A&M seeks data center
Data buzz has reached the Brazos Valley.
The Texas A&M University System said Monday that it hopes to recruit a private partner for a “stateof-the-art” data center in Bryan. The 30-acre campus would host servers and back up information from big Austin and Houston organizations.
Plans for the center are distinctive from the University of Texas System’s called-off proposal to develop a 300-plus-acre data science campus in Houston. The Bryan facility will be developed by a private company, said Phillip Ray, the Texas A&M system’s vice chancellor for business affairs. It aims to host applications and run network operations for business customers.
Still, the announcement marked another sign of support from Texas campuses for data’s economic and academic implications.
The now-scuttled proposal from a UT System task force pitched a center in Houston to focus on data science in health, education and energy. Academic programs would have instructed students, and the
proposal envisioned partnerships with other universities and businesses.
The University of Houston will launch a data analytics certificate for the energy industry this fall, and regents approved a UH master’s of science and data analytics in February. Rice University started a $43 million data science program in 2015.
Some in Houston haven’t given up on the UT System’s plans, arguing that Houston’s economy needs a center like the one UT’s advisory group pitched. Mayor Sylvester Turner in May endorsed the proposal and called for Texas A&M, UT, UH, Rice and Texas Southern University to collaborate on the project.
His office did not return requests for comment on Monday, and neither did UT representatives.
“The UT data center would be an ideal customer of ours, to back up their data,” Ray said. “We’d be perfectly happy with that.”
Paul Hobby, a co-chair of the UT task force, said he was unaware of A&M’s request for proposals but said the announcement appeared to focus more on hardware than software and research.
Texas A&M expects revenue from the partnership, Ray said, declining to specify exact figures. Partnership proposals will be due in July.
Ray said there could be opportunities for student instruction and faculty participation but that the system would not delve into data analytics and research, key parts of UT’s proposal. Texas A&M would focus on cloud storage and co-location services, where businesses would rent servers or hardware.
The A&M System has entered into more than $1 billion in public-private partnerships in the last five years as colleges and universities nationwide are using the financing model to support new construction.
College budget experts say the method can lead to faster development and less risk for universities as they try to build out their campuses, as service providers are experts in their field.
“It allows the university to stick to doing things it’s good at,” said Sue Menditto, director of accounting policy at the National Association of College and University Business Officers.
Administrators began considering a data center in 2013, Ray said, as the market’s growth was clear.
But Texas A&M didn’t have a location for the project until last year, when the system announced it would develop the land at the site of a former air base in Bryan.
The system pitched the property as a leading spot for product innovation and research in engineering, infrastructure, transportation and cybersecurity. The campus is dubbed “RELLIS,” an acronym for respect, excellence, leadership, loyalty, integrity and selfless service, Texas A&M’s six core values. The campus will also host an education center for qualified students who weren’t accepted to Texas A&M in College Station.
The location is prime for businesses that want their data stored clear of the hurricane zone but still close to major cities, he said.