From zero to hero: how a simple idea for remote mine sites grew into a global IT solution

It all started 10 years ago in Perth, Western Australia, with an idea to solve IT difficulties on remote mine sites. Recognising that fixed server room infrastructure was costly, inefficient and difficult to scale and had limited monitoring, Angie and Clinton Keeler founded Zella DC, a new generation of micro data centres.

Remote mine sites had long been the toughest locations for IT data centres. Both Angie and Clinton knew that if they could nail the data centre out on the mine site, they’d have a solution that could work anywhere on earth.

From this idea, Zella DC was born. Angie and Clinton created a uniquely innovative micro data centre that was:

  • Easy from selection to deployment, maintenance, and management
  • Robust, able to withstand Australia’s harshest conditions
  • Fully contained (think dust-free) and complete (with software)
  • Cost-effective in terms of both infrastructure and energy usage
  • Scalable – as you grow your business, you can grow your data centre
  • Secure from unwanted entry in the physical and cyber dimension
  • Reliable – minimising downtime from overheating and human error
  • Vendor-agnostic – integrating all hardware and software seamlessly

Zella DC’s micro data centres ticked all the boxes, completely replacing the need for a purpose built server room.

“We are grateful to the mining companies, our early adopters, that helped us grow into the global company we are today. Starting out in such a tough environment meant we had to learn quickly and optimise our products to the highest standards.”

Zella DC | Angie Keeler | Zella Pro | Micro Data Center

With the products moulded, developed and optimised on mine sites, Zella DC expanded into government, defence and pharmaceutical applications, where Zella DC’s high standards of health and safety, certifications, reliability and cyber-security could be further utilised.

Zella DC has now secured a number of global enterprise accounts that will see their micro data centres deployed in six continents across a wide range of industries and global organisations, including:

  • Iron Ore: Atlas Mines needed a solution that would withstand the rugged conditions of their remote offices.
  • Disaster Recovery: ShadowSafe is a backup and disaster recovery company with three modulated Zella DC micro centres.
  • Healthcare: Southern Cross Care installed Zella DC micro centres as a space-saving initiative.
  • Media: Community News moved their IT equipment from their server room and into a Zella DC micro centre to overcome overheating problems in summer.
  • Nickel: BHP needed an IT solution for a remote site in WA. Zella DC was installed by local contractors.
  • State Government: WA Government required critical on-site IT infrastructure for the State Emergency Department.
  • Government: Chile needed to keep their data close and secure, so secured Zella DC micro centres across multiple sites and departments.

Angie Keeler, Zella DC’s Co-Founder and CEO said: “With the increasing popularity of hyper-converged IT infrastructure, the majority of our customers are looking for data centre solutions that are fast, secure, scalable and cost effective, and Zella DC ticks all of those boxes.”

Clinton Keeler, Zella DC’s Co-Founder and CTO said: “The Zella DC modular micro data centres give our customers the flexibility to supplement or completely replace their existing fixed server room infrastructure, and be up and running within days instead of months.”

About Zella DC:

Zella DC delivers next-generation micro data centre solutions that are aligned with the way that modern customers do business. This focus and technological ambition has recently seen Zella DC recognised as a 2020 finalist in the Edge Startup of the Year Awards by Edge Computing World.

For all media enquiries contact:

Lorenza Minghetti
Communications Manager
Zella DC
media@zelladc.com

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