Federal Data Center Shut Down Saves Taxpayers Cash
Over the past several years, the efficiency and storage capacity of computers and data centers has increased enormously. Most companies, from small businesses to multinational corporations, have taken advantage of advancements in technology to cut the costs of data storage. The importance of data storage with strong Internet security cannot be overstated, but new hardware allowed for greater reliability at a lower cost. The latest in the string of wasteful spending revelations, the Federal Government trended in the opposite direction during the same period.
Instead of cutting back on data centers, Washington policymakers actually allowed the number of data centers to quadruple between 1998 and 2010. Surprisingly honest, the blog posting from the White House went on to acknowledge that the data centers were only operating at 27% of capacity. While this light load of data recovery and storage may have been easy on the servers, it certainly was not on the taxpayers. Costs include real estate, construction, maintenance, electricity, heating and cooling, and all the security measures needed to protect data centers that house government information.
Recent events have finally made the American people and legislators realize that credit is not limitless. America’s debt clock stands at $14,525,308,931,323, (that’s trillions) and rapidly rising as of 3:30 p.m. on July 22. In an effort to curb spending President Obama launched the Campaign to Cut Waste. As part of the plan, 373 data centers will shut down by the end of 2012. Data storage will not suffer, as the network is streamlined and optimized, with an eventual goal of closing 800 data centers by 2015. This plan could save over $3 billion in taxpayer money.
The locations of the data centers slated to close stretch across thirty states. A variety, spread across various government agencies, of data centers are listed for shut down. Some are enormous data storage buildings, others small, one mentioned in the White House posting spends over $400,000 for leasing and electricity each year. The goal is to provide the government with adequate, resilient, computer network service without wasteful overhead and operating costs.
Data storage will always be a necessity in a digital society. Computers are fallible machines, affected by problems from hardware issues and human error. Data centers that store, secure and make information available for timely access are important in allowing the Federal Government to function effectively. President Obama’s plan seems well thought out and capable of helping reduce the enormous budget deficit facing the nation. Even a measly three billion dollars will help.
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Filed under: Internet, maintenance, networking, networks, recession