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Happy New Year and welcome to a new decade! It is always a highlight to announce the lineup of Host in Ireland partners, and this year is no different. We are delighted to see a 40% increase in membership, bringing us to a total of 30 partners for 2020. This growth reflects greatly on the growing size and diversity of the Irish data centre cluster. Just as exciting is the fact that we have a 96% retention rate of our 2019 partners - demonstrating the value our members experience being a part of the Host in Ireland collective.
The Industry is Evolving and Ireland is Leading the Way
We are seeing a number of interesting trends emerge this year which are reflected in our evolving partner base. A number of indigenous Irish companies are now looking to use Host in Ireland as part of their launchpad into the global data centre industry. We, of course, have our original foundation of hosting, construction, and supporting services companies attracting data to Ireland. But now, we are welcoming professional services, legal and manufacturing companies who are looking to export their services from Ireland as a base into the greater European marketplace. This reflects the fact that data is at the core of nearly every industry and Dublin is seen as an optimum location for exporting this data.
New Stars Are Born
What's also really encouraging is the amount of returning Irish people who are front and centre now in so many of these organisations. We're starting to see now that not only is it the Irish companies, but Irish individuals themselves, who after nearly 20 years of experience designing, building, and indeed operating data centres, are being seen as the leaders in this next generation of data hosting companies around the world.
Welcome to the New Partners
So, please take a moment to help us welcome ABB, Eaton, Eversheds Sutherland, Moy Materials, Rittal, Structure Tone, Suir Engineering, T5 Data Centers, and Yondr Group to Host in Ireland in 2020. Although many of Host in Ireland’s partners are competitors, they come together as a collective through Host in Ireland, something that will be more important than ever this year.
Challenges of Success
We are faced with the continued and growing dependence on data associated with the Industrial Revolution 4.0, which creates challenges related to this rapid growth and success. The Irish industry, in order to maintain our leadership position within Europe, will need to be closely aligned with the global trend for a "green cloud" and Ireland’s national Climate Emergency plan. Our newest partners add to the strength of our collective and further provide global companies what they need to effectively understand, clearly and quickly, why Ireland and the Irish can provide the services expanding clients seek to meet their global digital hosting needs.
Garry Connolly
Founder & President Host In Ireland