Data Center Cooling Systems

The Data Center Cooling Systems Emerging Market Analysis Report delivers current market analysis plus a five-year market and technology forecast.

Data Center Cooling Systems Are Required for Efficient Temperature and Environmental Management

According to ARC research, Data Center Cooling Systems are an integral part of smooth operation for a data center and account for about 30 to 40 percent of a data center’s total power consumption. Air-based cooling systems have been the traditional technology used, but high-performance liquid cooling is growing fast, along with increased usage of AI and machine learning among end users. Investment in technologies for remote management and monitoring tools in both IT services and the industrial space have increased drastically over the past couple of years. Digital transformation and remote operations in the industrial and retail space are anticipated to increase the online data traffic and subscription of virtual and digital services.

Data Center Cooling Systems Strategic Issues

In addition to providing a five-year market forecast, the Data Center Cooling Systems market research provides detailed quantitative current market data and addresses key strategic issues as follows.

Increasing Reliance on Natural Cooling

Several data center operators seek to reduce the operating costs of data centers by reducing the amount of energy needed to run data centers. As cooling takes up more than 40 percent of the power required to run a data center, several operators are resorting to free cooling or the use of natural cooling, which reduces the demand for cooling solutions.

Several companies are setting up data centers in cold climates or near aquifers to use natural cold water to cool data centers. This leads to a low use of advanced solutions such as immersion or liquid cooling solutions. Exploring new opportunities with natural cooling resources would aid data center operators for keeping the operational expenses low.

New Opportunities with Renewable Power Generation

Cooling of servers and other IT equipment is the most demanding application in a data center with respect to overall power consumption. Data center operators are looking toward efficient cooling technologies, as cooling consumes more than 40 percent of the power of operating data centers. Powering the cooling equipment via renewable energy is vital to enhance the center's total carbon footprint, reduce dependence on main grid's power supply, and reduce energy cost in the long run.

Renewable energy is seen as a feasible replacement for fossil fuel-based power from the main grid. A combination of renewable energy generation and battery storage will play an important role in replacing fossil fuel-powered primary sources. Hyperscale data centers can also leverage a combination of hydrogen PEM (proton exchange membrane) and fuel cells as a viable option for storing excess storage generated from renewable sources.

Data center operators in mature power markets can also take advantage of feed-in tariffs provided by local governments to supply renewable power to the grid, thereby seeking to generate revenue and reduce costs of running establishments.

Suppliers Need to Embrace Digitalization

Digital transformation is picking up speed and is a catalyst for long-term competitive advantages for end users. Most of all, digitalization helps create a path for the transition toward more connected and smarter systems to enhance the overall process efficiency.

Digitalizing the assets and using a cloud-based architecture with predictive analytics enable end users to monitor the health and performance of assets, allowing them to predict equipment failures before they happen and minimizing unnecessary shutdowns that can cost millions of dollars. Digitalizing the operation of a cooling system has significant benefit such as remote monitoring and diagnostic, predictive troubleshooting, and effective cooling functionalities for data center operators. End user companies could make substantial improvements in their operating performance, enabling them to succeed in today's highly competitive market by embracing such technologies. Therefore, it is vital to seek cooling solution suppliers, with digital services capabilities, that can become effective partners when it comes to digitalization of the electric utilities in data centers.