SUSPENDS DATA CENTER EXPANSION

Facebook has just suspended construction work at its Clonee data center in Co. Meath, Ireland due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak in the country.

The social network company is said to have made this decision with its building contractor Mace, adding that, workers who are temporarily being removed from the Clonee data center site will be given an “appreciation bonus” as intended by Facebook.

The first phase of Facebook’s Clonee data center which began in 2016 has been completed and the facility is operational.  Last year, the company disclosed its plans to almost double the size of this data center to 1.6 million square feet, with the construction of two new buildings. The stage of expansion that is now affected by Covid-19 outbreak is expected to be the final expansion phase.

More so, the suspension seems inevitable as three contractors working on the Clonee site were sent for Covid-19 tests after displaying flu-like symptoms few weeks ago. According to Irish Times, one individual was taken away from the Facebook data center construction site by ambulance, while the other two were tested on site and are self-isolating. A canteen on the site also closed for deep cleaning.

While construction workers are to down their tools and go home, some of the contractors will remain on site to secure the area.

Also in Dublin, Some content moderators working at Facebook offices in the Irish Capital are not being allowed to work remotely during this Covid-19 crisis due to the sensitive nature of the work they are reviewing.

Facebook spokeswoman said: “For those full-time employees and contract workers whose work cannot be done from home we have taken steps to ensure their health and safety by limiting social contact in the office and conducting regular deep cleaning.”

At the company’s headquarters in Palo Alto, California, Facebook has instructed its employees to work from home. It has also told staff at its Seattle office to work from home after confirming a contractor had been diagnosed with the virus.