Atlanta, GA, June 18--Home Depot plans to open a new data center with 500 workers as part of a plan to expand its information technology operations, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Jerry Shields, a Home Depot spokesman, confirmed the world's largest home improvement retailer is exploring a number of sites for a new data center.
He declined to name any other than to confirm that Austin, Texas, is among the candidates. A report on the data center first appeared in The Austin Business Journal.
Home Depot's main data center is in Atlanta, but Shields would not say if Atlanta is also under consideration.
The existing center links all of the chain's stores.
"For a variety of reasons, we will not reveal the other sites," he said. "This would be an additional data center."
Home Depot is seeking tax incentives in Austin, where the City Council will consider the issue on June 24. It's unclear if the chain is looking for incentives in other cities.
Home Depot operates 1,769 stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and the chain is looking to expand to China.
