Data surprise

Hong Kong has a new boom sector - the data centre, or ‘computer hotel’, where the computers are the customers and the tariff depends on the level of servicing required.

You might wonder how an architect could contribute to what is essentially a warehouse, containing rows and rows of intensive care units for the hard discs of internet-related companies across Hong Kong. On visiting the Jumbo iAdvantage data centre, designed by Gary Chang of Edge (HK), all becomes clear.

The centre is situated in central Tsuen Wan, an area populated by large warehouses in various stages of dereliction a short taxi ride from central Hong Kong.

It provides round-the-clock facility management and server co-location services with impressive back-up and disaster recovery services. Given the demand for uninterruptible power supply systems, dedicated diesel generators and sophisticated alarms (as well as more standard mechanical and electrical requirements), the whole of the entry level is given over to plant, except for the reception in the far corner.

In the reception lobby, a stretch ceiling reflects the epoxy painted floor. Lightweight, cheap materials have been used to dramatic effect. Fluorescent blue lighting illuminates lightweight polycarbonate panels, which are overlaid with a sloping aluminium channel system.

In the lift lobby a curved wall runs seamlessly into the floor – Chang has banished harsh corners and planes throughout the interior to soften the harsh environment for human use.

The more populated an area, the more friendly the materials and use of colour. The computer stack rooms, for example, have plain industrial materials and no detailing. In the conference room, however, Chang designed an imposing table of steel frame with timber infill. The doors are lined in James Bond-style white leather, as are the lifts. Where colour is used, it is most often blue or green, such as the glass panels glowing along the conference room wall facing the corridor.

Throughout the scheme, walls of lighting, glass or metallic finishes divide the space. At the heart of the data centre the primary areas – lounge, engineer’s room, control room and conference room – wrap around each other. Windows allow views throughout the walls of each layer.

The stretch ceiling in the reception at ground level is used throughout the centre. It is refreshing, in a warehouse refurbishment, not to find exposed ceilings – except in the purely functional spaces of the control room and computer stacks. In the lounge, the stretch ceiling is pulled down like an eyelid over the top half of the ribbon windows, displaying the views of industrial Hong Kong in slightly idealistic frames.

Perhaps the most notable thing about this project is the remarkable standard of detailing and finishes using cheap materials, within a restricted budget and ridiculously tight schedule. The Jumbo iAdvantage was completed in five months, from commission to occupancy.