PLDT, ePLDT mark data center expansion with first VITRO facility in Mindanao

Leading telecoms and digital services provider PLDT, together with its digital enterprise solutions arm ePLDT, recently launched the PLDT Group’s eighth operating data center facility situated in Mindanao, the first such facility built in the region.

Adding more racks to the PLDT Group’s current rack capacity of almost 7,000 from the ePLDT VITRO Data Center line and IP Converge facilities, the latest VITRO Data Center will easily cater to the growing data service requirements of thriving industries in the south.

“Digital technologies and platforms are changing enterprise operations and how businesses grow and protect their digital assets. We’re particularly optimistic of the thriving industries in Mindanao and we hope to further boost this economic development by providing the region the solid foundation for their much needed digital infrastructure,” said PLDT Chief Revenue Officer and ePLDT President and CEO Eric R. Alberto.

“The build out of our data center capacity and our incessant network expansion nationwide prove that the PLDT Group’s serious commitment to invest in building the foundation to support a data-driven future for the country.”

The newest VITRO Data Center in Mindanao is a Tier 2 facility designed to meet global data center standards required by industries with heavy data-security requirements like banks and financial institutions. It will serve hosting, collocation, and business continuity services for enterprises in Mindanao, and can serve as a secondary backup location for businesses with data already housed in other data centers across the country.

Already operational, the data center can now providethe necessary boost to the region’s businesses with services critical to operating and handling ICT requirements. The facility can improve operational efficiencies through professionally managed IT services, and enable businesses to grow their operations in a more cost effective manner through colocation of their server requirements.

The PLDT Group now operates eight data centers in the country with the recent addition of this facility in Mindanao. It will soon operate two more facilities located in Clark and the expanded data center in Cebu, bringing the PLDT Group’s data center total count to 10 with an unmatched rack capacity of over 9,000 – the largest in the country.

Aside from the data center, PLDT also completed the Davao cable landing station project that links Mindanao to PLDT’s three existing international gateways located in Nasugbu, Batangas; Bauang, La Union, and Daet, Camarines Norte. This further improves the network resiliency in Mindanao through PLDT’s international managed network providing high bandwidth global connectivity with automatic re-routing and switching capability through different international cable routes in the event of cable faults.

PLDT has also opened the upgraded Innovations Laboratory housed in PLDT Davao, where products and digital services are showcased for customers, and enterprise clients can experience and test out new offerings from PLDT. It also serves as a venue for collaboration with the local ICT community and educational institutions, thereby spurring technopreneurship and building the region’s ecosystem of developers.

“As part of our commitment to help the government achieve broad-based, nationwide growth, we are working to strengthen and nurture that digital hub in the southern Philippines to further enable businesses and serve the need for a stronger and more robust digital infrastructure,” concluded Alberto.

PLDT has geared up for the digital economy by building its fiber optic backbone and distribution network which has reached more than 140,000 kilometers, the most extensive in the Philippines.