It's data insurance for businesses in Bermuda.

The E-business Solutions Centre at the Cable & Wireless Teleport will next month mark its second anniversary as a data storage facility to protect companies against fires, floods, hurricanes and other natural disasters.

Launched in July, 2001, the centre offers 2,000 square feet of customer hosting space and, according to C&W product manager Susan Young, the service is individually tailored to meet the needs of its customers.

“No two customers are the same,'' Ms Young said.

In the data storage rooms there are rows of cages with overhead data cables in neat rounds and power lines under three-foot raised flooring.

“The cages hold servers for up to 80 companies to store their data and one company bought its own IBM server unit which did not fit into the cage,” Ms Young said.

She also pointed out two rooms which hold back-up power supply and another which contains 192 six-volt batteries.

“If there is a power outage the diesel generators only take eight seconds to kick in,'' Ms Young said. “So far we have not lost power, but we are always testing.''

The fire safety units feature tubes of Argonite and the fire alarm system has multiple sensors to indicate whether there is an actual fire or not. “The Argonite works by lowering the levels of oxygen in a room that is on fire and this suppresses the fire since it cannot breathe,” Ms Young said. “Unlike Halon, which was used previously as a fire suppressant in computer rooms, Argonite is safe for humans to breathe.”

The area is cooled by several air conditioning units to keep the rooms at the optimum temperature for the data systems.

The centre was initially built in the 1970s to NASA specifications with a special grade of reinforced concrete designed to withstand winds up to 175 miles per hour. Ms Young said is the most unique of any island and C&W are getting business from as far away as Guernsey.

“The aim of the centre is to provide a place where business can still communicate with the rest of the world in the event of a disaster,” she said.

“We are 214-feet above sea level and well above the hurricane storm surge level. Most of the space has already been rented and most companies do not want a shared facility - they want a soundproof room as well as privacy for management.

“The centre is a secure physical location, has on-site back-up power generation, a-state-of-the-art Data Centre and e-Business Solutions Centre (eBSC), and in the case of a national unrest it is a Key Point 1 installation for the Bermuda Regiment and also for receiving diesel oil for its generators.

“The Service Continuity Workstation consists of a desk, chair, IDD telephone, a LAN port, access to printing facilities and fax machines. “Data back-up, secure tape storage, access to a videoconferencing suite, access to the Internet and access to the customer's existing, private line.”

Companies using the facilities are shipping, web-based and from the reinsurance/insurance sector.