Data Center

RFP Template
An Expert Guide for Leaders to Define Request
for Requirements for Data Center Providers
Overview
1 Introduction

2 Overview of Your Business

3 Your Desired Data Center Requirements

4 Data Center Provider RFP Details

5 About LOGIX Fiber Networks

2
 Introduction
Whether driven by finances, expansions, consolidation,
disaster recovery planning or simply wanting to focus
resources on core competencies. Many firms, driven by
expansion, disaster recovery, the Cloud, consolidation or costs,
are now deciding to move a portion or all of their data center
operations to a third-party data center provider.

The benefits of outsourcing your data center include realizing

a large reduction in future capital costs, increased reliability,
simpler management, a smaller number of employees
dedicated to managing the data center, and the ability to
expand or reduce the amount of data center space used.

A Request for Proposal (RFP) is key to give data center

providers the opportunity to describe all aspects of their
offering, from electrical infrastructure to how they handle
deliveries. The RFP should also request information relating to
pricing and terms, sample agreements, and floor plans
showing where your company’s IT equipment would reside,
electrical one-line diagrams, and facilities maintenance
records.

3
 Introduction Cont.
However, making the outsourcing decision can be a complex
and risky task. It is a decision that requires significant change.
Despite all the benefits that come with moving to an
outsourced data center solution, the struggle to properly
outline your business requirements, connect with
appropriate third-party data center providers, and then
obtain comparable data center provider quotes can require
substantial time and resources.

If you need help with your data center RFP or selection,

please contact LOGIX Fiber Networks at 281-336-9006.

4
 Overview of Your Business Proposed Timeline and Key Dates:
Write a brief description of your
firm, the objective of your data
center initiative, and any of your Dates Key Activities
business challenges:
Distribute the data center RFP

Question submittal period

Last day to submit or ask questions about RFP

Responses questions from all respondents

RFP due date

Shortlist notification to data center providers

Final negotiations begin

Data center provider is selected

Go-live date at selected data center provider

5
 Your Desired Data Center Requirements

Describe Your Current Data Center Operations

Overview
Briefly describe your current IT operations including equipment, power usage, reasons for moving away from the current
environment and any new technology initiatives at the company:

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 Your Desired Data Center Requirements Cont.

Describe Your Current Data Center Operations

Current Data Center Details

Current data center set-up (i.e.: owned, leased-client-managed,

leased-vendor-managed, colocation, or managed services):

Current data center sq. ft. (wall-to-wall, usable area):

Location (city, state) of current data center(s):

IT load kW:

Total data center kW:

Number and type (voltage/amperage)

of power receptacles/whips used:

Number of racks or cabinets and dimensions:

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 Your Desired Data Center Requirements Cont.

Describe Your Current Data Center Operations

Current Data Center Details

Electrical, mechanical and network redundancy:

Telecommunications providers and services used:

Public peering:

Growth projections of IT environment (low,

mid, and high projections):

Migration plan (single or multiple phases,

use of a 3rd party):

Top reasons driving new data center procurement:

Upcoming technology initiatives:

Any other details you would like to provide:

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Data Center
Provider RFP
Details
 Data Center Provider RFP Details

1 Use This Section To Fill In Your Desired Requirements

Data Center Location(s): Power:

(Geographic location - city, state): (Capacity requirements in KW
desired redundancy, and AC or
DC power requirement):
Term:
(Commitment term):
Expansion:
(If required and date)
Commencement Date:
(Desired move-in date):
Renewal Option:
(At term end or sooner, # of years):
Type of Relationship:
(Land Lease, Build-to-Suite,
Powered Shell, Private Data
Center, Cage colocation,
Office Space:
Cabinet colocation): (Requirements for office space):

Space: Storage Space:

(Requirements for storage space):
(Amount of square feet or cabinets):

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

1 Use This Section To Fill In Your Desired Requirements

Cross Connect Services: Vendor Requirements:

(Number and type of cross (Provide all recurring and
connections desired, including any non-recurring charges, including
public peering requirements): taxes, inflationary increases,
expense reimbursements,
security deposit and total
Remote Hands: amounts due upon execution):
(Types of services desired):

Miscellaneous:
(Other items required):

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

2 Data Center Provider Description

(Find providers with a proven track record – for example, firm has been in business at least 10 years. Work with a provider with solid financial to ensure they are stable
and well-run. Look for providers growing their footprint to show they are healthy and investing in their business)
Please give an overview of your data center company by answering the following questions.

Company Name: Company CEO and Years

with Company:
Corporate Headquarter
Address:

Company Overview:
Company Telephone:

Total Number of Employees:

Website:

Location of Offices and

Year Founded: Data Centers:

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

3 Current Customers 4 Data Center Locations

Please share names of some of your current customers. Please provide the locations of your data centers.
(Look for large, enterprise customers since they are through with their (Find providers who are willing to provide detailed data center specifications)
procurement process, have high technical requirements, and expect excellent
customer service. Providers should share testimonials on their website, and be
a well-regarded operator by their peers)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

5 Management Team 6 Alliances & Strategic Relationships

Please provide the names, titles, and background of your top Please list and describe any alliances or strategic relationships
corporate executives. you have with fellow technology companies including the ones
(Examine executive’s backgrounds and ensure key personnel have experience listed here.
in the data center space. This means you can leverage their experience to Find providers with strong relationships to known vendors and service
develop the best solution for your needs) providers. You may not need them now, but if the need arises it is always good
to know the partners the data center provider can bring in to help you. This
information should be readily available.)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

7 Relevant Memberships And Certifications 3

Please list relevant Memberships and Certifications.

(These could include: Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCIDSS),
U.S> Green Building Council, Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA
942 Tier 4), SSAE 16, ISO 27001, Federal Information Security Management Act
(FISMA), US?EU Safe Harbor (USDC)< Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act (HIPAA)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

8 Building/Property
Please provide answers to the following questions:

Where is the location of this center?

What is the size of the building?

Was the building purpose built or retrofitted? When?

(Ensure the building has the most recent technology needed
to support your infrastructure.)

How long was the build or retrofit process before

completion?

Do you have a process for rapid scalability and deployment?

(If you need more space in a location, how long would it take
for the provider to be able to offer that new space? Speed is
key when you need more space or power based on your
growing business demands)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

8 Building/Property Cont.
Please provide answers to the following questions:

Are there additional or future construction plans?

What materials where used in the construction

of the building?

What is the exterior wall construction/thickness?

Exterior windows/glass thickness?
(How efficient was the design of the building for
energy conservation. Most successful data
center operators work to continually optimize
there facilities to reduce waste.)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

9 Additional Building/Property
Please provide answers to the following questions:

What materials were used in the construction of the roof?

What’s the age, wind uplift ratings (lbs./sq. ft.), type

of roof deck, etc.

What existing roof equipment & penetrations are in place?

What Lightning protection do you have?

What is the ceiling height in feet?

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

10 Data Center Space

Please provide answers to the following questions:

How many square feet of raised floor do you have at

this facility?

What is the height of the raised floor and what

containment types are permitted?

How many square feet of ancillary space do you have

at this facility?

What are the delivery procedures in place?

Where is the delivery area located?

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

11 Electric Specifications
Please provide answers to the following questions:

What is the designed power density of this facility?

What are the max/min densities?

What is the aggregate power capacity?

Describe your utility source and diversity paths.

What type of fuel is used for the back-up power for

this facility?

Describe your utility source and diversity paths.

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

11 Electric Specifications Cont.

Please provide answers to the following questions:

How many generators are available to this facility? What

is their output capacity? What is their configuration?
What is their maintenance schedule?
(Are the generators exclusive to the customers in a
specific area, or are they shared with others? Is it first
come first serve during an outage, or is there enough
generator capacity for everyone? What is the maintenance
schedule? If there is an outage, it’s critical the generators
are ready to handle the load.)

What type of fuel is used for the back-up power for

this facility?

Describe your utility source and diversity paths.

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

11 Electric Specifications Cont.

Please provide answers to the following questions:

What is the emergency fuel delivery program? How

many contracted fuel providers do you have?
(Ensure sufficient fuel deliveries are under contract to
provide fuel in the case of an emergency.)

How many UPS systems do you have at this facility?

What is the size in KW? What is the configuration? What
is the output capacity and power factor? What is the
maintenance schedule? What is the average run time?
Do you versubscribe at any component of the power
architecture?

What type of grounding does this facility have?

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

12 Cooling Specifications
Please provide answers to the following questions:

What is the aggregate cooling output in tons?

Is this facility water cooled or air cooled?

If water-cooled, what is this facility’s water source

and is it a closed-loop system? How many feeds?

How many cooling distribution loops does this

facility have?

How far is it from the main system? What is the

temperature in the pipe?

What types of cooling systems are in place? How many

are in place? How big are they? How are they configured?
How many feeds per unit?

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

12 Cooling Specifications Cont.

Please provide answers to the following questions:

Is the humidification in-unit or external?

What is the operating temperature? What humidity

standards does this facility have?

What leak detection and monitoring systems are in place?

If air-cooled, describe the system? What is the

back-up system?

How many cubic feet per minute (CFM) per kilowatt is the
air velocity?

What percent of the year can you run without mechanical

refrigeration?

What is your operating temperature? Are you following

ASHRAE TC 9.9 recommendations?

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

13 Network Services
Please provide answers to the following questions:

Is your facility carrier-neutral?

(Ensure you can select your own carrier or several carriers.
Most customers do not want to be locked into an agreement
with a specific carrier that the data center provider mandates.)

What carriers are used at this facility? Do they provide

their own connectivity option?

Is it possible to connect to carriers that are not in the

facility? Is there interconnectivity between your facilities in
different locations?

Does the data center offer connectivity to competitor data

centers? If so, how easy and costly is it?
(Many data center providers do not connect directly to
competitor data centers, and if they do it is very difficult and
expensive. This could be a problem if you expand or need to
easily reach another data center provider.)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

13 Network Services
Please provide answers to the following questions:

What private line networking options do you have? Are

they provided by a third party? How are they supported?

What dark fiber providers do you work with?

What redundancy options do you have built into your

backbone network? What fall over options do you have
in place?

What low latency options do you have available?

Where are the access points for telecom?

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

14 Systems & Personnel

Please provide answers to the following questions:

What environmental and security monitoring systems

are in place?

Will your company send notifications in the event of a

system outage or service failure?

How will that notification process take place?

What triggers that notification?

What control centers are located in this facility?

(If a problem arises, do you know how quickly
the provider will be able to respond?)

What personnel are on site?

(Are security and facility staff on site at all times?)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

14 Systems & Personnel Cont.

Please provide answers to the following questions:

What is the response time for requests placed to

personnel and vendors?

What is the scope of the remote hands for this facility?

What physical security is in place?

What escort procedures are in place on the raised floor?

What are the access control options for a customer’s cage?

What security systems are in place?

What fire detection/suppression systems are used?

What is the wall fire rating in hours?

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

15 Risks
Please provide answers to the following questions:

Is this facility in a flood pain Are there railways, chemical

plants, oil facilities, or water reservoirs within 10 miles?

What is the history of water leakage and flood events in

the facility?

What is this facility’s history of utility downtime?

What is the postmortem process in place?

What severe natural disasters may occur in this region?

What is this facility’s proximity to major transportation

paths? (e.g., railway, flight path, highway, etc.)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

16 Availability Review
Please provide answers to the following questions:
How many square feet of raised floor is available at
this facility?
What is the UPS power availability in KW at configuration?

What is the generator power availability in KW

at configuration?

What is the cooling availability?

Please provide a sample SLA.

What is the rent structure?

What is the power pricing model?

What is the utility rate for this facility?

What flexibility options do you have for this contract?

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

17 Ancillary Services
Please provide answers to the following questions:

What additional services are offered at this facility?

What service providers do you work with?

Does your company offer device support, tape handling,

rack cabinet, and/or cage management?

What monitoring systems are in place for power reports?

Does your company have procedures in place for logistics?

(e.g. shipping and receiving)

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 Data Center Provider RFP Details

18 Management Team 19 Data Center Locations

Please send a detailed pricing proposal appropriately based Please send your company’s standard contract and service
on the solutions above. level agreement. Include:
(Inquire about any impact on the pricing if an expansion of services is required
during the term. Ask about any ‘hidden fees’ such as “fuel surcharges, Sample agreement for review.
charge-backs, connections, etc.” Ensure all pricing comparisons between data
center providers are ‘apples to apples’. Often, a provider may share a low price
Impacts occurring at the conclusion of the agreement.
upfront, but then add additional charges once the contract is nearly final.

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About LOGIX
Fiber Networks
LOGIX Fiber Networks is an established fiber-based network infrastructure operator in
Texas. LOGIX operates data center and colocation space in Dallas, Houston, Ft. Worth,
and Austin.

LOGIX provides highly secure fiber-based data and voice services as well as data center
access to over 10,000 enterprise and carrier customers. Known for its outstanding
Texas-based customer service, flexible connectivity options, and best-in-class reliability,
LOGIX’s built-for-business fiber network delivers the reliability customers need, so they
can focus on their business.

LOGIX affordable solutions leverage expertise accumulated over its 35-year history. As a
nimble, regional player, LOGIX efficiently develops and deploys large, medium, or
small-scale footprints to support its customers’ current and future business
requirements. LOGIX offers a broad range of business voice and data options for simple
and complex configurations including Business Voice, Business Internet, Business
Ethernet, Business Wavelength, Business Voice Cloud, Business Voice Trunks, SD-WAN
Secure, Data Centers, and Cloud Connect.

For more information about solutions from LOGIX, contact (281) 336-9906.