Data centers have become one of the fastest-growing types of construction projects, booming like warehouses did a few years ago. With demand for artificial intelligence and data storage skyrocketing, the number of data centers worldwide is expected to jump from about 5,200 in 2024 to over 7,600 by 2030 — creating a major pipeline of work for contractors and trades skilled in complex builds.

While much attention is given to data centers once they’re up and running, there is an entire industry focused on the complex and highly specialized work that goes into building them. Graydaze Contracting has been performing the painting and sealants scope on new construction data center projects for over 10 years. To further their specialization, Graydaze launched DataCoat, the first nationwide commercial painting division exclusively focused on data centers.

“Data centers may look like large tilt-up warehouses, but they're very different projects, and they require a different level of expertise,” said Alec Kinard, CEO of Graydaze Contracting. “Our team knows the complexities of the job — how to schedule them, the sequence, the critical path, the key dates. We created a whole division based on the need for specialization in the mission-critical space.”

Bisnow spoke with Kinard to learn more about the unique complexities of working on data center projects and what inspired Graydaze to dedicate an entire division to this rapidly growing project type.

Bisnow: What inspired Graydaze to launch DataCoat, a division exclusively focused on data centers? 

Kinard: Everyone knows that data centers are the fastest-growing vertical in commercial real estate right now. Customers we’ve been working with for 30 years were building out entire data center departments, and we knew there was a gap in the market from a painting perspective. Too many general contractors were settling for just any painter. So we launched DataCoat to give data center builders the experience they deserve.

We’ve been working on these facilities for more than 10 years, and we understand what makes data centers different. It’s difficult for anyone to become an expert at anything if they do all types of projects and we know the project suffers when an inexperienced painting contractor steps onto a data center job. Secondly, these jobs are so unique and demanding that becoming proficient at them doesn’t happen overnight. Our DataCoat team is 100% focused on data centers: They go from one data center to the next, regardless of where it's at in the country which allows us to focus on one thing and continue to be the expert.

AI isn't going anywhere and neither are data centers. We see growth for the foreseeable future in this market, and for us, we see the DataCoat division following suit.

Bisnow: What level of experience do you have with data center projects? 

Kinard: As I mentioned, we have been working on data centers for more than 10 years. We are ‘local-nationwide,’ meaning that we've got the scale to travel all over the country, yet we become local on the job site, wherever that job site may be. Currently, we're on over 20 data center projects spanning six states. We’re on pace to triple the size of DataCoat this year, with aggressive growth plans for the future.

What sets us apart is our expertise. We understand that data center jobs have different needs — they have different products, different application types, different manpower needs. We know schedules get compressed all the time but the turnover date never changes. With our nationwide scale, our ability to man up and man down quickly as the job demands is unmatched in the industry. Another differentiator is our on-site project management team. Our strategy is to have project managers on site, multiple days a week, to help coordinate sequencing and solve issues in the field.

Bisnow: What services does the DataCoat division provide?

Kinard: We offer all interior and exterior painting, all vertical joint caulking and all floor joint filler.

Bisnow: What are some of the unique challenges of working on data centers, and how does Graydaze work to overcome them?

Kinard: Every job has its own set of challenges in construction. Our job at Graydaze, and especially in our DataCoat division, is to eliminate as many of those challenges as possible.

In the data center world, with the high demand and large hyperscale business tenants, schedules will always be tight. Our ability to man up quickly allows us to stay on schedule and meet tight deadlines.

Additionally, Data Centers demand expertise. A general contractor can get in a bind quickly by selecting subcontractors who aren’t accustomed to the challenges and demands of these mission-critical projects. Our general contractor clients know the job will get done quickly and effectively when they hire us.

Bisnow: Why should an owner or general contractor hire DataCoat?

Kinard: These are high-profile, high-stakes projects with a lot on the line. The complexities and demands of data center projects create a need for a painting contractor that has the expertise, man power and on-site project management to live up to mission-critical expectations.

Secondly, we're a very relationship-driven business. We don’t want to paint a one-off data center for a client, we want to paint every data center they have all over the country for the next 10 years. So we’re very long-term partnership-focused. There are still a few general contractors building data centers that we’ve never worked with, and we are excited to partner with them in the near future.

The whole impetus behind launching DataCoat is that we believe every data center builder in the country deserves a better experience. They deserve a team that's 100% focused on data centers, and they deserve a painting contractor that delivers above and beyond all of their expectations. That’s what DataCoat does.

This article was produced in collaboration between Graydaze Contracting and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.