The Uptime Institute has just released its 2024 Global Data Center Survey, revealing several noteworthy trends and challenges in the industry:

1. Operating Costs Take Centre Stage Rising energy prices, equipment costs, and labor expenses have emerged as the industry's primary challenge.
2. Skilled Labor Shortage Persists The industry continues to face a significant skilled workforce shortage, particularly in electrical and operations management roles. Most notably, there's a concerning gender gap, with women comprising less than 10% of most teams.
3. Digital Services Demand Surges Increasing demand for digital services, including AI applications, is driving the need for enhanced cooling and power solutions.
4. Computing Density Evolution While computing density is rising, most data centers are still operating below 30 kilowatts per rack capacity.
5. Rising Cost of Downtime System failures (including cybersecurity incidents) are becoming increasingly expensive, with significant outages costing over $100,000 each.
6. ESG Compliance Challenges Many facilities lack proper tracking of sustainability metrics required for ESG reporting, making it difficult to meet upcoming regulatory requirements.

In conclusion, the 2024 Uptime Institute report highlights significant challenges alongside emerging trends in the data center industry, emphasizing the need for substantial changes to accommodate growing demand, stricter regulations, and sustainable operations.

For more information and detailed discussion of these findings, please contact Zvika Friedman and the DIT team, or our strategic data center partners, Yonit Goldberg and Oren Nauman from 11Stream.

Commercial real estate in Israel

A subsidiary of Rakah Pharmaceutical Industry Ltd. entered into an agreement for the sale of the company's property with a total area of approximately 5,065 square meters in Or Akiva, for NIS 29.75 million.

A subsidiary of the Ray TLV Group Ltd. has completed a transaction for the sale of half of its rights in the Herzl project in Tel-Aviv, to Carso Real Estate Ltd., for approximately NIS 18.3 million.

Commercial real estate overseas

A partner of Mishorim Real Estate Investments Ltd. in the USA entered into an agreement to purchase the Plaza Park Westland shopping center in Jacksonville, Florida, for approximately 13 million US dollars.

Strawberry Fields REIT Limited entered into an agreement to purchase full ownership rights in 8 properties used as long-term nursing homes in the state of Missouri, USA, for $87.5 million.

Real estate in the headlines

Kalifa Fund on business real estate and strategy (Calcalist).

The state will pay double the price for parking in Tel Aviv (The Marker).

Guy is sure: after the war ends there will be a "boom", and this is the sector that will be positively affected (Globes).