This will be the second GDS data center to be recently set up in the area, following the opening of Phase 1 of the Nusajaya Tech Park (NTP) campus in August 2023, with a total net floor area of 225,000 sqm and 69.5 MW.
Malaysia, and especially the Johor Baru region, is experiencing significant growth in the number of data centers, benefiting from the needs brought about by the spread of Artificial Intelligence, with the creation of more than 40,000 jobs in recent years.
Sarens has worked on the installation of the center's cooling tower, using its machinery to lift and place the steel structure for its base, as well as the various cooling units, weighing approximately 9.5 tons, 36 meters high and with a diameter of 40 meters.
The new data center currently under construction by GDS in the Johor Baru region of Malaysia will represent an investment of more than RM 1 billion for the area, according to the company's forecasts. In addition, this center will have a significant impact on employment, as it will generate more than 5,000 direct and indirect jobs, mainly for the local population.
The center will be the company's second in the area, following the opening in August 2023 of the Nusajaya Tech Park (NTP) campus, a three-phase complex with a total net floor area of 22,500 sqm and 69.5 MW that will be used primarily to facilitate artificial intelligence-related computing tasks.
Sarens, world leader in heavy lifting, engineered transport and crane rental services, is playing a key role in the creation of the new GDS data centre in Johor Baru, by taking charge, on behalf of Spruce Mover, of the installation of the center's cooling tower, which is essential to guarantee the correct operation of the facility once it is up and running. After a thorough preliminary engineering study, the Sarens team decided to send a unit of its crawling crane Sany SCC2000 with 40LB+43LJ configuration to the area to carry out the heavy lifting of the steel structure of the cooling tower base and the tower's cooling units.
The Sarens team will be in charge of lifting the 9.5 ton, 36 meter high, 40 meter diameter parts in an operation that will run from December 2024 to March 2025. From the assembly of the crane to the heavy lifting work, the Sarens team follows strict safety protocols to ensure the safety of both the human and technical team at all times.
The Johor Baru region is emerging as a major computing hub over the past few years, making Malaysia one of the world leaders in this regard. The expansion of artificial intelligence around the world and the associated demand for processing has led to the establishment of more than 50 data centres in the region in the last three years, with a 100-fold increase in installed processing capacity in the last five years. This is having a significant impact on the area, with the creation of more than 40,000 jobs for local people in the area in recent years. Malaysia's digital economy is already responsible for the employment of more than 1.2 million people, accounting for a quarter of its total GDP.
Sarens has extensive experience in Malaysia. It recently worked with Trans-Elite to lift and install 25 beams ranging from 26.8 to 181.6 tonnes for the creation of the RTS Link between Malaysia and Singapore, a project that will facilitate the transport of more than 10,000 passengers per hour. It has also participated in the development of important energy projects in the region, such as the methanol plant in Sarawak and the gas extraction platform in Kasawari, and in the construction of Infineon's new semiconductor manufacturing plant in Kulim.
About Sarens
Sarens is the global leader and reference in crane rental, heavy lift and engineered transportation services. With state-of-the-art equipment, value engineering, one of the world's largest inventories of cranes, transporters and special rigging equipment, Sarens offers creative and intelligent solutions to today's heavy lifting and engineering transport challenges.
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