Key elements in the design of high-availability data centers include:

• Understanding the potential of the site with regard to utility service, use restrictions, and other constraints
• Understanding the potential risks associated with the site due to both natural and man-made conditions
• Developing the facility program, which in part must include a specific plan to determine both near-term and future floor area requirements for the data floor, including various expansion strategies
• Developing a high-availability criteria to determine requisite levels of reliability and redundancy
• Understanding current and future technology benchmarking which provides the power and cooling response to the program
• Devising a plan which provides a scalable infrastructure, allows for straightforward connections between major loads, and mitigates internal risks to high-availability