In a partnership that both companies say will bring a new competitor to the Canadian telecommunications market, independent Canadian telecom services provider TekSavvy Solutions has partnered with Montreal-based data centre colocation provider Root Data Center Inc. (RDC).
TekSavvy, headquartered in Chatham, Ont., has signed on as an anchor tenant in RDC’s new Tier 3 colocation data centre in Montreal. It is also making a strategic investment in the facility. The amount was not disclosed.
“TekSavvy’s investment in Root will ensure high availability and geographic redundancy for TekSavvy’s growing portfolio of telecommunications services, and serve as a basis for building out TekSavvy’s managed services and Software-as-a-Service offerings,” the companies said in a joint press release.
The announcement follows a review by TekSavvy of the data centre’s design, Root’s growth strategy and its capacity to meet the long-term requirements of TekSavvy’s customers.
Root says the investment, combined with that of other investors including its own management, bolsters its long-term corporate stability and will enable it to seek more future financing.
“Root is a company that focuses on offering high-value, reasonably-priced products that bring real competition to the marketplace,” said Marc Gaudrault, CEO of TekSavvy, in the press release. “Our strategic investment in Root ensures that we can offer our customers even more reliable products and services in the future.”
The press release quotes Jason van Gaal, Root’s CEO, as saying that the customer service DNA of the two companies is a good match.
Root says its 20,000-square-foot Montreal facility offers colocation services “for less than the cost of power.” The $20 million, carrier-neutral, 5MW, 500-server-rack facility is within 15 minutes of downtown Montreal and the city’s international airport.
The company also says it’s the first data centre provider in Montreal to deploy next-generation cooling technology, which allows it to offer services for 30-70 per cent less than some other providers.