Data Center World Spring 2011 Breaks Attendance Records

ORANGE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AFCOM, the world's leading data center association, recently wrapped up the largest Spring Data Center World ever. Both attendee and exhibitor numbers grew 10 percent from the Spring 2010 conference.


During the conference, AFCOM awarded the 2011 Data Center Manager of the Year title to Tom Roberts, Manager, Data Center Facilities, Trinity Information Services. Roberts was recognized from a competitive pool of finalists, which included Billie Haggard, Senior Vice President, Data Centers, CoreSite and Abdulaziz Al-Shafi, Administrator of IT Computer Operations, Saudi ARAMCO.

The Data Center Manager of the Year award, developed by AFCOM, seeks to recognize information technology leaders whose qualities embody innovation, organization, versatility and ambition. The winner is an effective leader who runs a highly efficient data center, works well under pressure, possess strong communication skills and keep up-to-date on the latest technologies in order to maintain his or her company's edge.

A finalist in previous years, Roberts was acknowledged in 2011 for implementing a hot/cold aisle containment approach into his data centers, which resulted in a 10 percent decrease in utility consumption. Roberts also makes ongoing efforts to educate “server and network folks” about facilities management, and to foster understanding and innovation. Roberts received a commemorative plaque in recognition of his accomplishments.

“It is difficult to measure the impact of all the contributions Tom has made to the data center industry,” said Jill Yaoz, CEO, AFCOM. “Tom—who is also a member of the Data Center Institute—is a wonderful choice for Data Center Manager of the Year because while he not only is a leader in tackling issues many data center managers face, he is also always so willing to share his experiences and teachings to help others figure out how they might implement a similar solution to their own benefit. Tom’s award win was another important part of a truly amazing and educational Data Center World.”

The 2011 Spring Data Center World conference was held March 27-31 at the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Featured was a keynote address from former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, who assessed cyber-terrorism threats from around the globe and how this affects data center managers. Ambassador Bolton’s address is available for online viewing for a limited time on the Data Center World web site: http://www.datacenterworld.com/attendees_keynoteaddress_Spring2011.html

Additionally, AFCOM released results from a new survey the organization conducted with more than 350 data center managers, which provided insight on the biggest challenges and issues they are facing. The report, called the “State of the Data Center,” also included a special discussion session with AFCOM and the Data Center Institute. More information on the survey can be found here.

For more than 30 years, Data Center World has been known as the premier and largest global event of its kind. For the first time ever, AFCOM will be hosting an Asia/Pacific Data Center Symposium in Sydney, Australia to discuss issues affecting data center managers in this region of the world. Being held May 15-17, 2011, this is the only event in the region providing education covering the entire data center including the latest technology and management techniques, best practices, disaster recovery, power and cooling, asset management, cloud computing and more. To register or for additional information, please visit the Asia/Pacific section of the Data Center World website.

The next Data Center World conference will be held this fall, September 11-14 in Orlando, Florida. To view the evolving schedule of events and speakers, please visit http://www.datacenterworld.com/attendees_scheduleofevents.html.

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