By Faith Waithaka, cloud and service provider segment sales lead: Anglophone Africa at Schneider Electric, and Kevin Kent, founder and CEO of Critical Facilities Efficiency Solutions.
The outlook for data centre growth on the African continent looks bullish. With a population of almost 1,5 billion people, the African marketplace possesses a significant advantage in terms of market size and potential.
Importantly, whilst the continent might lag behind countries like China and India when it comes to sheer population size, what sets it apart is the average age of its population − 18 to 19 years. It is a young generation that is well equipped to adapt to the digital environment’s continuous change.
This younger generation has a natural affinity for learning and working with technologies such as AI. It is this demographic advantage that will fast track Africa’s strengthening role in the global data centre marketplace.
Another important differentiator is the continent’s geographical location. Positioned almost centrally on earth, it offers major advantages in terms of connectivity and accessibility. Cities like Mombasa in Kenya are incredibly well located on sub-sea fibre links, offering a gateway to Asia that contributes to the processing of large amounts of data traffic.
Multinationals step into the limelight
Multinationals have a major role to play in harnessing the full potential of the African data centre market. Bridging the data centre skills gap is an important step. Increasingly, multinational companies are hiring local engineers, providing valuable expertise and experience whilst exposing them to the global market. At Schneider Electric for example, teams from regions such as Anglophone and Francophone Africa have continuous access to knowledge and developments from their peers across the world. This is incredibly valuable as it allows these teams to stay on par with their global counterparts. Importantly, it bridges the talent gap and brings the requisite skills that contribute to the ongoing growth of the African data centre marketplace.
Another important data centre growth enabler is infrastructure development. Multinationals contribute to various aspects of infrastructure development, including grid stability, efficient water management, and the introduction of advanced technologies. In turn, these investments deliver advancements in cooling systems, electrical equipment, and the promotion of renewable energy sources. Simply put, these developments and ongoing investment by multinationals offer significant benefits to the continent.
When discussing the role f multinationals in the African data centre market, it would be remiss not to mention sustainability. Here, these organisations have a significant part to play in ensuring local data centre markets align with international environmental sustainability principles. This includes implementing energy-efficient infrastructure that utilises renewable energy sources, optimises cooling systems to minimise energy consumption, and effectively manages and tracks water consumption.
Together with environmental sustainability, social and governance also come into play. The data centre industry has the potential to bring significant growth in terms of education access, particularly through digital platforms. This can greatly improve access to education in Africa, providing opportunities for learning and skills development.
If one considers the ongoing investment in Africa and its favourable geographical position, it is highly likely that the continent will become a major player in both data centre expansion and the processing of data. Over the next decade, a substantial portion of global data processing is expected to flow through Africa, cementing its position as a key player in the data centre industry.
How smart signalling can transform Africa’s manufacturing future Schneider Electric South Africa
Industrial Wireless
Imagine a factory floor where humans and machines communicate in real time with issues flagged instantly, workflows adjusted seamlessly and downtime reduced to near zero. This is the reality unfolding across Africa as manufacturers embrace the next generation of intelligent signalling technologies.
Read more...Unpacking the technoeconomic case for cleaner power in wastewater plants Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Behind every reliable wastewater plant is an electrical system exposed to the effects of harmonics, voltage distortion and overloaded networks caused by fleets of variable speed drives on pumps and aerators.Together, they steadily drive up maintenance demands and elevate the risk of failure.
Read more...Rethinking power for Africa’s data centres Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Africa’s digital economy is scaling faster than its power systems. If it wants resilient, competitive and sustainable data centres, the starting point must be a grid-to-chip architecture rather than a genset-first mentality.
Read more...Siemens ecosystem strengthens data and AI integration Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Siemens has announced significant expansions to its Industrial Edge ecosystem, accelerating data and AI integration and releasing enhanced cybersecurity functionalities. These enable a seamless integration of IT and OT environments, optimise processes and reduce operational disruptions.
Read more...Unifying building information into a sea of insight Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Facility managers realise that in order to gain the most from building automation, they can longer deploy and operate technologies in isolation. Modern, integrated building management solutions address this challenge by bringing data from multiple sources and dispersed locations like HVAC, lighting, access control, lifts, generators, field devices, energy and
Read more...Why digital LV switchboards matter Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
Today’s buildings account for up to 40% of global energy consumption and CO2 emissions. However, buildings are also expected to deliver higher availability and stronger safety performance while also being sustainable. Digital swirchboards make a difference in the way buildings are developed, upgraded and managed.
Read more...Siemens manages shipbuilding process for HD Hyundai Siemens South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
Siemens has been selected by HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering as a preferred partner to establish an integrated platform to manage the entire shipbuilding process as a single data flow to help ensure consistency across all its global shipyard facilities.
Read more...The new energy landscape for buildings will be enabled by e-mobility Schneider Electric South Africa
Electrical Power & Protection
The adoption of the electric vehicle continues to proliferate, and buildings are becoming a vital part of the e-mobility movement, which requires a whole new approach to energy management.
Read more...Transforming the process industry through digitalisation Endress+Hauser South Africa
IT in Manufacturing
By connecting field devices, systems and people, digitalisation creates new opportunities to optimise operations, enhance maintenance strategies and support continuous improvement. As a leading instrumentation provider and major source of process data, Endress+Hauser plays a key role in enabling this transformation.
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein, the publisher and its agents cannot be held responsible for any errors contained, or any loss incurred as a result. Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of the publishers. The editor reserves the right to alter or cut copy. Articles submitted are deemed to have been cleared for publication. Advertisements and company contact details are published as provided by the advertiser. Technews Publishing (Pty) Ltd cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or veracity of supplied material.
printer friendly version