Executive Roundtable: Achieving Balance in AI Data Center Designs
The third installment of our Executive Roundtable for the Third Quarter of 2024 asked our four seasoned data center industry leaders about project management strategies for facility and infrastructure developers seeking to balance a mutual need for versatility and specificity in AI data center designs.
Because as noted by ABB Electrification Products' Solutions Director Yasir Shinaishin in a recent DCF 'Voices of the Industry' guest editorial:
"AI data centers present unique challenges in terms of rack densities and in terms of scale. It is not now uncommon to see data centers of 1 GW with liquid-cooled racks with densities over 100 kW. In the future, we will see even larger data centers with higher rack densities."
Our panel of data center industry leaders for DCF's Executive Roundtable for the Third Quarter of 2024 includes:
Danielle Rossi, Global Director – Mission Critical Cooling, Trane
Sean Farney, VP of Data Center Strategy for the Americas, JLL
Harry Handlin, U.S. Data Center Segment Leader, ABB
Josh Claman, CEO, Accelsius
Now onto the third question of the series for our Executive Roundtable for the Third Quarter of 2024.
Data Center Frontier: What are some key project management tips and strategies for facility operators and developers seeking to balance a need for great versatility with a mutual need for great specificity in data center designs for the AI era?
Danielle Rossi, Trane: Future-proof, or near future-proof, planning is key to decreasing the future cost and downtime of day two changes to a site.
Ensuring site design can accommodate future liquid cooling upgrades, higher electrical inputs, and possible load density expansion is the best way to guarantee future versatility.
Additionally, it is important to adapt to changing requirements over time.
If a site is pre-planned properly to support future changes and growth, the site operator will be able to pivot designs as needed for an application close to real-time.
We will see more hybrid cooling designs, particularly in future retrofits, and site operators should be able to adjust to those needs without any substantial site redesign or construction.
Sean Farney, JLL: Take the time and energy to learn the technology, because the IT equipment for running AI applications is different than legacy IT assets.
Then, talk with business leaders to understand the current and future needs.
As you move into design, plan for optimal scalability and flexibility, knowing that requirements may change as the project progresses.
Our project management team has seen requests to scale in both directions.
Also, be sure to consider how the facility design can support optimal operational efficiency.
If you engage your facility management team early in the design phase, they can provide valuable tips that lead to more efficient and resilient operations down the line.
Harry Handlin, ABB: With exponential growth of data generation and storage, data centers are scaling up rapidly and construction trends are emerging.
Higher power densities are required to support AI data centers.
Being able to adapt is key.
We expect both electrical and HVAC designs to change.
It's all due to the expanded scale of the data center and the significant increases in rack densities.
Josh Claman, Accelsius: First, when planning a project, you need to look ahead and guarantee you’ve got investment protection.
From a cooling perspective, one way to achieve this is by putting in facility infrastructure that can support multiple types of cooling technology, such as a facility water loop that can support single-phase direct-to-chip, two-phase direct-to-chip, and immersion.
Then, when choosing your cooling technologies, it’s smart to choose solutions that run at the highest possible FW temperature to drive sustainability and efficiency–that way, you won’t have to keep your chillers ramped up around the clock.
Overall, flexibility is key.
Of course, while we’re convinced that two-phase direct-to-chip cooling is the future of liquid cooling, it’s imperative to keep your options open to whatever the future may bring.
Next: Innovation Paths for Energy-Efficient Data Centers
About the Author
Matt Vincent
Matt Vincent is Editor in Chief of Data Center Frontier, where he leads editorial strategy and coverage focused on the infrastructure powering cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and the digital economy. A veteran B2B technology journalist with more than two decades of experience, Vincent specializes in the intersection of data centers, power, cooling, and emerging AI-era infrastructure. Since assuming the EIC role in 2023, he has helped guide Data Center Frontier’s coverage of the industry’s transition into the gigawatt-scale AI era, with a focus on hyperscale development, behind-the-meter power strategies, liquid cooling architectures, and the evolving energy demands of high-density compute, while working closely with the Digital Infrastructure Group at Endeavor Business Media to expand the brand’s analytical and multimedia footprint. Vincent also hosts The Data Center Frontier Show podcast, where he interviews industry leaders across hyperscale, colocation, utilities, and the data center supply chain to examine the technologies and business models reshaping digital infrastructure. Since its inception he serves as Head of Content for the Data Center Frontier Trends Summit. Before becoming Editor in Chief, he served in multiple senior editorial roles across Endeavor Business Media’s digital infrastructure portfolio, with coverage spanning data centers and hyperscale infrastructure, structured cabling and networking, telecom and datacom, IP physical security, and wireless and Pro AV markets. He began his career in 2005 within PennWell’s Advanced Technology Division and later held senior editorial positions supporting brands such as Cabling Installation & Maintenance, Lightwave Online, Broadband Technology Report, and Smart Buildings Technology. Vincent is a frequent moderator, interviewer, and keynote speaker at industry events including the HPC Forum, where he delivers forward-looking analysis on how AI and high-performance computing are reshaping digital infrastructure. He graduated with honors from Indiana University Bloomington with a B.A. in English Literature and Creative Writing and lives in southern New Hampshire with his family, remaining an active musician in his spare time.
Voices of the Industry
