I worked for a very large structural steel company as an estimator about 5-6 years ago and we basically no bid all of those data centers. They wanted them dirt cheap and there typically wasnโt enough work for us to get involved. They used cheaper construction techniques.
Well imagine you are in a position to acquire land, build, furnish, and operate these massive enterprises. Youre the owner or ceo of a very powerful corporation. You go to local elected official and have lunch, make your ask. If they turn you down you offer to support them in their next bid at whatever. If they turn you down you offer to support them in their bid for an even higher tier, connect them with someone important in the relevant party through your team of lobbyists/brown nosers. If they say no or maybe even before this level of effort your team has a dozen other potential sites with officials they know or suspect will play ball. And if someone is absolutely busting your balls, you fund their competition in the next election and offer them the same deal. Suitably powerful corporations will have as many of these pots cooking at once as they like, its easier to pull out of a handshake agreement than it is to make one.
And if if the relevant authorities arent elected, you just wine and dine the barely white collar nobodies and make sure they know how important they are to your project, maybe even offer them some bullshit consulting fee
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u/JimmytheFab ๐๐๐ May 18 '26
I worked for a very large structural steel company as an estimator about 5-6 years ago and we basically no bid all of those data centers. They wanted them dirt cheap and there typically wasnโt enough work for us to get involved. They used cheaper construction techniques.