CHAMPAIGN – A computing services company plans to move into 7,000 square feet on the second floor of the M2 on Neil complex in downtown Champaign.

Mezolink Inc. – formerly known as Integrated Data Security – already occupies about 700 square feet on the building's fourth floor.

But it plans to move to larger, temporary space on the south end of that floor soon and then relocate to the second floor in October, company President Aaron Wagener said.

Mezolink offers on-demand information-technology services to clients who don't want the management and cost burden associated with owning that capacity.

"Sept. 1 is when we're looking to start construction," Wagener said. "It probably will be mid-October before we take the space entirely."

The company got its start in 2008 at the Gateway Building in the University of Illinois Research Park and changed its name to Mezolink in July 2009.

By January of this year, it had grown to six employees, and in the eight months since, it has expanded to 23, Wagener said.

Plus, Mezolink plans to hire eight to 12 more people in the next six to eight months, he said.

Those employees will fill technical positions – "anything from developers to voice experts to virtualization experts."

Mezolink recently acquired Bloomington-based PlanetEd Technologies, a company that provides infrastructure and voice over Internet protocol services for elementary and secondary schools. Four people are associated with that company, Wagener said.

Mezolink's clients range from medium-sized businesses up to global enterprises, he added. One client is launching facilities in Singapore and Amsterdam. Mezolink also provides service and maintenance for some Canadian clients, he added.

Facilities offered, or soon to be offered, by Mezolink include:

– A data center where clients can "rack," or house, their information-technology equipment.

– A dedicated classroom for technical-certification training and testing.

– A "neutral site" where vendors can demonstrate their technology and compare it with others.

– A business continuity center that helps companies operate if something disastrous happens at their usual office.

"You come into the space and we provide the virtual desktop or virtual PC of what you've been using, so you'll have a phone and place to work while dealing with insurance," Wagener said.

Mezolink also has a data center in Tustin, Calif., that Wagener said offers a "lot of data connectivity and space for growth."

Wagener, a founder of the firm, said his partner in Mezolink is Timothy Roth. Monticello certified public accountant David Brown continues to be involved on the bookkeeping side, Wagener added.

Mesolink bills itself as a "cloud-service provider." Initially the company provided backup recovery and archives. Today its services include hosting solutions, data management, e-mail solutions and online backups, according to its website.

"Mezolink" takes its name from the "mesosphere," the atmospheric zone located 34 to 50 miles above the Earth. Wagener said the mesosphere "envelopes the world."

The company was drawn to Champaign's "urban core" because it has good Internet connectivity with redundant fiber paths, Wagener said.

Plus, he said the area has "a tremendous vibe" with other technology-related companies such as Pavlov Media and Volition located nearby.