Yesterday at Telecom Exchange in New York City, Colo Atl Owner and Fonder Tim Kiser sat down with TechZone360 to discuss its latest announcement and its plans for the future.

“Colo Atl helps people interconnect with each other,” said Kiser. As the global telcom hub of Atlanta, Colo Atl provides colocation, data center and interconnection services at an affordable cost. It is a neutral colocation facility that allows tenants and carriers to securely cross-connect within a SSAE16 certified facility.

Customer service is a priority for Colo Atl as it requires no monthly recurring cross connect fees between tenants.

“I really don’t have competitors because they would have to offer free services too, and they don’t,” Kiser told TechZone360. “You can connect to almost 70 carriers and it doesn’t cost anything and customers like that.”

Colo Atl yesterday unveiled that it has received the SSAE 16 certification. The SSAE16 certification replaces the current standard for reporting on controls at a service organization, the SAS70.  The certification signifies that Colo Atl exceeds the requirements for controls and safeguards when hosting its clients' data.

Kiser explained, “The latest enhancement to the SSAE 16 certification is Colo Atl's promise to our current and future tenants, and customers, which is to provide the best possible colocation and interconnection services possible, complete with having met the strictest of safety and security standards."

Obtaining the certification also proves that Colo Atl is up to date with its international service organization reporting standards, the ISAE 3402. The transition from the SAS70 Type 2 to SSAE16 will help Colo Atl and its colocated customers compete internationally as it provides third party accreditation on critical controls and reporting.

"As we expand to provide colocation and interconnection to more global tenant and carrier providers, we're thrilled to be able to confidently say that our facility is comparable to the best in the world," he said.

Established in November 2001, the infrastructure of the Colo Atl colocation and Meet Me Room (MMR) facility is located on the 5th and 8th floors of 55 Marietta Street in downtown Atlanta. The Colo Atl facility provides a dedicated working environment to its 70-plus tenants and carriers and was built on a "customer first" philosophy.

Already having designed more than 40 telecommunications facilities, Kiser’s purpose at Telecom Exchange was let people know about Colo Atl and what they do, getting the word out that Colo Atl exists.

“This is a really tight nit group and technology is always moving so fast, so it is always nice to meet people who are participating in what I do,” he explained. “I hope to meet new friends and create new customers and have people come and be with me in Atlanta in our neutral interconnect room.”

Kiser has lived the philosophy of using word of mouth for business marketing and promotion. Using his philosophy, Colo Atl has expanded to 4000 square feet and Kiser hopes that “the flood gates will open up” for more business expansion.

Looking towards goals of 2012, Kiser plans to expand Color Atl as well as build a showcase interconnection. He would also like to participate in more telecom industry trade shows and events in order to generate a greater presence for Colo Atl in the telelcom community.

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