Rack Centre: Empowering Businesses with Unmatched Reliability and Connectivity in Africa’s Leading Digital Ecosystem

The importance of seamless, high-speed internet and trustworthy cloud services cannot be overstated in the face of rapid digitization seen in modern times. The implementation of a low latency digital infrastructure and the value of carrier neutrality is often seen as crucial; data centres clients benefit from a independence from any single network provider to ensure open access. This allows enterprises to optimize network efficiency, minimize delays, and enhance resilience by selecting from multiple carriers. Such neutrality fosters a competitive and collaborative environment, driving innovation and benefiting companies.

Rack Centre serves as a prime example of this transformative approach. As West Africa’s leading carrier and cloud-neutral data centre, Rack Centre hosts over 80 clients, including international, regional, and local companies. Hosting connections to more than 65 carriers and 2 internet exchanges, IXPN, Nigeria’s internet exchange and AF-CIX, a fast growing IXP in the African region. It is the region’s most connected facility, serving every country along Africa's Atlantic coast. Rack Centre aims to provide carrier-neutral data centres for key African markets, addressing the region's need for cost-effective, energy-efficient IT infrastructure. As the first in the region to achieve IFC Edge certified data centre in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe, Rack Centre enables unrestricted connectivity between customers, carriers, and internet exchange points.

At CIO Bulletin, we had the great privilege of interviewing Lars Johannisson, the CEO of Rack Centre. During the interview, he shared insights on how he and his team of experts are enabling extensive connectivity that enables their customers to manage traffic more effectively, achieve lower latency, and enhance resilience.

Interview Highlights

Q. Can you provide a brief overview of Rack Centre and its journey since its establishment in 2012?

I'm building on the foundation laid by the previous management team here. Rack Centre was established around 2012 and began operations in 2013. Personally, I joined the company in January 2024, so I've been here for about five months now. Reflecting on the company's inception and its ten-year journey, it's fascinating to see how the founders and initial partners recognized the potential for a data centre colocation service in Nigeria at an early stage.

Back in 2013, Rack Centre started small, but over the years, through strategic decision-making and seizing the right opportunities, it carved out a niche for itself. By doing things right at the right time, Rack Centre built a brand that is widely recognized today in West Africa, particularly in Nigeria. This success also caught the attention of our current investors who came on board around 2021. They saw the legacy of the initial founders and management team and believed in our potential, enabling us to move into the next phase.

We often refer to this next phase as "Lagos Phase 2," which represents a significant expansion to 12 MW, eight times the size of our previous operations. It's an exciting time for Rack Centre as we continue to grow and evolve, building on our foundation while embracing new opportunities.

Q. There are many other colocation service providers in Africa. What sets Rack Centre apart and makes it one of the best among them?

Let's put things into perspective. Globally, only 2% of all data centres are located in sub-Saharan Africa. Considering that the continent is home to nearly 1.4 billion people and offers vast opportunities for growth in cloud services and data centre capabilities, this 2% participation rate is quite low. Furthermore, out of this 2%, only 1% is situated in Nigeria.

What sets Rack Centre apart is its early establishment and its status as a carrier-neutral data centre. This means we're not tied to any specific carrier and don't compete with our customers, which is a significant advantage. Additionally, our location on the mainland is strategic as it aligns with where many of our clients and enterprise branches are located. Being situated at a high altitude on the mainland also provides added safety from environmental risks along the coastline, including flooding.

Despite our mainland location, we are connected to all the subsea cables surrounding the continent. Moreover, after 10 years of consistent service delivery with zero downtime, our team has proven to be exceptionally strong. Very few, if any, competitors in our geographic market can boast such a track record of reliability and the strength of their team. Additionally, our exceptional energy efficiency, achieved through intelligent design and diligent operational management, further solidifies our position as a leader on the continent. This is relevant in an industry that is energy dense. I believe the combined value of people, product, process and policies truly distinguishes Rack Centre. We offer a secure and efficient alternative to in-house infrastructure development.

Q. Can you provide an overview of Rack Centre's colocation services and how they benefit businesses seeking secure and reliable data hosting solutions?

When we talk about data centres, many of our peers offer similar services. At Rack Centre, we provide co-location, a cloud service known as "cloud on the ground," interconnectivity, and peering. Our peering service is particularly noteworthy, as we host one of the largest peering communities in Nigeria, facilitated by the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN). This includes over 152 different ASNs and numerous local and global network providers. Additionally, we actively support this growth by offering free cross-connections to all the IXPs within our facility, a service that sets us apart from other data centers.

Additionally, we offer remote hands support for any assistance needed within the data centre, as well as cross-connect services for low-latency communication and community leverage. While these services may be found among our competitors, what sets Rack Centre apart is the size of community, legacy of operational excellence.

We're proud to be the first in the industry to be hyper-scale ready in the Nigerian market. This means we're equipped to host high-capacity computing clients entering the West African market. As we prepare for the increasing demand for AI and hyper-scale services, we're pioneering the launch of a hyperscaler-ready data centre in Nigeria. This allows us to accommodate the higher energy consumption associated with these advanced computing services (AI), estimated to increase power consumption 7-10 times versus current need. We call this, “Build for today, ready for tomorrow”. This positions Rack Centre as a leader in anticipating and meeting future technological demands in Nigeria and beyond.

Q. As the first carrier and cloud neutral, IFC Edge certified data centre in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe what unique advantages does Rack Centre offer to its clients?

If you were to consider becoming a client, there are several key factors to take into account. Firstly, there's reliability, which is paramount. Rack Centre boasts an impressive 10-year track record of 100% uptime, ensuring uninterrupted service for our clients in a market that sometimes is perceived to be challenging.

Secondly, our carrier-neutral connectivity is a major advantage. Being connected to all the subsea cables surrounding the continent means our clients have access to a wide range of options without being tied to any particular provider. This neutrality brings significant value to the table, especially in today's telecom and cloud landscape.

Location and scalability are also crucial considerations. As mentioned prior, our strategic location on the mainland, combined with our recent expansion, ensures that we can meet the evolving needs of our clients while remaining accessible to them.

Security and trust are non-negotiables in this industry. We hold certifications such as ISO 27001, PCI, and ICF Edge, demonstrating our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of security and compliance. Our track record speaks for itself, with over a decade of consistent application and adherence to these standards.

When it comes to operations, we prioritize planning, people, processes, and prevention—the four P's. Our team's thorough attention to detail and dedication to these principles have been instrumental in our success over the past decade.

In terms of sustainability, we're proud to be leading the way in energy efficiency. For over a year now, we've been utilizing gas turbines as our primary source of energy, with diesel generators serving only as backup to ensure uninterrupted service 24/7. Remarkably, our gas turbines account for up to 98% of our energy supply. This high level of efficiency not only ensures continuous operations but also reduces our reliance on traditional power sources in Nigeria. We are in the exploration phase to deepen our engagement in PV/Solar as an additional efficiency contributor.

Q. In the context of data centres and cloud storage, privacy is a critical concern in today's technological landscape. How does Rack Centre ensure the security and safeguarding of its clients' data?

Security, resilience, and data privacy are the pillars we stand on at Rack Centre. This is our core business. We ensure that all necessary certifications are achieved and maintained. When new certifications arise with updated requirements, we fully implement and apply them. We invest significant time and money to ensure we always comply with the latest standards. Our team is consistently trained to build and maintain this competence and capability.

In this industry, processes are crucial. As the saying goes, a process is only as good as its last failure. Fortunately, knock on wood, we have maintained a strong track record. Our processes have been robust, and our team's foundational capability and competence have been exceptional. We have continuously adapted and improved over the past 10 to 11 years, which is a testimony to our success.

Rack Centre provides various levels of security, including physical security with 7 layers of manned security, complemented by a range of physical and logical access security systems such as access controls and CCTV surveillance. Equally crucial are our meticulously defined processes, procedures, and standards, ensuring stringent compliance at all times.

Q. Could you please provide insights into your team and their contributions to the success of the company?

Rack Centre owes much of its success to the dedicated team behind it. Currently comprising 61 individuals, our workforce may not be large in numbers, but it is rich in expertise. Since our inception, we've prioritized hiring and retaining top talent, ensuring that our team is equipped with the skills needed to excel in this industry.

Investing in our team's training and development is not merely an expense for us; it's an investment in our future. We have a remarkably low turnover rate, a testament to the solid model we've adopted. Our approach focuses on building internal capabilities and continuously enhancing our staff's expertise to adapt to the evolving needs of our industry.

Without the dedication and expertise of our team, we wouldn't be where we are today. Investors have entrusted us to expand our facilities and capabilities, including the upcoming 12-megawatt hyperscale-ready facility, because they recognize the strength of our team and our commitment to excellence.

Q. Looking ahead, how do you see Rack Centre changing in next five years in terms of its services? And how do you see yourself creating that change?

Looking ahead five years, we've already begun planning our next expansion phase and increased considerably the renewable energy in our energy mix. With the introduction of our 12-megawatt facility, Rack Centre will become the largest data centre facility in Nigeria. I firmly believe that the majority of Nigeria data has been localized (sovereignty) and the first part of AI compute power for Nigeria development is located at Rack Centre. Our focus remains on serving both international and local clients, meeting their growing demands for data centre services and cloud-based applications.

The telecom sector in Nigeria offers significant growth opportunities, particularly as mobile broadband usage continues to increase. Transitioning from 2G to mobile broadband and adopting cloud services will drive substantial growth for us, our partners, competitors in the sector and more importantly, for Nigeria.

In the next five years, I envision further expansions, in Nigeria or elsewhere, to accommodate this rapid growth. Our aim is to stay ahead of the curve and continue providing cutting-edge solutions to meet the evolving needs of our clients and the market.

Lars Johannisson | CEO

Mr. Lars Johannisson, an accomplished leader with extensive experience in transformative industries, assumed the CEO role in January 2024.

Lars has extensive experience working in Telecom, IT Delivery, Managed Services, and Digital skilling. He is passionate about leading organizations in transformative industries in Africa over the last 14 years and has executed large B2B projects in more than 30 Sub-Saharan countries.

He holds an MBA in General Management/Finance from the Stockholm School of Economics and has completed the Stanford University Executive Program on “Design, Innovation and Business Transformation.”

He has actively participated in “Digital and Economic Inclusion” discussions in Sub-Saharan Africa and has sponsored economic inclusion initiatives for hiring and training youth in IT through partnerships with major CSV partners.

“With the introduction of our 12-megawatt facility, Rack Centre will become the largest data centre facility in Nigeria. Our focus remains on serving both international and local clients, meeting their growing demands for data centre services and cloud-based applications.”