Data Centre Relocation

The scenario in detail

Data-centre relocation creates a disposition problem that did not exist before the project: the kit you do NOT move. About 20–40% of a typical refresh-driven relocation does not arrive at the destination site — equipment is end-of-warranty, end-of-life, replaced in flight, or simply does not justify the rack-U at the new colo. That cohort needs an exit path: triage on the old floor, sanitisation in-jurisdiction (data does not cross borders before wipe is complete), and a manifest that reconciles to the migration runbook your infrastructure team is tracking.

Triggers — when this engagement model fits

A signed colo contract with a move-in date. A signed hyperscaler agreement with workload-migration milestones. A regional consolidation removing one of N data centres. A landlord notice on a long-tenured corporate DC. A power-density problem at the old site forcing a footprint reduction.

Specific risks in this scenario

Risk 1 — equipment arriving at the new colo that should have been retired on the old floor, so you pay smart-hands twice. Risk 2 — sanitisation happens at the new site instead of the old one, breaking data-residency assumptions in the SOW. Risk 3 — the migration team treats the disposition list as someone else's problem until the old colo demands the cage back. Risk 4 — chain-of-custody breaks during the move (assets logged out of the old DCIM but never logged into the disposition manifest). Risk 5 — refurb-eligible servers crushed in haste because the move team has no slot for "set this aside for buyback".

What to prepare before we start

Share the migration runbook so the disposition manifest reconciles to it. Identify the "stays behind" list before move week. Confirm sanitisation jurisdiction (old DC site vs Maxicom facility vs at destination). Flag any tenant-shared cabling, power, or fibre. Tell us about access windows — most colos require 48–72h notice for sustained pickup activity.

When this engagement starts

Colo-to-colo migrations, on-prem to cloud, regional DC consolidation, hyperscaler tenant exit.

What you get

Old-site Reuse-First triage, value recovery in CAD, manifest reconciled to your migration runbook, per-asset Certificate of Destruction.

Engagement timeline — what happens day-by-day

Day 1-3: scoping call, asset list reconciliation, regulator stack confirmation, witness destruction requirement determination. Day 3-5: written CAD quote per asset with line-item detail, SOW drafted with service levels and indemnity terms, NDA executed. Day 5-10: chain-of-custody manifest pre-prepared, vehicle GPS-tracking confirmed, tamper-evident sealed containers staged for top-classified loads. Day 10-20: pickup + sanitisation in-flight (NIST SP 800-88 Rev. 1 Purge for working drives, IEEE 2883-2022 firmware Sanitize for SSD/NVMe, physical destruction at 6mm/2mm/0.5mm for top-classified). Day 20-25: per-asset Certificate of Destruction issued, refurb-eligible units route through trader-channel network. Day 25-30: settlement in CAD against PO with line-item invoicing, ESG metrics report attached, quarterly review scheduled for programme engagements.

Documentation outputs you receive

Per-asset Certificate of Destruction with eleven required fields (serial, make/model/capacity, data classification, sanitisation method cited to NIST/IEEE/DoD, particle size or field strength or encryption algorithm, sanitisation tool + verification response, UTC timestamp + facility location, operator + ID + signature, witness signature where applicable, chain-of-custody reference, destruction reason where Reuse-First overridden). Pickup manifest with three-signature chain. {CAD} settlement invoice line-item per asset. ESG metrics report (tonnage, Reuse-First reuse rate, material recovery, embodied-carbon-recovered estimate, downstream-chain documentation). Compliance attestation cross-referenced to {OSFI B-13} / {PIPEDA}.

Common pitfalls in this engagement type

Pitfall 1 — incomplete asset list at scoping (creates re-quote and timeline slip; we ask for the full list at scoping so the CAD quote is final). Pitfall 2 — MDM enrolment not released for laptop/desktop fleets (devices cannot be redeployed by secondary buyer until MDM release; reduces buyback value to scrap). Pitfall 3 — no witness destruction protocol agreed where the regulator expects it (typical for top-classified BFSI, government restricted-data; we flag this at scoping and document the customer's witness-destruction position). Pitfall 4 — bulk-job certificate request to reduce paperwork volume (regulator-unacceptable in our experience; we route to per-asset paperwork and absorb the per-line cost). Pitfall 5 — gap in chain of custody between pickup and destruction (any unsigned hand-off window is a regulator finding; manifests are signed at every transfer point with no exceptions).

Why customers choose Maxicom for this engagement

30 years of continuous operation since 1996 across UAE, India, Singapore, Canada and Hong Kong. Per-asset certificate format admissible against every regulator we have served — OSFI B-13, PIPEDA, NIST SP 800-88 Rev. 1, IEEE 2883-2022. CAD settlement against PO per terms in the signed SOW. Reuse-First disposition model — we maximize reuse where the asset class and data classification allow, reported per engagement against your sustainability framework. Cross-border resale routing under NDA preserves channel-respect. Quarterly business reviews for programme engagements; rolling settlement against the engagement schedule.