The Uptime Institute has given Equinix its “stamp of approval” for good management and operations practices employed at its data center in Ashburn, Virginia.

The award gives Equinix, already an established global leader in the data center colocation market, one more assurance from a third-party organization that the company addresses management risks and sustains data center uptime proficiently.

The certification also gives Equinix customers extra server-uptime assurance.

Equinix was one of 11 members of a group that worked with the Uptime Institute to develop the organization’s Management and Operations (M&O) Program.

The Institute announced completion of the program and launch of a service that assesses data center management and operations practices Wednesday, simultaneously with announcing Equinix as the first data center provider in the Americas to receive the new award.

The organization has also given the award to a Morgan Stanley data center in Croydon (South London), a Colt facility in London and a Progressive Insurance data center in the Colorado area. Equinix and Morgan Stanely received the award in November 2011 and the latter two facilities got the stamp of approval in December, according to the Institute’s website.

John Shultz, VP of global product management and development at Equinix, said going through the process further strengthened the company’s operational practices.

"Equinix's exceptional uptime is one of the most important reasons our customers choose us and our work with the Uptime Institute helps us become even stronger in the critical area of management and operations," he said.

When making an M&O Assessment, Uptime looks at staffing and organization, training and professional development, preventative maintenance program and processes, operating conditions and housekeeping, planning management and coordination practices and resources.

These cover the most basic requirements of the Institute’s other assessment program: Operational Sustainability.

Other third-party validation programs for the way data center providers operate their facilities also exist. The most well-known example is SSAE 16 (Statement on Standards for Attestation Engagements) by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants). SSAE replaced its older version SAS 70 (Statement on Auditing Standard).