EUDCA elects new Chair, Board Members, and confirms Managing Director

Following its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on December 14th, the European Data Centre Association (EUDCA) has announced the unanimous election of two new members to its board of directors.

  • Wednesday, 3rd January 2024 Posted 3 months ago in by Phil Alsop

Gary Aitkenhead, replacing Michael Winterson for Equinix, and Adam Eaton, replacing Matthew Winter for Global Switch, have been welcomed with full confidence in their commitment and expertise to further the EUDCA's mission as the voice of Europe’s data centre industry.

Concurrently, the newly constituted board unanimously confirmed Lex Coors, Chief Data Center Technology & Engineering Officer at Digital Realty, as the Chair. Coors takes over from Michael Winterson, who steps into a newly created position as Managing Director to oversee day-to-day operations.

Lex Coors expressed his gratitude, stating, “I am truly honoured to receive the trust of the EUDCA Board and association members to take on the position as Chair. As an industry, we are facing a plethora of new regulations, and we must pool our expertise to shape the future of our sector together. I extend a warm welcome to our new board members and gratitude to Michael Winterson, who has aptly steered the organisation as Chair, and whom I look forward to working with in his new role.”

Michael Winterson, now Managing Director, shared his enthusiasm: “I am delighted to embrace my new role, overseeing day-to-day operations, and contributing to driving the organisation forward. We find ourselves at a critical juncture where, as an industry, regulations are transitioning from a voluntary-based model to a legal framework. Our role is more important than ever – not only to ensure our members comprehend the requirements from both a performance and reporting standpoint but also to convey to regulators and lawmakers the critical role our sector plays in facilitating a functioning, digitised, and sustainable economy.”

The EUDCA Board of Directors brings together technical excellence and commercial acumen with a breadth of knowledge relating to data centre investments, sustainability, design, and operations. The new board comprises:

· Lex Coors, Digital Realty, Chair & Chair of the Policy Committee

· Laurens van Reijen, LCL Data Centers, Treasurer

· Andrew Harrison, Arup, Chair of the Technical Committee

· Matt Pullen, CyrusOne, Chair of CNDCP Board

· Marie Chabanon, Data4, Deputy Chair of Technical Committee

· Dick Theunissen, EdgeConneX, Deputy Chair of NTA Committee

· Géraldine Camara, France Datacenter, Deputy Chair of NTA Committee

· Matthew Baynes, Schneider Electric, NTA Coordination

· Stijn Grove, Dutch Data Center Association, NTA Coordination

· Gary Aitkenhead, Equinix

· Adam Eaton, Global Switch