Facebook Expands Data Center Operations in Forest City, NC

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Credit: Facebook

Facebook will expand its Forest City, NC data center operations with a capital investment of more than $200 million. The social media giant will build a new 480,000-square-foot data center facility on its existing campus, along with additional equipment necessary for the expanded operations.The project will result in the retention of more than 125 full-time jobs and the creation of new full-time Facebook jobs, as well as full-time third party contractor positions within the growing data center campus over the next two years. Construction is expected to begin immediately.

“Our decision to locate here was based in large part on the commitment and the vision of the community and leadership here in Rutherford County,” Keven McCammon, Site Manager, Forest City Data Center wrote in a company announcement. “Over the last five years, our relationship with our community partners has only grown stronger, and we’ve worked together to create opportunity and invest in education. We’ve also built one of the most energy efficient data centers in the world, including two data center buildings and one cold storage facility.”

 Facebook broke ground on its first North Carolina data center in November 2010. As the company continued to grow, it announced the addition of a second data center facility to the Forest City campus in October 2011.

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Credit: Facebook

This latest expansion represents the commitment Facebook continues to demonstrate in Rutherford County. Beyond the data center campus, Facebook has invested more than $575,000 in local schools and nonprofits to support technology, education and innovation in the region through its Community Action Grants program. Facebook has also partnered with PANGAEA Internet; the towns of Forest City, Rutherfordton, and Spindale; and Rutherford County Schools to construct a free Wi-Fi network to enable thousands of local students and families to connect to the Internet.

This expansion project was made possible, in part, through the continued support provided by the Town of Forest City, Rutherford County, and the State of North Carolina.

“We are excited that Facebook has decided to expand their facility here and for their continued investment in our community by providing additional job opportunities to our citizens,” said Brian King, chairman of the Rutherford County Board of Commissioners. “We are always pleased to support our existing industry as they are the backbone of our growth strategy.”

Rutherford County has a population of 67,810 and is located between Charlotte, NC, Asheville, NC and Greenville, SC.