Power, Labor And Supply Chains Will Shape The Next Era Of Data Center Growth

InnovationPower, Labor And Supply Chains Will Shape The Next Era Of Data Center GrowthByDirk Naylor,Forbes Councils Member.for Forbes Technology CouncilCOUNCIL POSTExpertise from Forbes Councils members, operated under license. Opinions expressed are those of the author. | Membership (fee-based)May 26, 2026, 07:45am EDTBy Dirk Naylor, Executive Vice President & General Manager, Communications & Security Solutions for Wesco. gettyIn 2025, we saw booming global demand for data center solutions among hyperscale, enterprise and multi‑tenant customers. ​Today, continued data center growth hinges on the industry’s ability to overcome challenges in site power readiness, skilled labor shortages and supply chain limits. Securing reliable power, including access to natural gas and nuclear, is increasingly influencing site‑selection decisions and pushing development into secondary markets.Why Power Availability Dictates Data Center GrowthPower has become one of the defining challenges in building and running data centers. Operators are grappling with grid limitations, rising power densities and the need for modernization of aging infrastructure. Addressing these issues requires a combination of grid coordination, site‑power solutions, modernization programs and, increasingly, alternative energy strategies. Reliable power is no longer simply an engineering concern—it is a strategic differentiator that determines how quickly and efficiently new capacity can come online.As an industry, we also must expand the skilled trades workforce required to build and maintain data center facilities on a larger scale and to ramp up manufacturing of critical components to reduce lead times and strengthen supply chain resiliency.It is predicted that the U.S. engineering and construction industry will need approximately 500,000 new workers in 2026 to keep up with demand. Structural factors continue to limit labor supply. Deloitte predicts that by 2031, 41% of construction workers will re...