D A T A C E N T R E P R E D I C T I O N S
larger power and cooling needs of AI . This was a priority when HDR worked on the AI-ready IC3 Super West data centre in Sydney for Macquarie Data Centres . The facility will use liquid cooling , as well as air cooling , harnessing advanced monitoring systems and holding a total of 45MW .
Data storage requirements will continue to grow , and AI will also be applied to automation , monitoring and optimising energy efficiencies in data centres , as well as quickly identifying faults .
Water use in cooling systems
For data centres , the cooling process alone can take between 20 % and 40 % of their overall energy consumption , depending on location , and there is a concerted push to reduce water usage ( WUE ) within that . Historically , the drive was to cut power usage ( PUE ). Direct air with Adiabatic cooling helps drive power efficiencies yet requires significant water usage during the warmest months . Due to increased rack densities , air cooling alone is insufficient to meet the cooling needs of the denser racks .
As the industry moves away from aironly cooling solutions , the challenge is to choose the most efficient , cleanest versions of liquid cooling – and this is likely a Direct-to-Chip solution when building at scale . Immersion cooling may have a place ; however this is likely to be restricted to smaller scale specialist facilities . All liquid cooling solutions can remove heat more effectively while decreasing power consumption . Another benefit is that , although such systems utilise water , they are closed loop , thereby reducing the need for Adiabatic cooling and thus reducing water usage overall .
Reducing embodied carbon
One of the biggest causes are the structures themselves , so tackling embodied carbon by improving the design and construction process is the best place to start .
This includes making smart materials choices and embracing a whole lifecycle approach . Steel and concrete are two major offenders when it comes to embodied carbon . Reusing steel where possible is far more environmentally friendly and some of the steel fabricators are already facilitating this approach to material reuse as opposed to recycling .
Timber data centres are an interesting proposition , and HDR has already been working on live projects where this is being proactively developed as an option . HDR has utilised mass timber extensively in other facility types including laboratories , offices and logistics buildings .
From a compliance perspective , regulation and industry commitments are putting embodied carbon front and centre , such as the Structural Engineers 2050 Commitment Programme , the Architecture 2030 Challenge for Embodied Carbon , as well as MEP 2040 . Europe ’ s Climate Neutral Data Centre Pact , meanwhile , is an agreement by major operators to be carbon-free by 2030 , water conservation being one of the goals .
We will see greater focus on reducing the carbon footprint of data centres and
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