INDIANAPOLIS—Advanced data centers have popped up across the Midwest, as developers seek tomeet increased demand from companies that need cloudcomputing and other cutting-edge services but don't want to dependon facilities in Chicago or New York. Online Tech,for example, just opened its first data center in downtownIndianapolis. Company officials say the 44,000-square-footfacility, its fifth in the Midwest, becomes the first in Indiana tooffer businesses secure and compliant cloud computing.

The Ann Arbor, MI-based Online Tech acquired this existing data center,located at 505 W. Merrill St. near the Colts stadium in downtownIndianapolis, last May from Midcontinent Independent SystemOperator, Inc., an energy company. Online Tech hascommitted to investing $10 million into the facility and makingextensive improvements.

“We saw a gap in secure cloud and data center infrastructureserving Indiana,” said Mike Klein, co-chiefexecutive officer of Online Tech, in a prepared statement.GlobeSt.com could not reach him by press time. “Our culture ofcompliance drives us to invest in annual, independent audits of howwe protect the most sensitive financial, health and personalinformation. It's not a checkbox for us, and our clients appreciatethat we provide our complete audit documentation to help addresstheir own requirements.”