The data center industry meets at the IT Infra event

The IT Infra event took place on November 20th in Congrescentrum 1931 in 's-Hertogenbosch. The weather is bad and angry. Snowstorm, rain, kilometers of traffic jams and no less than 335 visitors brave the elements to visit the IT Infra event.

Wet and cold, the first exhibitors trickle in very early. Coffee, unpacking and especially warming up. Congrescentrum 1931 is our familiar location. The most important thing is ready: hot coffee.

Unpacking, setting up. The atmosphere is immediately good. Everyone knows each other and with a healthy dose of excitement the exhibitors look forward to the pitches. After the opening lecture they have the opportunity to give a pitch of maximum 45 seconds. Miranda van Wijk, FHI's rock in the surf, keeps a strict eye on this.

“A downpour does the event good,” says an exhibitor with a broad smile as he shrugs off a soaking wet coat. “The visitors are streaming in.”

There is a rush at the registration desk and soon it is a pleasant bustle on the trade fair floor. A bell echoes through the old cattle hall and a woman's voice asks everyone to go to the large hall for the first presentation.

William Heesbeen, lead mechanical engineer at RoyalHaskoning DHV, is ready in the wings. Arno Uiterweerd, director of Unica Datacenters, is ready all day and has volunteered to chair the day. With interest and flair, he warmly welcomes the packed room and announces William.

The IT Infra event has started. William stands familiarly on stage and the unique atmosphere of techies among themselves descends in the large hall.

Data centers are a crucial part of our society. But social expectations and technical reality are not in step. “Just call us,” William ends his presentation. “Air cooling and Direct Liquid Cooling (DLC), we cannot do without them. But we have reached the limits of air cooling and DLC does not meet expectations.” He puts his hands in the air and looks openly into the room: “Questions?”

With loud applause, the audience thanked William for his story and Arno took over. “I was really looking forward to this,” says Arno, “the pitches.” The exhibitors who had registered were ready for their 45 seconds of fame. A stopwatch is all Miranda needs to get through the pitches within half an hour.

The audience laughs. The audience encourages the exhibitor and the 45 seconds are already up. "Pause", the latter calls into the audience and hands the microphone to the chairperson. Arno takes the microphone amid loud laughter, thanks Miranda for her stern eyes and as one man the audience stands up when they hear: "Bossche bollen!".

The day is divided into different sessions and a very substantive program is reviewed. From climate change and the catastrophic consequences of global warming to the unpredictability of AI. Legislation and standards are also discussed extensively. In one of the English-language presentations, the speaker says confidently: “Legislation is forcing behavior change. It works. And more is coming.”

The day flies by. Visitors stream in and out of the seminar rooms; visit the stands on the exhibition floor and enjoy a drink at the scattered seats and standing tables. Despite one snow shower after another, the IT Infra event has lived up to the high expectations. The flow has calmed down. During the drinks, visitors and exhibitors look back on an excellent day. The seminars are discussed in detail. Outside, it is still a bit chilly. One last bitterbal and everyone walks outside: into the wind, into the rain, into the traffic jam. Home.