Case Study

Datacenter relocation for Nikon Europe within a single maintenance window

Nikon Europe needed its equipment moved to a different datacenter in the Amsterdam region without spreading the work across multiple outages. Amsterdam Smart Hands handled the physical relocation end to end, inside a single agreed maintenance window.

Project Signals

  • Datacenter relocation
  • Amsterdam region, Netherlands
  • Single maintenance window
  • Structured patching and handover
Client
Nikon Europe
Project type
Datacenter relocation
Location
Amsterdam region, Netherlands
Delivery model
Planned, scoped execution
Challenge

What made this project demanding

  • The equipment had to move to a different datacenter location in the Amsterdam region, which meant a full physical de-install at the source site and a complete re-install at the destination.
  • The move had to fit inside one agreed maintenance window. A relocation split across several windows would have multiplied the disruption and left equipment in a half-migrated state between them.
  • Physical transport between two facilities sits outside standard datacenter work and had to be coordinated with a specialist partner rather than treated as an afterthought.
Scope

Work included in the scope

  • Pre-site inventory at both the source and destination locations
  • Physical de-installation and disconnection of the equipment
  • Rack removal where the scope required it
  • Transport coordination with a specialist transport partner
  • Mounting and re-installation at the destination site
  • Reconnection of the relocated equipment
  • Structured patching at the destination
  • Onsite support throughout the maintenance window
Preparation

What happened before the window opened

  • Inventory was recorded at both sites before the window opened, so the destination build was planned against what was actually installed rather than against an assumed configuration.
  • The destination layout, mounting positions, and patching plan were established in advance, which is what makes a same-window relocation realistic instead of optimistic.
  • Transport was booked and sequenced with a specialist partner so that the physical move slotted into the window rather than dictating it.
Execution

How the work ran on the day

  • Equipment was disconnected and de-installed at the source site in the sequence agreed during preparation.
  • Racks were removed where the scope called for it, and the equipment was handed to the transport partner.
  • At the destination the equipment was mounted, reconnected, and patched according to the prepared plan.
  • Amsterdam Smart Hands stayed onsite for the duration of the maintenance window, so decisions about anything unexpected were made on the spot instead of escalated and queued.
Delivered

What the client ended up with

  • The relocation was completed within the single agreed maintenance window.
  • The destination environment was mounted, reconnected, and patched as a structured installation rather than a temporary reassembly.
  • Inventory taken at both sites gave the client a documented record of what moved and where it ended up.
Planning similar work?

Tell us the sites, the window, and what has to move.

Relocations are won or lost in preparation. The earlier the scope is on the table, the more of it can be settled before the window opens.