The world depends on the reliability of networks and data centers to keep us connected. This was true even before the coronavirus pandemic led to a significant shift to home-based work arrangements in early 2020. Unplanned downtime is an even more urgent concern now that millions of workers connect to the office from home every workday.

One way to keep a data center up and running is to perform routine data center cleaning. 

Why Outsourcing Cleaning Can Save You in the Long Run

When hiring a third-party data center cleaning company to keep your organization's data center clean, it's important to do your research. Data centers are controlled environments with specialized equipment that must be properly maintained to protect your organization's bottom line, customer information, and more. Failure to employ adequately trained resources to keep your data center maintenance up to par could have severe and far-reaching repercussions.

Just as vehicles need oil changes and tire rotations to run optimally, data centers also require preventative maintenance to stay in peak performance. Maintenance includes the process of keeping things from breaking prematurely or out of neglect, and this type of preventative maintenance is hugely important when dealing with data center upkeep.

As you know, correctly maintaining your data center is critical. The importance of data centers to business operations is continually increasing. The better you can maintain your data center, the more efficiently it will run and the lower your overhead for things like electricity. You can then pass those savings on to customers and gain a competitive advantage. Plus, you’ll minimize downtime, and your customers will trust you with their sensitive information because of your impeccable data center maintenance.

Data center cleaning is critical to keeping data center equipment running efficiently and cost-effectively. Many data center managers are working with budgets of $100 million or more, and the cost of upkeep has increased by 500 percent since 2000. Electricity alone for a 150,000 square foot data center costs approximately $100,000 per year. Every little thing that can be done to help curb these rising costs is critical, including cleaning. Data centers adhere to specific construction standards, and improper cleaning can jeopardize the effectiveness of those data center-specific features. For example, data center flooring is designed to minimize static electricity, but a layer of dirt accumulating on the floor can reduce its ability to curb static.