What Data Center Scope does
The publication examines construction cost, cost per MW, colocation pricing, electricity, cooling, rack density, capacity planning, reliability and the infrastructure required for increasingly dense AI workloads.
The objective is practical: make difficult infrastructure questions easier to evaluate without pretending that one benchmark applies to every project.
Who the research is for
Data Center Scope is written for readers comparing facilities, reviewing project economics, researching colocation, evaluating power and cooling requirements, or trying to understand why two credible data center cost estimates can differ materially.
Editorial responsibility
Articles, research pages and planning tools are published under the editorial name Adam Williams.
Authority on this site is based on transparent research practice, reproducible calculations, careful source selection and clear disclosure of uncertainty — not on invented professional credentials.
A $/MW figure is only useful when the reader can determine what is included, what is excluded, when the estimate applies and which assumptions drive it.
Independent research and advertising
Data Center Scope may display advertising. Advertising does not determine article conclusions, rankings, calculations or source selection.
A company does not receive favorable editorial treatment because it advertises on the site.
Go deeper
The full research process, source hierarchy, calculation standards, correction policy and Adam Williams editorial profile are documented in the Methodology.
Why the publication focuses on economics and infrastructure
Data centers sit at the intersection of real estate, construction, electrical infrastructure, thermal engineering and technology. Numbers become misleading when those layers are collapsed into one generic cost. Data Center Scope concentrates on the points where the boundaries matter most.
A $/MW construction benchmark, for example, is not useful until the reader knows whether MW means IT capacity or total facility load and whether the quoted project scope includes land, utility work or active IT equipment. The same problem appears in colocation pricing, where an electricity-inclusive rate cannot be compared directly with a net-of-power quote.
U.S. market focus
The primary commercial and research focus is the United States. National figures are used when appropriate, but market-specific data is preferred when location materially changes construction, energy, colocation or capacity economics.
Research and tools work together
Articles explain the evidence and boundaries behind an infrastructure question. The planning tools then allow readers to change assumptions themselves rather than relying on a single static example.
This is intentional. A useful calculator should show how the result moves when PUE, utilization, electricity price, committed power or another important variable changes. It should not hide uncertainty behind a precise-looking answer.
What the publication does not claim
Data Center Scope is not a substitute for project-specific engineering or procurement work. It does not claim that a national benchmark is a bid for a specific facility, and it does not attribute professional credentials to its editor that have not been established.
Readers who want to understand how evidence is selected, normalized and checked can review the full Research Methodology.