A modern data center is one that’s designed and built to meet modern needs—needs that are ever evolving. Especially as artificial intelligence (AI) and other advanced technologies generate higher demand for data center capacity, traditional data center infrastructure falls short in some critical ways. Today’s data centers must meet high-capacity requirements while prioritizing efficiency in speed, costs and environmental impact.
Demand has never been higher for data centers today, both in terms of capacity and operational efficiency. Consider these requirements shaping modern data center projects, including new builds, expansions and upgrades.
Data is being generated, processed and stored at unprecedented rates, and data generation is forecasted to triple from 2025-2029. The industry is struggling to keep up, making speed and efficiency top priorities for data center construction. Unreliable supply chains, local labor shortages and weather delays aren’t an option when you want to minimize time to value.
Scalable, Innovative Designs
As needs will surely continue expanding and evolving in the future, modern data centers must be scalable, allowing operators to rightsize now and add modules or rearrange in the future as needed. Additionally, space constraints can mean data centers must feature innovative designs that maximize white space within a minimal footprint.
High-Density Infrastructure
Data center density is projected to grow to 176 kW per square foot in 2027 due to the AI boom. The high-density needs of modern data center applications mean these facilities must be outfitted with state-of-the-art IT equipment and feature the robust electrical and cooling infrastructure needed to support these intensive operations.
Sustainability
In meeting high-density needs, data center stakeholders must grapple with another challenge: sustainability. Data centers can easily consume staggering amounts of resources, such as electricity and water. Data center stakeholders are combating this problem by setting increasingly stringent sustainability goals for carbon emissions, water usage and more.
Cost Control
Finally, as with all business ventures, cost is a major factor to consider. Organizations don’t want to take on data center projects with vague cost estimates or costly ongoing operational inefficiencies common in traditional builds. Modern data centers are often constructed in a way that’s more standardized, allowing for more consistent quality and cost. Efficient designs and equipment can also contribute to more efficient operating costs for a lower total cost of ownership.
The Problem with Traditional Construction
Traditional stick-built facilities (those that are built on-site by a construction team) used to be the standard, but this approach is falling out of favor because it often fails to meet all modern data center demands. Traditional brick-and-mortar buildings are complex, expensive and time-consuming to work on.
Consider how stick-built construction fails to deliver on the priorities outlined above. These projects are inherently:
● Slow: Starting from scratch with blueprints, assembling the necessary tradespeople, enduring labor shortages and supply chain delays, and waiting on a sequential build process can all make for a long project timeline.
● Inflexible: Stick-built data centers typically aren’t designed for easy scalability, retrofits or upgrades. Therefore, operators tend to overshoot their current capacity needs to accommodate future needs.
● Wasteful: Overprovisioning means these buildings consume more energy than necessary. The construction projects themselves also tend to involve wasted time, materials and costs.
Modularity: An Ideal Solution for Modern Data Center Needs
Modularity addresses the weaknesses of stick-built construction, offering a design and construction process that is better suited to modern demands. Let’s see how the advantages of the modular approach map onto the requirements of modern data centers.
Modular data center infrastructure offers:
A Faster Build Timeline
Modular manufacturing follows standardized practices that allow for fast, efficient builds. Rather than following a linear, sequential model where a delay at any single stage creates a bottleneck, many aspects of modular manufacturing can take place simultaneously, allowing for an approximately 30-50% reduction in build time.
Scalability and Space-Saving Designs
One of modularity’s greatest advantages is that scalability is baked into the design from Day 1. That means operators can rightsize their capacity and seamlessly add on modules or rearrange as needed in the future. Plus, modular skids and all-in-one facilities are designed for a compact footprint, allowing operators to maximize whitespace.
Cutting-Edge Technology (and Easy Upgrades)
Modular solutions can be engineered for optimal cooling and power distribution for high-density applications. Plus, the ability to expand and upgrade the data center more rapidly makes it easy to incorporate the latest technologies in the future.
Sustainable Construction and Energy Efficiency
Manufacturing in a dedicated facility minimizes on-site waste, making the build process more sustainable. Plus, modular facilities are designed for efficient operations and can incorporate technologies to help organizations meet their environmental goals.
Predictable Costs
Factory-based industrialized construction reduces construction labor costs and allows for a more predictable budget. Manufacturers can also leverage bulk buying to reduce the costs of certain materials and components.
Modularity: The Modern Solution for Modern Needs
In short, modern data center stakeholders have some significant boxes to check. They must:
● Construct facilities with a focus on speed and efficiency.
● Build in scalability to accommodate future expansion and evolving needs.
● Incorporate state-of-the-art IT equipment for high-density applications.
● Employ robust electrical and cooling infrastructure to support operations.
● Meet lofty sustainability goals in construction and operations.
Modularity can help organizations meet these requirements as they strive to keep up with booming demand.
PCX has more than three decades of experience leveraging modularity to create innovative all-in-one data centers and skids to help data center stakeholders meet modern needs. Learn more in our whitepaper, The Future of Data Center Construction: Embracing Modularity.