Apple Data Centre Athenry = Middle of Nowhere.

ClovenHoof · 23-02-2015 4:09pm #1

Miles from the 'commuter' rail station by contrast the Danish twin facility is beside the train station.

Ireland...

cgcsb · 23-02-2015 4:14pm

Their facility in Cork is also without reliable public transport. Also see IBM in Damastown.

Our policy is, you can build wherever you like, no regard for the subsequent pressure on infrastructure. Anything for a few jobs/votes

Eugene Norman · 23-02-2015 4:18pm

Surely Apple picked the spot.

cgcsb · 23-02-2015 4:19pm

Eugene Norman wrote: »

Surely Apple picked the spot.

picking a spot doesn't = planning permission.

dubhthach · 23-02-2015 4:32pm

ClovenHoof wrote: »

Miles from the 'commuter' rail station by contrast the Danish twin facility is beside the train station.

Ireland...

The key issues for this site are going to be the following:

Grid Connection
Multiple independent fibre connections
Large site

Not like there's going to be large amount people commuting to it anyways, total staff numbers will be on the order of 100, given it operates as a 24x7 facility you probably looking at 20-30 staff working per shift.

FobleAsNuck · 23-02-2015 4:42pm

ClovenHoof wrote: »

Ireland...

sure, just give them a call if you think you can outsmart their planners

dubhthach · 23-02-2015 4:46pm

To put it in perspective this planned Data Center is something like three times the size of Microsoft custom built data center in Grange Castle in West Dublin. This was first Azure (microsoft cloud service) dc outside of continental US. It's probably currently one of the biggest DC's in Ireland, not sure if the new Google one is bigger.

http://www.digitalsignage.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/02.MicrosoftDublinDataCentreAerialView1.jpg

Bogger77 · 23-02-2015 5:04pm

Seriously?
Why should this facility be built near a train station?

All it needs is access to the fiber backbones, decent capacity electric network and a connection to the road network.

It's going to have a few security staff on site, and a couple of tech heads once it's built, with a cleaning team calling once a day. 3 or 4 teams of 5 on a rolling shift cycle is all that'll be working onsite. There won't even be a reception desk.

Athenry was chosen, as there's multiple fiber links passing the site, from the reports, access to public transport would never be a consideration, and I'm sure the people in Athenry would love a massive industrial building going up in the town center, near the train station.

Subpopulus · 23-02-2015 9:31pm

Comparing this facility to Apple's Cork building isn't really appropriate. Apple came to Cork in 1980 when they were still a smallish company - they only had 20 people at the start and were only a small part of the IDA's industrial estate. As they got bigger they continually expanded, to the point where it doesn't make financial sense to move. It's not as if someone just decided to put a couple of thousand jobs on top of the hill without any thought for public transport.

dubhthach · 23-02-2015 10:04pm

It's completely inappropriate, a Data Center has hardly any staff, it's basically a giant warehouse full of servers. If anything they probably use a containerized format, in which case a 40 foot container arrives off the boat from the US already full populated with servers/cabling and all the NOC guys have to do is:

1. Hook up the power
2. Hook up the networking
3. Hook up cooling

After that they'll basically just responding to alerts and replacing faulty parts (dead disks, faults on disk controllers etc.)

markpb · 23-02-2015 11:04pm

dubhthach wrote: »

After that they'll basically just responding to alerts and replacing faulty parts (dead disks, faults on disk controllers etc.)

And if they're anything like Microsoft, they won't even do that. MS let servers and server parts die until a percentage of the container is useless and then they replace it. There is no manual work at all once it's been commissioned.

Arciphel · 23-02-2015 11:11pm

I hear they are building it there cos all the wet weather shur tis a perfect spot for the oul cloud computin.

Stheno · 23-02-2015 11:14pm

dubhthach wrote: »

To put it in perspective this planned Data Center is something like three times the size of Microsoft custom built data center in Grange Castle in West Dublin. This was first Azure (microsoft cloud service) dc outside of continental US. It's probably currently one of the biggest DC's in Ireland, not sure if the new Google one is bigger.

http://www.digitalsignage.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/02.MicrosoftDublinDataCentreAerialView1.jpg

Do you mind me asking what all the white objects on the roof are? Power/cooling? Or is that pic mid construction?

Victor · 23-02-2015 11:51pm

Stheno wrote: »

Do you mind me asking what all the white objects on the roof are? Power/cooling? Or is that pic mid construction?

Air conditioning. Data centres produce vast amounts of heat.

Victor · 23-02-2015 11:52pm

ClovenHoof wrote: »

Apple Data Centre Athenry = Middle of Nowhere.

Wind farm on site. Right next to high voltage sub-station, gas transmission pipline, motorways (M6, M17, M18) and railway. The land is practically free.

http://www.itoworld.com/map/106?lon=-8.83124&lat=53.31048&zoom=12&fullscreen=true

However, I suspect they're being sold a pup on motorway access and I think they could do better on commuting.

Stheno · 24-02-2015 12:09am

Victor wrote: »

Air conditioning. Data centres produce vast amounts of heat.

Thanks, I've worked in two, or rather the office space in two, not the datacentre itself, and both had huge amounts of plant (power probably) beside the datacentre, never knew where the aircon went in

dowlingm · 24-02-2015 3:23pm

Does anyone know exactly where the site is? The news reports only place it at Derrydonnell at a Coillte site. One hopes that the IDA didn't promote the State interest in flogging land to pay the bondholders over the best placement for the building.

The disused rail line to Tuam, which notionally could be used to deliver containers of equipment to the site, runs about 1.5km west of the village but the satellite overhead seems to indicate wooded areas being predominantly east of the village. Between the cost of reconnecting the junction and building a spur it's likely out of the question to see that happen. Apple aren't huge on sustainable development anyway, whatever about their boasts of green power usage, as their new Cupertino headquarters spreads way more out than up.

MJohnston · 24-02-2015 3:57pm

Want to back up the comments supporting this placement as intentional by Apple - in my experience companies WANT their data centres to be in the middle of nowhere. This is a perfect location - not to far from an urban development, access to plenty of renewable energy, and fairly close to a main transport route.

Victor · 24-02-2015 4:57pm

dowlingm wrote: »

Does anyone know exactly where the site is?

I suspect it is here: http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,545312,726899,4,0 - in the photo you can see they have started to clear the trees. The scar on the land to the northeast is the gas pipeline form the Corrib Gas Field: http://www.gasnetworks.ie/en-IE/About-Us/Our-network/Pipeline-Map/

Alun · 24-02-2015 5:01pm

Victor wrote: »

I suspect it is here: http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,545312,726899,4,0 - in the photo you can see they have started to clear the tress.

That aerial photography was taken in 2005. That's one serious crystal ball they have at their disposal.

gctest50 · 24-02-2015 5:23pm

Stheno wrote: »

Do you mind me asking what all the white objects on the roof are? Power/cooling? Or is that pic mid construction?

cooling most likely - you'll see a bit @ 4:00 mins in :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZUX3n2yAzY

Google used sea-water to cool their one in Finland

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

id'd be nice if they could horse the heat into the local 50m swimming pool or a bit of district-heating

.

MJohnston · 24-02-2015 5:47pm

gctest50 wrote: »

cooling most likely - you'll see a bit @ 4:00 mins in :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZUX3n2yAzY

Google used sea-water to cool their one in Finland

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

id'd be nice if they could horse the heat into the local 50m swimming pool or a bit of district-heating

.

You should check out the Facebook Lulea DC too, entirely powered by local renewables, which Apple could easily do in Galway imo.

gctest50 · 24-02-2015 5:51pm

MJohnston wrote: »

You should check out the Facebook Lulea DC too, entirely powered by local renewables, which Apple could easily do in Galway imo.

there's an app for that ....:o

Apple's plan to build a massive data centre powered entirely by renewable energy in the west of Ireland has been attacked by anti-wind campaigners.

http://www.independent.ie/business/technology/apples-data-centre-plan-sparks-antiwind-protest-31016512.html

dubhthach · 24-02-2015 6:08pm

Victor wrote: »

I suspect it is here: http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,545312,726899,4,0 - in the photo you can see they have started to clear the tress. The scar on the land to the northeast is the gas pipeline form the Corrib Gas Field: http://www.gasnetworks.ie/en-IE/About-Us/Our-network/Pipeline-Map/

That scar also marks path of Dark Fibre that is owned by "Aurora Telecom" eg. the Telecom branch of Bord Gáis. They put in Ducting along the route, same process was repeated up to Rossport in Mayo as well. There's also ducting in both carriageways of the M6 which is supposed to have had dark fibre blown through it as part of "Project Pipiper"

antoobrien · 24-02-2015 6:11pm

Victor wrote: »

However, I suspect they're being sold a pup on motorway access and I think they could do better on commuting.

It's about five minutes from Athenry and the M6 junction, doesn't get too much better than that in Galway.

Victor wrote: »

I suspect it is here: http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,545312,726899,4,0 - in the photo you can see they have started to clear the tress.

You should see the (more up to date) bing maps images, the clearance is more pronounced.

dubhthach · 24-02-2015 6:24pm

To be honest motorway access for employee's is a red herring, there's probably gonna be at tops 25 people on site at any time once it's operational. The key thing is ease to access to the ducts that are in hards houlder of the motorway and through which dark fibre can be laid. The new M18 will add extra ducting through which dark fibre can be laid.

Schadenfreudia · 25-02-2015 1:47am

Arciphel wrote: »

I hear they are building it there cos all the wet weather shur tis a perfect spot for the oul cloud computin.

They are building in Athenry and Denmark because of the temperate climate and many other factors.

I doubt the wet weather has anything to do with it nor do I imagine anyone involved ever used terms like "shoneen" or "shur tis" or "a perfect spot for the oul cloud computin" :rolleyes:

Schadenfreudia · 25-02-2015 1:56am

ClovenHoof wrote: »

Miles from the 'commuter' rail station by contrast the Danish twin facility is beside the train station.

Ireland...

There is a train station in Athenry - check http://www.irishrail.ie/travel-information/athenry

You think they need a dedicated "Apple Station" for the 50 or so employees when the place is up and running?

Bizarre.

Aard · 25-02-2015 3:36am

Schadenfreudia wrote: »

I doubt the wet weather has anything to do with it nor do I imagine anyone involved ever used terms like "shoneen" or "shur tis" or "a perfect spot for the oul cloud computin" :rolleyes:

I think it was simply a joke about wet weather and clouds....nothing more

coffeepls · 25-02-2015 4:21am

Ok - not meaning to put an oul spanner in the thinking here, but I remember when I was a sociology student in Maynooth (over 15 years ago), that a similar question was asked about the location of Intel. Why did Intel pick Leixlip? The area was not crying out for a major employer half as much as some areas on the Northside, and there was just as much accessible land elsewhere. I don't remember the Northside area in specific, but I believe at the time it was probably nearer Finglas.

Eitherways, I do remember (don't quiz me though, this is stuff I heard over 15 years ago) that the main reason (according to a sociology lecturer) was to do with social classes. The area on the Northside was generally working class, and would be much more union orientated, and the area of Leixlip was generally middle class and not union orientated. Make of that what you will - because Intel has been there a long time now.
So. Apple for Athenry.... hmmm

plodder · 25-02-2015 10:27am

coffeepls wrote: »

Ok - not meaning to put an oul spanner in the thinking here, but I remember when I was a sociology student in Maynooth (over 15 years ago), that a similar question was asked about the location of Intel. Why did Intel pick Leixlip? The area was not crying out for a major employer half as much as some areas on the Northside, and there was just as much accessible land elsewhere. I don't remember the Northside area in specific, but I believe at the time it was probably nearer Finglas.

Eitherways, I do remember (don't quiz me though, this is stuff I heard over 15 years ago) that the main reason (according to a sociology lecturer) was to do with social classes. The area on the Northside was generally working class, and would be much more union orientated, and the area of Leixlip was generally middle class and not union orientated. Make of that what you will - because Intel has been there a long time now.
So. Apple for Athenry.... hmmm

I doubt that was a major factor. Water supply was probably one of the biggest ones, as (silicon) chip plants use an awful lot ot it, and one of the main treatment plants for Dublin is in Leixlip. Also, being close to the M4 given that over 5,000 people commute to and from the place. If I'm not mistaken Intel paid a lot of money towards building the M4 interchange near the plant. This is great news for Athenry by the way.

Apple Data Centre Athenry = Middle of Nowhere.

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