

NWRDC: Florida’s Cloud Broker
By: Tim Brown, Assistant Vice-President for ITS: NWRDC and FLVC at Florida State University
With over fifty years of experience servicing our customers, NWRDC is the premier provider of computing services to state, local, educational, and non-profit institutions within the State of Florida. The mission at NWRDC is to be the state’s most efficient and innovative data center through state-of-the-art technology, leadership, and partnerships. Over the past decade, we have expanded to include a wide range of managed services well beyond the traditional scope of the normal data center. Through multiple strategic business partnerships, we have positioned ourselves as Florida’s Cloud Broker, providing cybersecurity, cloud, and end-user support solutions at significant discounts. As a public institution and auxiliary of Florida State University (FSU), NWRDC has long been synonymous with high-quality, affordable customer service.
In July 2022, NWRDC and Florida State University successfully consolidated the State Data Center (SDC) into NWRDC-Southwood, expanding our reach to encompass 27 additional state agencies and public entities alongside our existing customers. This consolidation marked a significant stride in efficiency, leveraging the expertise of both NWRDC and NWRDC-Southwood to enhance technical resources, improve support, and fortify security protocols.
Post SDC transition, NWRDC worked diligently to reduce the technical debt inherited by our organization specifically targeting Backup and Storage as a Service. Reducing technical debt is not a sprint, it is a marathon that requires constant attention. The easy path is to let technology remain in place, especially if it is seemingly working and not causing apparent problems. We have all learned the hard way that everything works... until it doesn’t. Leaders in IT must plan and anticipate problems that have not yet occurred, and technical debt reduction is a crucial step in that process.
NWRDC has supported the state’s forward-thinking cloud-first policy and has ushered in a new era of technological advancement for Florida. With a strong foundation, ongoing innovations, and strategic partnerships, we are poised to lead the way in efficient, secure, and innovative data management services. NWRDC is proud to fulfill our mission by supporting our customers in accomplishing their goals and missions. We pride ourselves on our superior customer service, cost-effective solutions, and unwavering dedication to customer satisfaction. For more information about NWRDC, visit our website and view our Annual Report: https://www.nwrdc.fsu.edu/annual-report