140-acre data hub to be constructed near Fort Gordon

Jan. 20—A company dedicated to data centers will construct its newest footprint next to Fort Gordon, a sign of the cyber industry's growth and interest in the Savannah River region.

T5 Data Centers on Tuesday announced its plans to capitalize on the Army's cyber center of excellence and develop a 140-acre data campus in Augusta, what it dubbed "the Southeast's cybersecurity hub."

The location, the company explained in its announcement, affords "superior telecommunications infrastructure" as well as "an abundant and unique pool of highly trained, certified IT and cybersecurity personnel with secret and top-secret federal credentials."

Data centers, in general, use storage systems, servers and other tech to keep and protect a client's important information. T5 said its prospective facility is ideal for government contractors and that it can meet commercial or federal specifications, including physical security.

Steven Kendrick, the chairman of the Augusta Economic Development Authority, in a statement this week said Augusta "has made a name for itself as a hub for the cybersecurity industry." T5's move, he suggested, will spur further investment and development.

T5 has locations across the U.S., from California to Minnesota to North Carolina. The company said the Augusta area is "fast becoming known as a top-tier cybersecurity destination," joining the ranks of northern Virginia; Salt Lake City, Utah; San Antonio, Texas; and Huntsville, Alabama.

"We are pleased to support new projects in the area," Kendrick said, "that will cement our city's cybersecurity stronghold."

South Carolina is getting in on the action, too. A S.C. National Guard cyber complex is planned for the USC Aiken campus, and the governor, Henry McMaster, in December recommended spending millions of dollars to foster a cluster of cyber infrastructure and businesses in North Augusta.

"The U.S. Army Cyber Command and Cyber Center of Excellence is located at Fort Gordon in Augusta, Georgia," McMaster wrote in a letter to state lawmakers. "The location of this facility across the Savannah River from North Augusta, and the Army's continued expansion and investment in the Cyber Center, provides South Carolina with a unique opportunity to capitalize on the growing demand for cyber defense contractors and highly secure office space and facilities."