I'm here in Clifton, New Jersey this morning, at the grand opening of Telx' latest facility and it's fourth in the greater NY area.  When we arrived, it was still pretty quiet, and the last minute preparations were still ongoing.  But shortly, Telx staff and other attendees began arriving and filling the lobby, and as I said to David Yedwab, the excitement level seems higher than what we've heard from some tradeshows this year.

When Telx CEO Eric Shepcaro kicked off the event, the main hall, and the overflow room next door were both filled with attendees.  (Luckily, I found a place to sit and take some notes.)

Shepcaro began by answering the question as to why Clifton, especially when Telx already has two sites in the Manhattan and another in Weehawken, New Jersey.  He did suggest a visit to Rutt's Hut for fried hot dogs, and successful hockey and football programs (the Clifton facility is only a few miles from the Meadowlands Sports Complex) -- though that certainly wasn't an incentive for Shepcaro, himself a Rangers' fan.

But all joking aside, what it really came down to was the ability to provide its customers a central location for colocation, backup and recovery, and interconnection services in a network rich location within proximity to a variety of industries.  New Jersey also is among the leaders in broadband penetration (some studies put it at the top of the list of U.S. markets in that regard).

So really, it's about extending the capabilities already offered in Telx' other facilities to a larger set of customers, while enhancing its ability to service its existing customers in the region.  That's what Shepcaro and the rest of today's speakers are here to talk about -- the growth of the data center space and the challenges that face providers like Telx.