Knight Frank strengthens Data Centres team

Chris brings over 36 years’ experience in engineering and low-carbon consulting to Knight Frank, having successfully led multidisciplinary design teams on high-profile engineering projects with a capex value exceeding £900 million.

He joins Knight Frank from engineering design and sustainability consultancy Hydrock, where he ran the firm’s data centre offer and developed a portfolio of more than 30 major projects across the UK and Europe.

Chris served as a Lead Consultant for a 230MW three-site data centre campus at the Kennedy Wilson South West London Data Centre Cluster, and previously advised SEGRO on the procurement of 600MW of power around London, as well as acting as an engineering lead for a proposed 140MVA data centre for Iver Bucks on behalf of Patrizia.

In his new role, Chris will work closely with Stephen Beard, Head of Data Centres at Knight Frank, alongside the firm’s wider Data Centres practice, to assist clients in procuring access to power to support the operation of data centre facilities across the UK. Leveraging his significant expertise, Chris will help data centre developers, owners and operators to liaise with public sector stakeholders and energy providers throughout facilities’ lifecycle to address challenges in power availability.

Stephen Beard, Head of Data Centres at Knight Frank, commented: “In a world where power is the key commodity within the data centre space, we are extremely lucky to have an expert in-house who can provide genuine expertise and value add to our clients. Chris has developed an intimate understanding of the challenges and intricacies of data centre power procurement and the MEP inputs required to deliver the AI data centres for tomorrow throughout his career, and clients will benefit immensely from his expert counsel and nuanced insight into the sector.”

Chris Jones, Partner and Head of Power Procurement and MEP Consultancy at Knight Frank, added: “The increasing demands of artificial intelligence and our continued reliance on IT infrastructure at every level of society is placing a greater strain on nationwide data centre infrastructure. Developers and data centre operators’ access to power is crucial for ensuring facilities have the capacity to satisfy demand. Working alongside Stephen and Knight Frank’s global network of experts, I look forward to leveraging my expertise to deliver innovative power solutions for clients.”