Equinix has brought online its fifth data center in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro – one of the most active data center markets in the US and one of the most network-dense locations in the colocation company's portfolio.

Four of the company's data centers in the market, including the newest one, are inside the Dallas Infomart, the region's massive carrier hotel. Equinix is the largest colocation tenant in the building.

Karl Strohmeyer, president of the Americas at Equinix, said, “In the early days of the Internet's infrastructure, Equinix saw the potential for Dallas to be a major Internet and network peering exchange point. We have invested significantly in the region and, as a result, we now operate the largest Internet exchange in the south central United States, and furthermore, offer excellent interconnection options for some of the largest global enterprises that depend on fast connections to customers and partners to meet their business needs.”

The Redwood City, California-based data center provider's Dallas facilities house equipment of more than 100 network carriers as well as digital medial companies. Its customers here include the likes of AT&T, Level 3, Adobe, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Sprint and Walmart.

Equinix invested about US$34m in the first phase of the newest data center, which accommodates 450 cabinets. The site's total capacity is 900 cabinets on 82,000 q ft of colocation space.

Together with the new facility, the company's total footprint in the Dallas market is now about 230,000 sq ft.

Equnix's global portfolio consists of about 100 data centers across the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa.