Disaster-Recovery Data Center Construction in Denison, Texas

Some owners need a second site, one far enough from their main facility to avoid shared hazards and close enough that a technician can drive there the same day. Denison, at the northern end of the Dallas-bound highway system, suits that purpose, and we build modular and prefabricated halls, small enterprise buildings and disaster-recovery sites there with a short, clear process. The goal is a facility that works on the day it is needed, tested before it is ever required.

The geography is easy to read. Denison is served by U.S. 69 and U.S. 75 (Katy Memorial Expressway), by State Highway 91 (Texoma Parkway) which connects Sherman and Denison, and by Spur 503 (Eisenhower Parkway). The Dallas metro lies to the south on US 75, so equipment and staff can reach a Denison site by a direct route. Denison Dam, which forms Lake Texoma, is five miles north of the city, a reminder that the area is built around water as well as roads.

The employers named in published descriptions are a school district, a frozen-food maker, a medical center, an insurance and health services company, an equipment manufacturer and a national retailer. They are mid-sized to large organizations that depend on dependable networks, and many of them already run their own servers in places that were never designed for them.

The most common Denison project is a hall of a few thousand square feet with enough power for a core of production systems. It might be an enterprise recovery site for a Dallas-area business, a regional health records backup or a secondary processing center for the kind of institutions described under enterprise and financial institutions. These buildings are small enough to be built quickly and large enough to need all the systems of a larger hall: redundant power, tested cooling, fire protection and security.

We often propose a prefabricated approach for speed. Factory-built power and cooling modules arrive on trucks, are set on prepared pads and connect to a site-built core. The method, described in our page on modular and prefabricated data halls, shortens the time on site and gives the owner a factory test before delivery.

A small recovery site can be on a short schedule if the decisions are made early. We recommend settling the site, load and level of redundancy first, then ordering the long-lead items before the design is complete. Prefabricated modules often take months to build, so ordering them is the first schedule step, and the pad and utilities are built while they are in production.

Commissioning is the last step and the one that matters most for a disaster-recovery site. We run functional tests of power, cooling and controls, simulate a utility outage under load and leave the owner with scripts for repeating the tests. A recovery site that has not been tested is a hope, not a plan, and we do not hand one over without the tests.

Denison Dam and Lake Texoma are five miles north of the city, and the area has creeks and low ground that need attention. We check floodplain mapping, find the lowest ground on the parcel and place the hall and equipment pads above the mapped level with margin. Drainage then moves stormwater away from the building and the yard without creating new problems for neighbors.

The lake also raises a question about cooling water. A design that draws on a public supply or on reuse needs an agreement with the provider and a plan for restrictions. We discuss options in our work on cooling water supply and reuse lines, including tanks that carry the system through a short interruption.

Denison and Sherman are linked by SH 91 and function as one market for many purposes. The semiconductor activity in Sherman is the largest force in the area, and it influences land prices, labor and power. Denison offers a calmer environment for owners who do not want to be next door to heavy industry, while still being close enough to use the same trades and suppliers.

The Katy railroad depot that gave the city its start is a reminder that Denison has been a transportation point for a long time. Today the freeways and nearby regional airports, including North Texas Regional Airport/Perrin Field, serve the same purpose. The airport is useful for engineers flying in to inspect a site or for equipment that has to arrive quickly.

Small halls are not cheaper per megawatt than large ones, because the cost of fire protection, security and controls does not shrink in proportion to the load. The way to hold the budget down is to focus on what the owner needs: the right redundancy level, a modest footprint and a building that is easy to expand. We often recommend a design with space and conduit for a second phase so that growth does not mean tearing up the first.

Owners who plan more than one site can also benefit from a standard design that repeats from location to location. The same drawings, equipment and test scripts work in Texarkana, in Denison and in other markets, and the repetition lowers the cost of each additional hall. For the first site, our preconstruction and estimating team can produce a cost range from the program alone, before a parcel is bought.

Tell us the systems the site must carry, the recovery time you require and the location you have in mind. We will return a design direction, an outline schedule and a budget range.

How far should a recovery site be from the primary site?

Far enough to avoid the same storm, flood or utility failure, and near enough for staff to reach it quickly. A site on the other side of the Dallas metro, such as Denison, meets both goals for many Dallas-area owners. The right distance also depends on network latency needs.

Is a modular hall a good fit for disaster recovery?

Often yes. Factory-built modules shorten the field schedule, can be tested before delivery and can be added to as needs grow. The site-built portion, such as the pad, utilities and security, still has to be done well.

Which roads serve a Denison site?

U.S. 69 and U.S. 75, plus State Highway 91 and Spur 503. Heavy equipment normally uses US 75 from the south. We survey the final route for clearances before any shipment.

Does Lake Texoma affect a project?

It affects drainage, floodplain mapping and sometimes water supply. We check mapped limits and keep equipment above them. We also look at the local water provider's rules and any drought plan.

How often should a recovery site be tested?

Regularly, with a full outage test under load at least once a year in most programs. We provide test scripts at handover so the owner's staff can repeat them without outside help.