JOSEPH GABRIEL LAGONSIN

News Editor

Pulsant has completed a GBP £2 million investment programme across its UK data centre network, covering eight sites and focusing on upgraded facilities for customers, visitors and staff.

Delivered over the past two years, the programme covered sites in Croydon, Edinburgh, Maidenhead, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Reading and Rotherham. Further upgrades are under way at Pulsant’s recently acquired Birmingham and Fareham locations.

The refurbishment focused on customer-facing and operational areas inside the facilities. Changes included new layouts and signage, meeting rooms with AV technology and guest Wi-Fi, breakout areas, electric vehicle charging points, upgraded build rooms and revised access processes.

The work followed a pilot project at Pulsant’s Croydon site, where customer groups were used to assess how people use its data centres in practice. Feedback pointed to demand for more efficient and more welcoming on-site spaces for IT teams and technicians.

More than 500 UK businesses use Pulsant’s colocation services, placing their own servers and IT systems in the company’s facilities. Background information accompanying the announcement said Pulsant serves about 700 clients across its wider digital infrastructure estate.

Site changes

Pulsant introduced a zonal layout and updated signage to help engineers move around sites more quickly. It also created dedicated build bays with tools, test power distribution units and equipment so hardware can be prepared outside the data hall before installation.

Security and access were also part of the overhaul, with site access processes improved to reduce bottlenecks at busy periods while maintaining existing security standards.

Other additions included boardrooms, breakout rooms, rest areas and complimentary drinks. Post-upgrade feedback from clients and contractors highlighted those features alongside site security.

Customer feedback

Pulsant said client advocacy more than doubled after the changes, with a 33-point rise in Net Promoter Score among those who said they would recommend the company to industry peers looking for colocation services.

Ben Cranham, chief operating officer at Pulsant, said the project was designed to shift attention towards the people working in and visiting the facilities, alongside the underlying infrastructure.

“Data centres are often designed primarily around the infrastructure, rather than the people who work in them every day,” Cranham said.

He said the company used feedback from regular site users to guide the redesign.

“From the outset, our goal has been to create spaces where everyone – clients, partners, visitors and our team – feels welcome, supported and happy to be there. We’ve listened to the people who spend time in our data centres to shape environments that reflect how they work, now and in the future.

“By paying close attention to details, we’re delivering spaces that not only enhance wellbeing and productivity but also help us stand apart in the market,” Cranham said.

Pulsant operates 14 data centres around the UK and positions its network around regional connectivity and access to cloud, connectivity and compute services. The latest investment reflects a wider push by data centre operators to improve working environments at facilities regularly used by customer engineers, contractors, suppliers and in-house teams.

The British supermarket chain Iceland closed its high street shop in Sheep Street, Bicester, in 2024.

Iceland moved out of Sheep Street in Bicester in 2024 (Image: Liam McBurney)

Since the company’s Food Warehouse stores opened in the nearby Launton Road Retail Park, the site has remained vacant.

Now, Allen Planning Limited, acting on behalf of an applicant, wants to alter the front of the ground floor shop front to attract a new commercial tenant.

It submitted plans to Cherwell District Council, the planning authority seeking what it called the creation of ‘minor external alterations’ which would ‘not adversely impact the design of the building or the wider visual amenities of the area’.

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Amendments include a white render band in place of signage, slimline aluminium windows, a glazed fanlight, a new aluminium double door with fanlight, and a separate aluminium entrance door to the first floor, as previously approved under plans.

Proposed changes to the front elevation for 12 Sheep Street in Bicester to attract a new commercial tenant after Iceland left to a nearby retail park in 2024 (Image: Oaten Architects)

Changes to the two upper floors have already been approved, including installing replacement windows and five new infill panels.

The site sits within the Bicester Conservation Area, which is also within the newly pedestrianised ‘Sheep Street’ character area, which is characterised by predominantly three-storey buildings facing onto the main shopping street.

Comments are due until July 2 and the planning authority is set to make a decision by July 24.

David Lincoln who lives in Barton, said delivery problems have been ongoing for around five years.

The 73-year-old said: “You get it, then it goes away, then it starts again. It’s beyond a joke and getting ridiculous.”

Residents receive emails apologising for “resourcing issues” at the Oxford East delivery office.

But, Mr Lincoln claims two staff are still sent out on rounds and “take it in turns” to prioritise parcels one week, with letters left to the following week.

He said he has waited longer than his bank’s specified timeframe for a new card and missed hospital appointments because of delayed letters.

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With multiple health conditions, he says the uncertainty around when post will turn up is causing “growing anxiety”.

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We know how important it is for letters to arrive on time, particularly where they relate to hospital appointments.

“Our latest results show 92 per cent of letters arrive on time and more than 99% arrive within a week. However, some delivery offices can be temporarily affected by local issues such as sick absence.

“We list areas experiencing temporary disruption on our service updates page, which includes Oxford East Delivery Office. We are working to get services back to normal and, where mail is delayed, we aim to deliver it the following day.”