. This means that Apple will be smashing their corperate foot down on the trees to put in this data centre. They say that new native trees will be planted in their place but I don't think there would be enough space to plant enough trees compared to the amount they cut down. Apple also say that new jobs will be created 'over different phases of construction' when realistically there will only be construchtion jobs and when thats done, it will only be security and mantainence jobs as the whole centre will be controlled from a remote log-in from California. I am a member of the local community and from an information meeting that was held this evening, I have learned that there will only be a 150m perimeter of woodland left around the centre, which isn't a lot. I would be glad to hear anyone's views on the situation.

I said · 24-02-2015 1:06am

Cian_N wrote: »

I'm sure most people are aware of this new data centre that apple are setting up in Co. Galway. It is been set up in woodland which was previously owned by Coilte, but was recently sold to the IDA. This means that Apple will be smashing their corperate foot down on the trees to put in this data centre. They say that new native trees will be planted in their place but I don't think there would be enough space to plant enough trees compared to the amount they cut down. Apple also say that new jobs will be created 'over different phases of construction' when realistically there will only be construchtion jobs and when thats done, it will only be security and mantainence jobs as the whole centre will be controlled from a remote log-in from California. I am a member of the local community and from an information meeting that was held this evening, I have learned that there will only be a 150m perimeter of woodland left around the centre, which isn't a lot. I would be glad to hear anyone's views on the situation.

This is Ireland inc were money big business and politics go hand in hand so if you think they give two fcuks about yer opinions forget about it.
This meeting is fufilling apples obligations to planning laws.
With the economy on its knees 300 hundred badly needed jobs trump all which at this moment in time is no bad thing.

the_syco · 24-02-2015 1:23am

How many of the trees that they're knocking would be over 20 years old? Or are they building in an area where trees are grown to be cut down?

CJ Haughey · 24-02-2015 2:41am

I wouldnt get too stressed about it, would you prefer if Apple did not come to Galway op?

JohnBoy · 24-02-2015 8:25am

I had thought it was being developed on a site that has been clearfelled of spruce?

Cian_N · 24-02-2015 9:53pm

JohnBoy wrote: »

I had thought it was being developed on a site that has been clearfelled of spruce?

The majority of it has not been felled and there's also areas of natural woodland on the site.

Cian_N · 24-02-2015 9:59pm

the_syco wrote: »

How many of the trees that they're knocking would be over 20 years old? Or are they building in an area where trees are grown to be cut down?

It doesn't matter how old trees are as where there is trees, there's wildlife. Building the data centre is destroying their natural habitat. Coilte's forests (as the one the site is being built on ) is renewable woodland. When trees are cut down, new ones are planted to take their place.

gctest50 · 25-02-2015 12:03am

Cian_N wrote: »

The majority of it has not been felled and there's also areas of natural woodland on the site.

https://www.google.ie/maps/@53.2871134,-8.8226733,3931m/data=!3m1!1e3

syklops · 25-02-2015 12:11am

As my father says, if you want to do anything in Ireland a committee immediately forms to stop you.

Reindeer · 25-02-2015 12:48am

Building on a forestry doesn't bother me much as those can be replaced or moved. What concerns me is there has got to be dozens of buildings suitable to their cause that have gone vacant in recent years. I'm surprised they couldn't find something standing to suit their needs with all the empty buildings I see about.

St. Leibowitz · 25-02-2015 11:53am

Reindeer wrote: »

Building on a forestry doesn't bother me much as those can be replaced or moved. What concerns me is there has got to be dozens of buildings suitable to their cause that have gone vacant in recent years. I'm surprised they couldn't find something standing to suit their needs with all the empty buildings I see about.

No, there isn't.

I don't think you fully appreciate the scale of this project and the technology involved. It's huge, and while the technology isn't especially leading edge or complex, there's a huge amount of it.

syklops · 25-02-2015 12:50pm

Reindeer wrote: »

Building on a forestry doesn't bother me much as those can be replaced or moved. What concerns me is there has got to be dozens of buildings suitable to their cause that have gone vacant in recent years. I'm surprised they couldn't find something standing to suit their needs with all the empty buildings I see about.

There is not a single data centre emtpy in this country, this due mainly to the fact that IT is one of the few industries which kept going during the lean times. A DC has to be purpose built. You can't just convert an existing building.

Cian_N · 25-02-2015 1:07pm

syklops wrote: »

There is not a single data centre emtpy in this country, this due mainly to the fact that IT is one of the few industries which kept going during the lean times. A DC has to be purpose built. You can't just convert an existing building.

There are two things this data centre needs

i) Space, and lots of it
ii) Wi-Fi

There isn't fibre optic wifi on the site where it's being built so I don't suppose how they're going to go about putting it out there

brianwalshcork · 25-02-2015 1:38pm

Cian_N wrote: »

There isn't fibre optic wifi on the site ...

It's not easy to come by the old fibre optic wifi alright, but it's been shown that there's rich deposits buried deep under ground in the west of Ireland... probably explains Apple's choice of site.

syklops · 25-02-2015 3:09pm

Cian_N wrote: »

There are two things this data centre needs

i) Space, and lots of it
ii) Wi-Fi

There isn't fibre optic wifi on the site where it's being built so I don't suppose how they're going to go about putting it out there

No, a DC does not need wifi. It does need fibre and there is lots of fibre in that area.

JohnBoy · 25-02-2015 4:48pm

If there's an 850m budget I wouldnt be surprised if they're going pulling some fiber of their own even.

gctest50 · 25-02-2015 5:52pm

Cian_N wrote: »

There are two things this data centre needs

i) Space, and lots of it
ii) Wi-Fi

There isn't fibre optic wifi on the site where it's being built so I don't suppose how they're going to go about putting it out there

it's not some super-magical thing provided by pixies on the seventh of whenever

this sorta thing on a bigger scale :

1000 meters in 21 minutes :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8YH5E-8KUs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIavt36CBeY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7Imf_eJGIo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyT-JonPTv4

and you can wrap it around the power lines :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-TPB5h3sm0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21Qlv5U6oNQ

syklops · 25-02-2015 6:11pm

Not to mention the main Dublin to Galway trunk passes right next to the site and there are fibre cabinets already activated in Athenry.

Cian_N · 25-02-2015 6:36pm

syklops wrote: »

Not to mention the main Dublin to Galway trunk passes right next to the site and there are fibre cabinets already activated in Athenry.

The fibre optic lines haven't been activated on or in the local area around the site

gctest50 · 25-02-2015 7:04pm

Cian_N wrote: »

The fibre optic lines haven't been activated on or in the local area around the site

what makes you think they can't ?

Cian_N · 25-02-2015 7:28pm

gctest50 wrote: »

what makes you think they can't ?

If you took the time to read my previous post, you would of seen that I said that the fibre lines have not yet been activated. Not that they wouldn't be able to ?

Reindeer · 25-02-2015 11:12pm

syklops wrote: »

There is not a single data centre emtpy in this country, this due mainly to the fact that IT is one of the few industries which kept going during the lean times. A DC has to be purpose built. You can't just convert an existing building.

We do it all the time stateside.

_Tombstone_ · 25-02-2015 11:29pm

Reindeer wrote: »

We do it all the time stateside.

A yea, it's done all over the world. They've built them into old Bomb Shelters even.

Here's one of Googles built using an old Paper Mill.

google.com/about/datacenters/inside/locations/hamina/

BreadnBuddha · 25-02-2015 11:48pm

Doesn't have a lot to do with forestry, but seriously lads, these guys won't be using a flippin' UPC or Eircom fiber internet connection.

They'll run in their own data pipe or piggyback directly onto a primary backbone interconnect to feed traffic to the US and Europe.

This will be a Tier 1 data centre. They'll have whatever power and data services they want. Jump? Yes Sir, How high? Anyone thinking this is like a big version of the computer room in your office building is missing the scale of it altogether.

That old paper mill? Tip of the iceberg.

Apple data centre, Derrydonnell Co. Galway

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