Decommissioning Companies

Data center decommissioning checklist

Decommissioning a data center runs in five moves after the survey: inventory and power down, de-rack, wipe or shred to NIST 800-88 Rev. 2, ship under chain of custody, then resell, recycle and certify. Each step below says what the crew does, what goes in the contract and the paper you get back. Print it and tick it off on the floor.

Find a crew

  1. Survey and scope

    • Walk the hall with the crew: rack count, media mix, access routes, loading dock, lift limits, working hours.
    • Agree the end state: empty racks left in place, bare floor, or plant removed and floor restored.
    • Get a fixed quote per project. Providers price on asset count, media mix, number of sites, access and the reports you need.
    Put in the contract
    Sanitization standard (NIST 800-88 Rev. 2), where drives are destroyed, report format, resale terms, insurance and the finish date.
    Paper you get back
    Scope of work and a fixed quote.
    Sources
    Iron Mountain: data center decommissioning; Securis: decommissioning services and scoping FAQ, checked 9 Nov 2026

  2. Inventory, then power down

    • Scan every serial before anything moves: servers, storage, network gear and every data-bearing drive.
    • Reconcile the scan against your asset register and flag what is missing now, while the racks are still standing.
    • Power down and disconnect in the order your application owners sign off.
    Put in the contract
    Serial-level inventory before removal, reconciled to your register.
    Paper you get back
    Signed inventory with every serial number.
    Sources
    Iron Mountain: data center decommissioning; Maxxum: data center decommissioning; Quantum: data centre decommissioning, checked 9 Nov 2026

  3. De-rack and strip out

    • De-install servers, storage and switches; remove rails, cabling and power distribution.
    • For a full exit, remove the plant too: empty racks, overhead ladder racks, UPS, PDUs, CRAC/CRAH cooling and raised floor.
    • Only 11 of the 30 companies here state facility plant removal. Filter for it if the lease needs a bare shell.
    Put in the contract
    Exactly which plant leaves, and the condition the floor is handed back in.
    Paper you get back
    Removal log by rack and location.
    Sources
    Liquid Technology: data center decommissioning; Guardian Data: data center decommissioning; Quantum: data centre decommissioning; ICT Reverse: data centre decommissioning, checked 9 Nov 2026

  4. Wipe or shred

    • Sanitize to NIST SP 800-88 Rev. 2 (published September 2025): Clear, Purge or Destroy, matched to how sensitive each drive is.
    • Wipe drives you will resell; shred, crush or degauss the rest. SK tes cites IEEE 2883-2022 alongside 800-88 for modern SSDs.
    • On-site destruction keeps every drive inside the building until it is scrap: 19 of the 30 offer it. SK tes shreds to a particle size you set; Sims shreds SSDs to 2 mm under DIN 66399 at its Frankfurt site.
    Put in the contract
    NIST 800-88 Rev. 2 by name, the method per media type, and on-site or off-site destruction.
    Paper you get back
    Certificate of sanitization or destruction for every drive serial.
    Sources
    NIST SP 800-88 Rev. 2, Guidelines for Media Sanitization (Sept 2025); SK tes: data center decommissioning; Sims Lifecycle Services: Gustavsburg/Frankfurt; Securis: decommissioning services and scoping FAQ, checked 9 Nov 2026

  5. Pack and ship

    • Pack in sealed containers, load in GPS-tracked vehicles and keep custody unbroken from the dock to the vendor’s plant.
    • Audit on arrival: every serial scanned in is matched to the inventory scanned out.
    Put in the contract
    Tracked transport, sealed loads and an arrival audit within an agreed number of days.
    Paper you get back
    Chain-of-custody record from dock to plant.
    Sources
    Liquid Technology: data center decommissioning; Guardian Data: data center decommissioning; Iron Mountain: data center decommissioning, checked 9 Nov 2026

  6. Resell, recycle, certify

    • Test and resell working servers, storage and GPUs, and take the proceeds as buyback or revenue share (28 companies here offer it; 8 buy GPU and AI servers).
    • Recycle the rest through an R2v3 or e-Stewards chain. Check the recycler in the registry, not on its brochure.
    • Close out with certificates of destruction and recycling, a resale settlement and a final report you can hand to audit.
    Put in the contract
    Settlement terms for resale, downstream recycler named, final report due date.
    Paper you get back
    Certificates of destruction and recycling, resale settlement, final report.
    Sources
    Iron Mountain: data center decommissioning; e-Stewards current processors; SERI: find an R2 certified facility; i-SIGMA NAID AAA directory, checked 9 Nov 2026

Pick the crew for each step

All 30 companies