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Speakers and Panels
Strategic Site Selection: Grid Proximity & Land Scarcity
David Bell
VP, Utility & Micro Grid Development
VoltaGrid
Mark Calvano
President
Calvano Development
Brian Chen
VP
Stewart Title - Energy & Infrastructure
Maria Poyer
Head of Acquisition
Verrus
Tom Spackman
Owner & CEO
Gigabit Fiber
Sarp Ozkan
VP - Commercial Product
Enverus
Construction Resilience in an Inflationary Era
David Coleman
SVP, Data Centers & Intelligent Buildings
GCG
Andy Kirby
General Manager, AMERS EPC
Microsoft
Nithya Rathinam
Product Manager
Doxel
Jennifer Toeppner
Data Center Lead, Sales & Business Development
Metromont
Kurt Lindorfer
Founding Principal
PARADIGM Structural Engineers
Retrofitting Existing Data Centers for Today’s Needs
Marc Bhuyan
Former Product Manager
Jay Brummett
President
Ares Technology Consultants
Charles Casey
Account Executive
Johnson Controls
Malcolm Ferguson
Distinguished Technologist
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
Mike Herwald
Manager, North American Sales
Munters Corporation
Mitigating Risk Across All Phases of Project Delivery
Lindsey Bruner
COO
CleanArc Data Centers
Jon Chesser
Project Manager
Cumulus
Barak Gur-Arie
VP
Buildots
Sean Maguire
SVP & Global Head of Data Centers
Black Box
Hani Noshi
Principal Program Manager, Data Center Delivery (DCD)
Microsoft
Fernando Espana
President
Construct X
Building for AI and Advanced Tech Infrastructure: New Demands in Design, Procurement, and Delivery
Jon Gibbs
Sr. Director, Site Development
Core Scientific
Mustafa Husaini
Senior Category Manager, Construction
Ed Osborne
Enterprise Account Manager
Nucor Corporation
Rodney Willis
VP, Sales
Align
Michael Collins
Manager, North America
INNIO Jenbacher
Ameristar Session
Carlos Francisco
Regional Security Leader
Meta
Chad Tancil
EVP, M1 Experience
Metro One Security Management
Brandy Byrd Chapman
Business Development Specialist l Mission Critical
Ameristar Perimeter Security
Presentation: From Design to Operation: Best Practices to Optimize Direct-to-Chip Cooling
Eric Kangas
Sr. Engineered Solutions Manager
Nalco Water, an Ecolab Company
WHY YOU CAN'T MISS THIS CONFERENCE
What You'll Learn:
How are land constraints shifting developer strategies across power-hungry regions?
What role do hybrid power models and co-location with utilities play in site feasibility?
What strategies are developers using to stay on schedule (and budget) amid rising costs?
How can firms build for long-term resilience in a high-risk climate?
Do modular or traditional builds deliver under the pressure of condensed timelines?
Can legacy sites be adapted for GPU-heavy, AI-driven workloads?
What are the cooling, density, and energy trade-offs when retrofitting vs. rebuilding?
How do you extend the lifecycle of assets without compromising performance?
How do you ensure vendors are your greatest asset vs. potential greatest risk?
What’s the checklist for contractor and supplier accountability in fast-moving builds?
How do you protect timelines, budget, and uptime through smarter vendor coordination?
What makes an AI-ready facility different from traditional builds?
How do you design for unprecedented power densities?
Are current infrastructure models keeping up with AI’s exponential compute demands?
How do you avoid the most common (and expensive) AI infrastructure mistakes?
Who You’ll Network With:
Developers, data center operators, AI infrastructure leaders, construction firms, architects, utilities, engineers, sustainability heads, site selectors, investment partners, brokers, general contractors, equipment suppliers, and hyperscale strategists.
How You'll Do More Business From Attending This Conference:
Get ahead of the biggest shifts in data center development—from power access and land scarcity to AI-driven design, risk mitigation, and retrofitting. Walk away with the insights and connections needed to make smarter decisions, avoid costly delays, and build for what’s next.
Relevant News and Developments:
Startup Planning ‘Oil and Gas’ Approach To Building Self‑Powered Data Center Campuses
Power availability now outweighs location in data center site selection
Hybrid power models emerge as a solution to overloaded grids
Resilient construction is becoming essential in volatile markets
Retrofitting legacy infrastructure to support GPU density and liquid cooling
AI power density is disrupting traditional data center design norms
The AI lobby is pressuring lawmakers to expand energy access
Are you an end user*?
Click here to be considered for a complimentary pass. *Hyperscaler, colocation provider (non-sales), investor, private equity, or enterprise tenant.
Why You Should Attend:
To understand the real-world strategies developers are using to cut risk, reduce delays, and future-proof their builds. Discover the opportunities others will miss.
For questions or interests in becoming a speaker or sponsor, please email our global director, data centers, Adam Knobloch, at adam.knobloch@bisnow.com
To request disability-related accommodations, please contact ally.araco@bisnow.com no later than seven business days prior to the event.
Agenda
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
|
2:00 PM
2:55 PM
|
Networking and Registration
|
|
2:55 PM
3:00 PM
|
Opening Remarks
|
|
3:00 PM
3:45 PM
|
Strategic Site Selection: Grid Proximity And Land Scarcity
With power constraints now eclipsing location as the leading factor in site selection, developers are rethinking where and how they build. Grid bottlenecks, permitting delays and land scarcity are pushing interest toward utility colocation, hybrid energy models and secondary markets. As the demand for AI-ready capacity escalates, site strategy is becoming as much about access to electrons as it is about access to end users. What mix of power, land and policy will define the next generation of data center site feasibility? |
|
3:45 PM
4:25 PM
|
Construction Resilience in an Inflationary Era
Inflation, labor shortages and supply chain volatility are reshaping the fundamentals of how data centers are built. Developers are embracing modular design, strategic procurement and resilient scheduling to navigate unpredictable markets. As financial and environmental risks compound, resilience is no longer just a structural concern — it’s an economic and operational imperative. How can developers future-proof their construction strategies against a world defined by uncertainty? |
|
4:25 PM
4:45 PM
|
From Design to Operation: Best Practices to Optimize Direct-to-Chip Cooling
|
|
4:45 PM
6:00 PM
|
Lunch
|
|
5:20 PM
5:40 PM
|
Lunch ‘N’ Learn —Ameristar Roundtable
|
|
6:00 PM
6:40 PM
|
Retrofitting Existing Data Centers for Today’s Needs
With new builds constrained by land and permitting hurdles, legacy facilities are getting a second look. Operators are upgrading power delivery, cooling systems and rack layouts to support AI-scale workloads in aging spaces. From immersion retrofits to density reconfigurations, retrofitting is becoming a critical lever for meeting demand quickly, albeit with trade-offs. Can legacy infrastructure evolve fast enough to meet the performance and sustainability standards of tomorrow? |
|
6:40 PM
7:00 PM
|
Networking Break
|
|
7:00 PM
7:40 PM
|
Mitigating Risk Across All Phases of Project Delivery
In today’s accelerated development cycles, risk is no longer isolated to construction delays; it begins at vendor selection and echoes through every project milestone. Developers are reevaluating how they manage partner accountability, scope alignment and supplier logistics amid rising complexity and compressed timelines. As project sizes grow and tolerance for failure shrinks, risk mitigation is becoming a central design input. What systems and strategies will define the next era of high-stakes data center project delivery? |
|
7:40 PM
8:20 PM
|
Building for AI and Advanced Tech Infrastructure: New Demands in Design, Procurement, and Delivery
AI and advanced tech are transforming not just data center design, but how projects are procured and built. As infrastructure requirements shift, teams must tackle new challenges such as contractor capacity, workforce shortages, and evolving vendor partnerships, all while meeting aggressive timelines. How are project leaders adapting procurement strategies and construction practices to keep pace with innovation and real-world constraints? |
|
8:20 PM
9:30 PM
|
Post-Event Cocktails!
|
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