InterXion : What if Docklands flooded?

In the technology heartland of East London sits vital connectivity infrastructure comprising a vast range of Internet Service Providers (ISPs), mobile network operators (MNOs), content distribution networks (CDNs), peering nodes such as the London Internet Exchange (LINX), and Interxion's data centre campus. Fast, reliable digital connectivity is essential for the city's economy, and businesses that live and breathe digital expect continuous operation.

A sound digital strategy looks beyond the 'ideal' and makes provisions for worst case scenarios, but even the most stringent risk assessment can't cover every possible threat. In the case of London's connectivity infrastructure, what would happen if disaster struck? Let's imagine London suffered a force majeure such as a flood right at its strategic heart, how would businesses that rely on connectivity to function maintain business as usual?

Quantifying the threat

If Docklands were to flood, the consequences for the city's businesses would likely be severe. Damage to core connectivity infrastructure would send a ripple of disruption to operations across a range of data-dependent sectors such as financial services, retail and the creative industries such as gaming and media.

For these sectors to perform at their optimum level, network infrastructure is crucial. As we enter the age of connectivity, business operations are evermore intrinsically linked to the ability to consume, deliver and process data as quickly, efficiently and reliably as possible. Network downtime is simply not an option.

The cost of downtime varies from business to business. For those able to quantify the cost of an IT outage, almost a quarter (23 per cent) said that they incurred costs ranging from £10,000 up to more than £1million per hour. An extended period of downtime while reparation work takes place could come at a high cost to the economy. For businesses lacking access to diverse and resilient connectivity infrastructure, downtime could also result in significant reputational damage and leave them at a competitive disadvantage against industry rivals unaffected by the outage.

Keep calm and carry on

To counter the threat of debilitating network downtime, central London offers the most dense and diverse connectivity in the UK. Businesses seeking to build a robust IT risk strategy should seek to harness this diversity in order to cover any major incident.

Interxion's new LON3 data centre sits within its established data centre campus. Situated between the Square Mile and Tech City, the campus has become a strategic location for businesses looking to interconnect mission critical services in central London. LON3 customers can interconnect to over 90 connectivity providers, using resilient architecture that delivers 24x7 operational excellence with 99.999% availability, fully redundant configurations for all critical systems and round the clock monitoring and security.

Risk can never be fully eliminated, but it can be managed. Colocating at LON3 gives digitally-oriented businesses the technical ability and operational support required to deal with even the most challenging circumstances, allowing them to take control of their connectivity and significantly reduce the risk of downtime.

Should disaster strike, could your business keep running? Find out how colocating at Interxion'sLondon campus can help you find the resilient connectivity you need in the most extreme circumstances.