from the existing data infrastructure . Data centres will play a pivotal role here in building the cities of the future as IoT and smart applications require improved connectivity , data storage and computing power ,” Elrifai continues .
The modern data centre landscape has seen dual trends take hold of it in the last few years . First , the maxim that “ bigger is better ” has seen global adoption of hyperscale facilities reach new heights . A large driver behind the construction of these large , centralised facilities is market regulation . Because a data centre is one of the biggest consumers of energy in a modern city , their construction is highly controlled in markets like Europe , where cities like Amsterdam – the region ’ s largest data centre hub – are starting to put the kibosh on any new builds at all .
However , this creates an issue . Smart cities – particularly those investing heavily in IoT – are finding themselves generating actionable insights from their data more quickly and efficiently . “ In the event of a serious car accident , edge computing can process the vehicle data and alert local services ,” adds Ciaran Dynes , SVP of Talend . “ Another example of how smart cities are harnessing edge computing is with traffic management . With the help of connected car startups like wejo , relevant organisations across the city can get better real-time predictions and accuracy on routings . This can help reduce congestion by rerouting away from high-traffic routes . This data can also be used to help urban planners design roads and cities based on movement .”
Ankur Singla , founder and CEO of Volterra notes that “ these projects generate huge amounts of data ; so
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