QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are data centers important?
Data centers are the infrastructure behind cloud storage, banking, healthcare systems, schools, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, logistics, and business operations. The need is not temporary: the need is critical infrastructure to support our modern way of life as we work, study, and relax.
- Data centers are the #1 fastest growing industry, which empowers all other industries to grow and achieve new efficiencies and insights.
- U.S. data center employment grew from 306,000 workers in 2016 to 501,000 workers in 2023.
Do data centers create meaningful jobs?
Yes. The strongest job impact comes during construction, followed by permanent operations and recurring vendor work. Data centers create demand for electricians, plumbers, HVAC technicians, pipefitters, equipment operators, security providers, maintenance teams, engineers, and local contractors.
- A 150 MW data center can require approximately 750–1,200 construction workers.
- Permanent operations staffing can be approximately 75–100 workers for a 150 MW facility.
- Data center construction wages can be 25%–30% higher than construction wages in other industries.
- One data center job indirectly creates 6+ other jobs in the community.
Are data center jobs only temporary?
No. Construction creates the largest short-term workforce need, but the economic impact continues through permanent staffing, vendors, maintenance, utility work, security, telecom support, and local service spending. Data centers operate 24/7, so they require ongoing facility support after construction is complete. Data centers also tend to trigger a second economic wave as their manufacturers and supply chain vendors establish facilities to support the data center's needs.
- Brookings found that counties receiving their first large data center saw total private employment increase by 4%–5% over five to six years.
- Construction employment increased by 11%.
- Information-sector employment increased by 22%.
- Wages rose by 3%–4% for both existing workers and new hires.
Do data centers use a lot of water?
Water use depends on the cooling design. Older evaporative systems can use more water, but modern facilities increasingly use closed-loop, air-cooled, or direct-liquid cooling systems that reduce daily water demand. Some systems use little to no water for cooling.
- Modern cooling systems can require less daily water than a baseball field.
- Some newer systems use no water for cooling.
- Microsoft has stated its next-generation design can avoid more than 125 million liters of water per year per data center vs. older cooling designs.
Do data centers strain the electric grid?
Data centers use significant power, but responsible projects do not connect to the grid casually. They go through rigorous, highly regulated utility review, interconnection planning, capacity analysis, and cost-allocation processes. In many cases, the data center pays for needed infrastructure upgrades, which can improve long-term reliability and available capacity for everyone on the grid.
- AEP Ohio's data center tariff requires new large data centers to pay for at least 85% of their contracted electricity capacity for up to 12 years, even if they use less.
- Ohio data centers are tied to more than $40 billion in private capital investment.
- Ohio data centers are projected to contribute $20.15 billion to Ohio GDP by 2030.
Are data centers loud?
Sound is a design and compliance issue, not an unavoidable outcome. The main sound sources are cooling equipment, transformers, and limited generator testing. Proper site planning can use setbacks, acoustic walls, equipment placement, screening, landscaping, and monitoring to control and enforce sound levels.
- Typical data center sound is approximately 45–55 decibels at the property line.
- A normal conversation is about 60 dBA.
- Semi-trucks are roughly 85–90 dBA.
Do data centers create heavy traffic?
No. Data centers are power-intensive, not traffic-intensive. They usually have fewer on-site workers, fewer visitors, and fewer customer-facing trips than warehouses, retail centers, restaurants, or manufacturing uses once construction is complete.
- JLL estimates a 500 MW data center generates approximately 350–600 daily vehicle trips.
- Food processing can generate approximately 900–2,500 daily trips.
- Distribution can generate approximately 1,500–5,000 daily trips.
- Restaurants can generate approximately 2,500–6,500 daily trips.
- Auto assembly can exceed 100,000 daily trips.
What kind of community benefits can data centers create?
Data centers can create tax base, utility upgrades, construction activity, workforce partnerships, vendor opportunities, and community benefit commitments. The strongest approach is to make benefits measurable through development agreements, community benefit agreements, local hiring reporting, apprenticeship usage, and annual compliance updates.
- Ohio has attracted more than $40 billion in private capital tied to the data center industry.
- Ohio data centers are projected to support approximately 132,500 jobs by 2030.
- Ohio data centers are projected to contribute $20.15 billion to Ohio GDP by 2030.
- One example in Cedar Rapids included up to $18 million over 20 years for a Community Betterment Fund.