FORTRUST has been awarded a Tier III Gold Certification of Operational Sustainability by Uptime Institute, the global data center authority. The certification was issued for Phase 7, the latest expansion at FORTRUST’s Denver data center.

The FORTRUST Denver Data Center joins an elite class of data centers in the world and is one of five in the United States with the certification, becoming the only colocation data center in Colorado with the coveted Tier III Gold Certification.

The Tier III Gold Certification of Operational Sustainability was preceded by Tier Certification of Constructed Facility. Tier Certification of Constructed Facility ensures that a facility has been constructed as designed, and verifies that a facility is capable of meeting the defined availability requirements of Concurrent Maintainability. Tier Certification of Operational Sustainability evaluates an additional three elements which are Management & Operations, Building Characteristics and Site Location along with the level of risk mitigation in place for natural or man-made disasters. The certification assesses the behaviors and risks beyond Tier level that impact the ability of a data center to meet its uptime objectives over the long term. Based on the total points any of three certifications can be awarded: bronze, silver or gold.

“A data center’s reliability is a product of its infrastructure, management & operations, risk mitigation and the personnel who operate it,” says Robert McClary, executive vice president and general manager at FORTRUST. “FORTRUST is proud to be awarded the Tier III Gold Certification for our newest phase of expansion,” adds McClary, who was instrumental in the design, construction and ongoing business operations. “We appreciate the highly collaborative engagement between our team and the team of professionals at Uptime Institute. The process was extremely valuable for our ongoing management & operations and validated the operational strategies FORTRUST has had in place for many years.”

“The FORTRUST Tier III Gold Certification for Constructed Facility clearly illustrates the company’s commitment to excellence in data center design, implementation and ongoing management," said Lee Kirby, president of Uptime Institute. “Uptime Institute congratulates FORTRUST on achieving the world-class distinction of Tier III Gold. Building to a design and certifying the build provides a high level of confidence to FORTRUST’s client base, team members and partners.”

Receiving Tier III Gold Certification from Uptime Institute shows businesses that all elements of the critical infrastructure of a data center are capable of enterprise-grade performance. It also demonstrates that exceptional management & operations behaviors, building characteristics, along with low site risks were observed during Uptime Institute’s audit.