GDCE Group

TIA-942 Facility Certification


Whether developing a cutting-edge enterprise data center or selecting a state-of-the-art hyperscale service provider, securing Constructed Facility Certifications in line with international benchmarks guarantees a solid base of reliability, operational continuity, and resilience, essential for modern data center services that can meet the demands of high-availability transactions, machine learning and artificial intelligence.

Constructed Facility Certification

Why Certify? In today’s technology-driven landscape, the importance of a certified facility cannot be overstated. The surge in Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and Internet of Things devices has significantly increased the need for constant availability, efficient information processing, and expansive data storage. Certification, achieved through impartial third-party audits against rigorous international standards, verifies that a data center’s design aligns with its operational goals. This process scrutinizes critical systems such as power, cooling, and telecommunications, as well as architectural elements that contribute to a reliable, secure, and safe environment for both systems and staff.

Advantages for Data Center Owners

Facility certification emerges as a pivotal asset in today’s data center landscape, offering a suite of advantages crucial for maintaining competitive edge and operational excellence. Certification by reputable authorities not only bolsters credibility and trust with clients and stakeholders but also distinguishes a facility in a saturated market, attracting clients with stringent requirements for data management and security.

Through the rigorous assessment processes involved, operational efficiencies are uncovered and enhanced, leading to improved reliability and performance. This meticulous evaluation ensures critical systems meet or exceed stringent reliability requirements, reducing risks of downtime, data loss, or facility outage, providing a solid foundation for compliance with current and future industry-specific regulations.

Certification also aligns with reducing operational costs and achieving sustainability goals, marking a facility as a leader in sustainability initiatives. The distinction of being certified can serve as a key market differentiator, signaling a commitment to high standards of security, reliability, and efficiency, thereby elevating service levels to meet and exceed client expectations.

Moreover, recognition through global certification standards opens avenues to international markets, where specific operational standards are a prerequisite. This level of certification reassures investors and stakeholders of a commitment to excellence, potentially attracting further investment and support, ensuring the data center not only meets but sets industry benchmarks for quality and reliability.

Advantages for Colocation Providers

For colocation facilities, achieving third-party Facility Certification is a pivotal strategy to showcase your commitment to excellence and reliability. Unlike self-assessments, which can be perceived as biased and often fall short of rigorous standards, a certification validated by a qualified independent body speaks volumes. It assures potential tenants that your facility’s design and capabilities have been meticulously evaluated against globally recognized benchmarks, significantly enhancing your data center’s credibility.

The tangible benefits of operating a certified facility are clear, especially in the realm of client engagement. Data demonstrates that certified data centers expedite the colocation engagement process, compared to their self-assessed or uncertified counterparts. This efficiency translates into added value for both you and your clients, streamlining the path to implementation and fostering a mutually beneficial relationship. In an era where certification is increasingly valued across the globe, the demand from tenants for certified data centers has grown. Aligning with this standard not only positions your facility as a preferred choice but also sets a foundation for sustainable growth and partnership in the competitive colocation market

Advantages for Enterprise Data Center Owners

Facility Certification provides comprehensive insights into operational and design risks, enabling alignment with industry standards and unlocking significant financial benefits. This certification evidences adherence to rigorous benchmarks, enhancing attractiveness to high-value clients and supporting premium pricing strategies. It also promotes operational efficiencies, leading to cost savings in energy and maintenance. Additionally, minimizing risks can potentially reduce insurance premiums and the impact of downtime.

Fast-tracking market entry for new services, certification acts as a competitive differentiator, instilling confidence in business and building stakeholders. By establishing a data center as a trusted partner for clients concerned about their data and operations, Facility Certification drives growth, opens new markets, and secures financial and strategic advancement.

Competitive Advantage

Facility certification stands as a critical asset for data center and colocation facility owners alike, providing a myriad of benefits essential for sustaining a competitive edge and operational superiority. This certification, endorsed by credible authorities, not only enhances credibility and client trust but also sets a facility apart in a dense market, attracting clients with demanding data management and security needs. It drives operational efficiencies through rigorous assessments, ensuring that critical systems surpass reliability standards, thus reducing downtime risks and aligning with sustainability goals. Such certification underscores a commitment to excellence, elevating service levels and distinguishing a facility as a leader in security, reliability, and efficiency.

For both data center owners and colocation providers, certification accelerates the client engagement process, offering a clear competitive advantage and fostering trust. It assures clients and tenants of the facility’s adherence to global benchmarks, streamlining implementation, and facilitating mutually beneficial partnerships. This not only boosts the facility’s market position but also attracts further investment, setting the stage for expansion into new markets and reinforcing the facility’s financial and strategic growth. In essence, Facility Certification is not just a mark of compliance but a strategic tool that drives growth, enhances client relationships, and cements a facility’s standing in the global data center landscape.

 The GDCE Difference

GDCE have unique tools and processes that enable us to perform design and facility audits with greater clarity, accuracy and speed.  We are able to out deliver our competitors in both performance and quality.  That equates to a better, faster, cheaper result for our clients. GDCE stands out as the only certification body in the data center industry offering a money-back guarantee. This guarantee is a testament to our confidence in our rigorous execution and competence, ensuring that the loss of a single piece of equipment will not result in an outage for a data centers certified to one of the high availability classifications.  GDCE will refund the cost of the Certification or Recertification Audit in such an event.  (Conditions apply, but ask us, we’re happy to discuss this policy!).

Global Data Center Engineering (GDCE) holds full membership with the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) and actively contributes to the development and revision of the TIA-942 standard among others in TIA, and ISO (particularly ISO 22237 Data Center Design Standard and ISO 30134 – Data Center Sustainability. Our team possesses an intimate understanding of the origin and evolution of these standards, having not only advocated for them but also grown in tandem with their advancements over the last twenty years.  We are authorities in TIA-942, ISO 22237, BICSI 002, and Tier Standard: Topology.  As an authority in Facility Certification, Design Certification, and Facility Audits, GDCE stands at the forefront of the industry.  We are the worlds most respected TIA-942 Data Center certification body.

With our comprehensive expertise, extensive experience, and a suite of professional certifications, GDCE is uniquely equipped to conduct thorough audits and certifications in accordance with these standards.

Contact us today, and we can discuss how we can help with your certification needs. Get Certified!