New frontiers: Deerns’ blueprint for the Latin American datacenter boom

Founded in 1928 in the Netherlands, Deerns is a multinational engineering and consultancy firm specializing in the design and optimization of high-performance buildings, with a focus on datacenters as a key component of its portfolio.

Deerns has completed over 500 datacenter projects worldwide, ranging from smaller initiatives to large data clusters, encompassing more than 2.5GW of IT power. Notable clients in Latin America include Equinix and Elea Data Centers.

The company operates 17 offices in 10 countries, including the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Brazil, employing over 600 experts in mechanical and electrical design (MEP).

In this interview, Ricardo Fornari, managing director of Deerns Brasil and head of the company's expanding operations in Latin America, discusses market trends, regional expansion and how Deerns’ Brazilian operations have set a benchmark in global datacenter engineering.

BNamericas: What are Deerns' plans for Latin America?

Fornari: Deerns is a Dutch multinational. We entered the Brazilian market four years ago, in 2020. Since then, we’ve experienced exponential growth in response to the increasing demand for datacenter engineering services.

We recently opened an operation in Colombia, which is a very promising opportunity. We already have an executive there, Alberto Pretelt, focusing on the commercial aspects of the operation.

Colombia has great potential due to factors such as submarine cables, connectivity, population density, government incentives and proximity to other key markets, including Mexico and the United States.

Several factors position Colombia as a potential next datacenter hub. While there is some political instability, we believe that it’s temporary. We see Colombia as an attractive market for establishing our presence.

We’ve also been collaborating with partners in the Mexican and Chilean markets.

BNamericas: Directly?

Fornari: No, we’re working through partners. We’re still assessing the right timing to operate directly in these markets.

Unlike Brazil and Colombia, we don’t have local entities in Mexico and Chile. We’re involved in some projects, but without a local presence.

The ideal situation is to establish a local presence, which we believe will happen soon.

BNamericas: Why did you choose to expand to Colombia first?

Fornari: The Chilean and Mexican markets currently have more players, so we’re evaluating the best strategy for entering these markets. Our goal is to collaborate closely with our clients during this process.

We already have clients with projects in these markets, and we’re working together with them to plan a responsible and effective entry.

BNamericas: You also work with significant players in the sector in Brazil. How is the operation in the country?

Fornari: We handle many projects in Brazil, not only for local clients but also for those in Italy and the Netherlands.

Deerns Brasil serves as a hub for providing qualified labor and delivering high-quality projects to our clients in Europe, especially given the challenges of finding labor and human resources in the European markets.

In these cases, we collaborate closely with Deerns’ teams in other countries, primarily to comply with national requirements, local regulations and licensing procedures. However, all the knowledge and engineering expertise come from Deerns in Brazil.

BNamericas: How has Brazil become such a key platform for the group?

Fornari: We’ve developed a highly specialized team with expertise in the sector within Brazil.

We also prioritize retaining our human resources and knowledge. We take pride in our high retention rates, with a current turnover rate of around 5%.

Additionally, our team is over 44% female and we have 50% gender parity in leadership positions.

BNamericas: How big is Deerns in Brazil?

Fornari: We currently have 94 employees and are opening 30 new positions for next year.

BNamericas: So that’s 95 people in Latin America, including Colombia?

Fornari: Exactly. We also plan to expand our positions in other markets next year.

BNamericas: How many projects are you currently working on, and how many clients do you have across the region?

Fornari: We’re involved in a wide range of projects, from small feasibility studies to large-scale projects where we oversee the entire construction cycle.

We assist clients from the due diligence stage, helping them decide on purchasing land for datacenter construction. While we don’t handle the actual site selection, once the land is chosen, we conduct various studies.

These include topographical studies, master planning, electricity feasibility assessments, technical licensing analyses and environmental protection evaluations, among others.

Once this phase is completed, the project progresses through its various stages. During construction, we work closely with the client and the builder to ensure that the design is being implemented correctly. If challenges arise during construction, we provide quick solutions to keep the project on schedule.

Currently, we’re working on approximately 20 projects simultaneously, serving 10 to 15 clients.

It's worth noting that we don’t exclusively focus on datacenters. We also work in the healthcare, airport, pharmaceutical and semiconductor sectors. However, our primary specialization in Latin America is in the datacenter industry.

BNamericas: How much does this segment represent for the company's global operations?

Fornari: Globally, datacenters account for about 20-25% of our revenues. In Brazil, this share is significantly higher.

BNamericas: Would you say that licensing is one of the most complex aspects of operations today?

Fornari: We have a dedicated permit team that manages all levels of licensing – municipal, state and federal – to ensure that the process is advancing on schedule.

Our clients greatly appreciate this, as it provides them with security, especially those based outside the country, primarily from the US.

The licensing process is inherently slow, but if managed well, it doesn’t hinder or make projects unfeasible. It requires time due to our licensing system.

Could it be faster? Yes, it could. However, if you understand the processes, timelines and schedules, along with good planning and execution, projects can proceed effectively, which is what our end customers need.