The Rise of Data Centers: Key Trends in Construction and Technology

Humans have always constructed buildings to meet the demands of the time, whether it be a barn, castle, or skyscraper. Now it's the information age, and data center construction is in full swing.

Data centers store, guard, and transfer the sensitive information that keeps the modern economy afloat. However, maintaining data centers presents unique challenges concerning costs, sustainability, and indoor air quality.

Global Surge in Data Center Construction

The first data center popped up in 1945, at the University of Pennsylvania. This massive storage facility housed a 150-foot, 27-ton computer called "Mainframe."

The data center industry has come a long way since then. Now, projections show that the construction of modern data centers is set to reach $49 billion by 2030.

The explosion of the internet changed everything. Most importantly, it made data, in the words of mathematician Clive Humby, the new oil. In other words, it's the commodity businesses must have to reach their target audience, make sales, and drive growth. 

Right now, the world is in a data-driven gold rush that's powered by technological innovations such as: 

• Large language models

• Search engines

• Artificial intelligence

• Cloud computing

• Predictive analytics

• Social media algorithms

Each entry on this list shares one thing: the need for more data. This makes data storage as essential as water towers in the modern age. However, building these centers comes with many challenges.

Technological Advancements Shaping Data Center Construction

It's easy to overlook how data centers impact the environment and contribute to the ongoing energy crisis. Now, data center construction companies are making significant changes to their building methods to promote sustainability and safety.

Energy Efficiency and Sustainability

A data center's energy consumption varies, but the industry makes up 1% to 2% of global energy consumption. The reason for the staggering consumption is that data centers power massive networks of high-performance computing equipment, including: 

• Data storage equipment

• Data processing equipment

• Information security equipment

• Network infrastructure equipment

There's a pressing need to lower energy consumption, and there's been great headway. For example, many data center construction companies employ solar panels and turbines to offset their carbon footprint. Companies can also optimize their IT infrastructure by using more energy-efficient hardware and tracking their energy waste. Many tools provide sustainability dashboards that offer real-time visibility, allowing systems managers to assess energy consumption at every stage.

Advanced Cooling Systems

Data centers are much like industrial production lines: They're constantly running and producing heat.

Traditionally, computer room air-conditioning units and in-row cooling systems would go near server racks to keep equipment cool. At a base level, this method works, but it's expensive and environmentally harmful.

There have since been many great developments in cooling technology. For example, companies like Microsoft have turned to liquid cooling systems, which use special low-boiling-point fluid to absorb and draw heat away from servers.

Additional cooling methods include direct-to-chip cooling systems. These insert cooling elements directly into the highest heat-generating server components. As a result, direct-to-chip tech eliminates thermal resistance, making it highly efficient and sustainable for cooling, lowering energy consumption, and avoiding heat-induced crashes. 

Security and Redundancy Measures

Data centers often house personal or financial information, which is highly sought out by hackers and criminals. Redundancy is a practice that institutes backup measures to increase reliability and security. There are five main areas to cover to incorporate redundancy into data centers:

• Power (uninterruptible power supplies or solar panel battery banks)

• Cooling (backup AC units and cooling systems)

• Network (connecting servers to additional internet service providers and routers)

• Equipment (extra servers, hard drives, or power supplies)

• Data (multiple storage devices, including cloud backups)

Construction Companies Leading the Data Center Boom

To see real-world case studies of how leading companies are approaching modern data center construction, start by looking into these three stories: 

• Turner Construction: investing $800 million to build a sustainability-first, hyper-scale data center

• Fluor: prioritizing clean power into all existing data center facilities

• AECOM: Sustainable Legacies initiative to strive for net-zero carbon emissions

Key Challenges in Data Center Construction

Making sustainable data centers is no simple task. Consider the following data center construction challenges as you prioritize safety and sustainability.

Regulatory and Zoning Issues

You can't construct data centers just anywhere; they have specific zoning laws and regulations, which vary depending on local ordinances. Before breaking ground, confirm that your location has zoning clearance for technical and industrial construction. You'll also need the right building permits, which can prolong the construction process by months or years.

Power and Cooling Demands

To avoid outages or crashes, data centers need proper cooling systems and electric power output. Depending on the size and scope of the data center, you must show regulators that you have an adequate power supply and cooling load.

Air Quality and Environmental Monitoring

Data centers cause a lot of pollution and consume massive amounts of energy, making environmental consciousness a huge point of tension during construction.

Whenever possible, incorporate renewable energy sources and invest in environmentally safe materials. In addition to these factors, you must lay out plans for keeping the air quality safe.

Data center air quality standards exist to keep employees and the surrounding community safe, as well as preserve valuable equipment by avoiding humidity damage. There are many harmful contaminants, like CO2 emissions and volatile organic compounds, caused by data center machinery. As a result, businesses must invest in a system for tracking indoor air quality metrics like airflow, CO2 emissions, particulate matter, humidity, power consumption, and system temperature. 

Optimize Your Data Center’s Air Quality With Attune’s Monitoring Solutions

Today's technology companies exist in an age of smart construction, meaning it's possible to plug in sensors to track appliance and system conditions in real time.

If you're building a data center and want to partner with a best-in-class air quality monitoring solution, consider Attune. Our sensors can seamlessly integrate into your existing infrastructure to track the most important air quality metrics. 

Stay safe, sustainable, and cost-friendly by closely monitoring your dashboard, which automatically generates reports on the state of your indoor air quality.

Want to see it in action? Sign up for a free trial to see how our solution can monitor and protect your data centers.