I think everyone in Catawba County is proud that Apple is coming or should I say that Apple is here.  Apple began breaking ground and working on their new data center almost immediately after the paperwork was completed and their project is moving forward at record speed.

As soon as the announcement was made and the size of the facility was publicized, technology blogs, Twitter, and news sites were a-buzz wondering what Apple is up to now.  Apple’s new data center will be one of the largest centers in the world and capable of delivering huge amounts of information.   Everyone is still wondering what Apple plans for the future but those of us in the tech world know how secretive Apple is when it comes to unveiling new products and services.

The big news now is the notoriety of having two of the most recognized names in technology ( Apple and Google)locate in our area .  The big question now is, “What does the area offer that Apple and Google were attracted to?”  We are in the spotlight and this is a prime time to attract other technology companies to area.

That is exactly what Scott Millar, president of  Catawba County’s Economic Development Corporation hoped would happen.  The EDC is working with other counties to attract more data centers to this area.  Building on the momentum of Apple and Google locating here, it is hoped that our region  will become a data center corridor.  More data centers would, of course, bring  more jobs to the area; and those jobs would  have a higher than average salary.

For more information about the data center corridor, check out yesterday’s article in the Hickory Daily Record at http://www2.hickoryrecord.com/content/2009/oct/28/5-counties-promote-data-center-corridor/news/ .

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