Towngas Telecom delivers the right world class capacity

Chinese culture has traditionally encouraged sharing and the regular gathering of business partners, friends, and family. Chinese banquets to commemorate memorable occasions and success in business are no strangers to Chinese people. Bringing people together to share food, to catch up with old friends, and to meet new friends allows the sharing of communication and information. New opportunities are also discovered to help solve current problems and give rise to new business ventures.

This is a testament to the power of culture and nourishment. For 153 years, Towngas Telecommunications Company Limited (TGT) has provided the platform for this flow of socialisation, information, and communication in what might be considered a pre-digital era data centre.

Towngas is bringing digitisation to the banquet
“By leveraging Glass-In-Gas (GIG) and Glass-Along-Gas (GAG) technology, we have created a fibre network within the existing gas piping network to provide high-end telecommunication infrastructure services and quality network solutions for telecom carriers, service providers, and large corporations,” states Joseph Lai, general manager of TGT and presently head of emerging business of the Towngas Group. TGT is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited, and is one of Hong Kong’s premier fixed telecommunications network operators.TGT provides up to 100Gbps point-to-point fibre links and dedicated bandwidth services including T3/DS3, STM-1, STM-64, GE, and 10GE.

“We have a tremendous resource in over 1.8 million gas customers and an extensive pipeline network in Hong Kong alone,” continues Lai. TGT focuses on three core businesses: network connectivity, carrier neutral data centres, and cloud computing.

The latest jewel in the crown of achievements for TGT as an unparalleled infrastructure service provider is TGT Hong Kong Data Centre 2 (TGT HKDC2), a purpose built five-floor stand-alone building with a gross area of 22,000 square metres and a 3,000 server rack capacity. TGT HKDC2 is a recognised world-class data centre for hosting mission critical operations. This data centre has been awarded with numerous ISO certificates (ISO/IEC 27001,ISO/IEC 20000, ISO/IEC 14001), the CSA STAR Certification for Cloud Computing, HKSAR Level II Security Guidelines issued by the HKSAR Government, and LEED Gold Certification issued by the U.S. Green Building Council.

TGT HKDC2 is the ideal host partner for global clients who have a green mandate as the facility is built and equipped with environmental friendliness in mind. Located in Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate, the facility features a durable self-cleaning terracotta insulated facade, uses renewable energy through incorporation of numerous skylights and solar panels, an oil-free chiller, and the use of Novec 1230 in the fire suppression system in all data halls. TGT HKDC2 joins TGT HKDC1 in Hong Kong and carrier neutral world class data centres in Jinan, Dalian, Dongguan, Harbin, and Shanghai to provide TGT a total capacity that exceeds 14,000 server racks in Hong Kong and China.

Working with partners
The banquet just got bigger. “We are a relatively new player in the telecom industry, but we have a lot of old friends. We hope to capitalise on all the resources provided by the HK and China Gas group, and our joint venture partners throughout China,” states Lai. Hong Kong and China Gas Company has over 130 joint venture partners with whom they have help built a gas pipeline network that connects to 20 million customers and is growing rapidly due to urbanisation.

TGT is currently bringing their expertise in GIG and GAG technologies to their long established partners to meet the rapidly growing demand in China for network connectivity. The tapping of a new source of revenue and opportunities to grow business with old friends has been well received. “The upside potential is great in China, TGT along with Hong Kong and China Gas JV partners are moving fast to provide the fibre optic backbone in support of this growth.”

TGT adopts a proactive approach in developing the fibre optic backbone network with Hong Kong and China Gas’ JVs and partners. This approach not only enables a shortened implementation timeframe but also uncovers new opportunities for all stakeholders. One such opportunity is “Fog Computing”. It is typical to take up to 3 years to build a world class cloud data centre from inception to operation. TGT is undertaking a feasibility study on placing self-contained fog computing units on a wide geographical region serving respective local enterprises.

“Being carrier neutral is both a strength and a weakness,” adds Lai. “Carrier-operated data centres may employ financial bundling packages to make their services appear more cost effective. TGT’s carrier neutral status appeals to customers who need to be carrier independent or those large global enterprises who need to remain with their corporate carrier.” TGT data centres are currently the infrastructure platform of choice for premium European, U.S., and Asian regional businesses.

The banquet is about to begin. Chinese cuisine is always better when cooked with gas no matter what you cook or what style you cook. It is the right amount of flame at the right time. And consistent with Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited, TGT provides the data centre and infrastructure that delivers the right world class computing capacity to the right customer at the right time—all the time.