Why Hammond Continues to Invest in Traditional Rack Infrastructure
June 2, 2026
Why Hammond continues to invest in traditional rack infrastructure: Over the past several years, the data center industry has experienced a dramatic shift. Conversations that once centered around servers, networking, storage, and enterprise IT have increasingly become dominated by artificial intelligence, hyperscale computing, and next-generation data center architectures.
As a result, much of the industry’s attention has shifted toward AI-ready cabinets, Open Compute Project (OCP) infrastructure, and specialized solutions for hyperscale data centers. While these technologies are driving innovation in certain segments of the market, they represent a different set of requirements than those faced by most enterprise, telecommunications, industrial, and edge deployments.
At Hammond Manufacturing, they’ve made a different choice.
Rather than chasing emerging trends at the expense of their core customers, they remain committed to designing and manufacturing the racks, cabinets, wall-mount enclosures, and accessories that support the vast majority of enterprise, commercial, industrial, and institutional IT deployments.
Simply put, they’re focused on the infrastructure that keeps businesses connected every day.
Their Focus: IDF and MDF Infrastructure
Most organizations don’t operate hyperscale AI clusters. Instead, they rely on equipment installed in:
- Main Distribution Frames (MDFs)
- Intermediate Distribution Frames (IDFs)
- Server rooms
- Telecommunications rooms
- Edge deployments
- Industrial facilities
- Branch offices
- Campus environments
These installations require practical, reliable infrastructure that supports standard networking and server equipment while providing the flexibility to grow over time. That’s where Hammond focuses its engineering and manufacturing resources. Their goal is to deliver solutions that make it easier to deploy, manage, and protect critical IT infrastructure through:
- Rack cabinets
- Open frame racks
- Wall-mount cabinets
- Cable management systems
- Power and accessory solutions
These are the products our customers depend on every day, and they remain at the center of our product strategy.
Understanding EIA-310-E
A key reason Hammond remains committed to traditional rack infrastructure is the continued importance of the EIA-310-E standard. EIA-310-E is the industry standard that defines the dimensions and mounting requirements for 19-inch rack-mounted equipment. The standard establishes critical specifications including:
- Rack width
- Mounting hole spacing
- Rack unit (U) sizing
- Equipment compatibility requirements
Because of EIA-310-E, equipment from thousands of manufacturers can be installed within the same rack environment. Servers, switches, patch panels, UPS systems, and network appliances all share a common mounting platform. This interoperability has been one of the most important factors in the success of modern IT infrastructure. For most enterprise and commercial deployments, EIA-310-E remains the universal standard.
How EIA-310-E Differs from OCP and AI Infrastructure
The Open Compute Project (OCP) was developed to address the unique needs of hyperscale data centers. Rather than prioritizing broad interoperability across manufacturers, OCP designs focus on maximizing efficiency and density for very large-scale deployments. As a result, OCP environments often utilize:
- Wider rack architectures
- Alternative power distribution methods
- Different equipment form factors
- Customized cooling approaches
- Vendor-specific ecosystem requirements
Similarly, many AI-focused rack solutions are being designed around:
- High-density GPU clusters
- Liquid cooling systems
- Specialized power requirements
- Custom cabinet architectures
While these approaches make sense for certain hyperscale environments, they are fundamentally different from the requirements of most enterprise IT deployments. Most organizations continue to purchase and deploy equipment designed around EIA-310-E standards. That means they need infrastructure that supports the equipment they use today and will continue using tomorrow.
Why Hammond Isn’t Chasing Every Trend
The AI market is generating significant excitement across the technology industry. However, Hammond believes successful product development starts with understanding customer needs rather than following headlines. The reality is that the overwhelming majority of IT infrastructure deployments still rely on:
- Standard rack-mounted servers
- Ethernet switching equipment
- Patch panels
- Storage systems
- Telecommunications hardware
These environments require durable, practical, standards-based infrastructure. By maintaining their focus on EIA-310-E solutions, Hammond can continue investing in the products their customers rely on most.
That includes improving:
- Rack cabinet functionality
- Wall-mount solutions
- Cable management systems
- Installation efficiency
- Accessory ecosystems
- Deployment flexibility
Supporting Data Centers Without Building AI Cabinets
This doesn’t mean Hammond products aren’t found in large data centers. In fact, many Hammond racks, cabinets, accessories, and cable management products support infrastructure deployed within enterprise and large-scale facilities. However, their focus remains on supporting standards-based IT equipment rather than developing proprietary OCP platforms or specialized AI cabinet architectures. They believe there is significant value in continuing to provide reliable infrastructure for the broader IT market rather than concentrating exclusively on hyperscale applications.
Looking Forward
Technology will continue to evolve, and Hammond will continue to innovate. But their commitment remains unchanged.
They will continue focusing on standards-based rack infrastructure designed around the needs of enterprise IT, telecommunications, industrial networking, and edge deployments.
While others focus on building infrastructure for a small segment of the market, Hammond remains committed to supporting the environments that organizations rely on every day.
Because for most businesses, the future of IT still starts with a standard rack, a standard cabinet, and the confidence that everything will fit exactly where it’s supposed to.
