A Look Inside: Telehouse London

Telehouse remains at the forefront of data centre services in the heart of London. Continuing to provide a secure and reliable environment for the IT infrastructure of global businesses, it boasts a network of cutting-edge facilities that deliver reliable and flexible colocation services. 

Data Centre Magazine visited the London Docklands campus to see how Telehouse helps businesses create opportunities through fast, efficient and secure interconnections. 

Telehouse North 2, first opened in 2016, offers access to a range of high-density power solutions available.

Opened in 2022, Telehouse South offers scalable solutions for clients to meet their business needs. It is integrated to the campus via a diverse fibre network and offers access to one of the world’s densest networks with more than 1,000 carriers, ISPs and ASPs. It first went live in November 2024.

“We are committed to delivering advanced capacity and ensuring our customers can scale and adapt at their own pace,” says Paul Sharp, Senior Buildings Manager at Telehouse.

Diverse roots

The Docklands campus has a range of individual qualities that make it a unique site. Inside, resiliency is critical, with testing taking place every month to ensure systems are still operating to a high standard. 

Burning 400 litres of fuel an hour, acoustic panels are vital to break up any escaping heat, in addition to cleaning fuel loops to make sure biofuel is being integrated successfully. There is talk of moving towards hydrogen fuel in the future, however these conversations are still in their infancy as practicalities are ironed out across the industry.

As the work completed at this site is mostly fibre-based, the carrier room has a range of fibre optic cable routes which can be interlinked depending on individual customer need. 

There are also 10 cooling units per floor, which are a variation of air-based or liquid air cooling solutions. Whilst these are energy efficient, they use a lot of water - something which Paul is eager to change.

Paul adds: “As we look to the future, we will continue to build out further floors within Telehouse South and optimise our infrastructure. This includes trialling new cooling solutions, such as liquid cooling systems, to handle the increasing heat density associated with emerging technologies.”

LINX: The engine behind the Internet

In 1994, Telehouse became home to LINX, one of the largest Internet exchanges in the world. Since the first LINX room was built at the Telehouse campus, the partnership has led to multiple improvements as maintaining connectivity has become less challenging. The two organisations continue working closely to reduce latency via LINX’s LON1 and LON2 fabric.

“When the Internet was starting out and networks wanted faster connectivity, rather than having to route traffic to New York and back, the founding members of LINX created a central meeting point in Telehouse North to keep traffic local,” explains Anne Bates, Head of Exchange Platforms at LINX.

Given the recent surge in data, Telehouse continues expanding to meet new data requirements. In fact, Telehouse South had two new additional floors added in summer 2024.

Both Telehouse and LINX remain in awe at how fast the Internet has grown in just 30 years.

“Every day we’re excited by the latest innovation in networks, data centres or broader technology that is shaping our lives for the better,” Anne says. “It’s been a fascinating 30 years of the internet, and we’re excited to see what the next 30 years holds.”

Trading data

Telehouse is eager to continue partnering with organisations like LINX to transform the next era of connectivity. Paul is optimistic that there is more site growth to come, particularly as AI becomes more influential in the data centre industry.

“We expect a shift towards AI services demanding lower latency and greater proximity,” he explains. “As the reliance on AI accelerates and the need for instant, data-driven insights become routine, Telehouse is well placed to provide the secure connectivity and speeds crucial for next-generation applications. 

“Our facility’s position at a key internet hub, combined with our strong carrier and cloud partnerships, ensures we can offer the performance and resilience clients require.”

To read the full story in the magazine click HERE

Explore the latest edition of Data Centre Magazine  and be part of the conversation at our global conference series, Tech & AI LIVE and Data Centre LIVE. 

Discover all our upcoming events and secure your tickets today. 

Data Centre Magazine is a BizClik brand