Climate trends in data centers 

Reducing energy consumption, smart cooling and the useful and sustainable sharing of residual heat. But also an integral installation, where for example climate systems, electrical techniques, fire alarm systems, access control systems and building management systems reinforce each other instead of working against each other. These are the trends in data centers to which Kuijpers and Lennox Benelux gladly contribute.

Kuijpers is a technologically sustainable company that likes to contribute to a better world. For example, through the integral and turnkey design, realization and optimization of mechanical, sanitary and electrical installations. "As a technological preservationist, we make environments healthier, greener and smarter," emphasizes Theo van de Rijken, Project Manager at Kuijpers. "As a booster, we also accelerate making the built environment future-proof and healthy. For our people, for our customers and for our future generations. We are active in social real estate, life sciences, the food industry, healthcare, the high-tech sector and the data center market, each of which requires its own specific solutions."

Reliable and stable

To offer the right solutions for every project, Kuijpers actively cooperates with partners, such as Lennox Benelux. "In recent years, for example, we have carried out innovative projects for the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, municipalities and data centers," says Ad Vink, European Product Segment Leader Close Control at Lennox Benelux. "A great example of this is the NorthC data center in Rotterdam." For data centers, it is essential that climate systems, for example, operate reliably and stably, he says. "In addition, dust and other contaminants must be captured as efficiently as possible. For example, the filters in our Close Control downflow units play an important role in this. Reliable operation of the units is of course crucial. In addition to the process of design, engineering and installation, preventive and corrective maintenance, service and monitoring are essential for this." Van de Rijken: "In data centers, moreover, the commissioning phase should not be underestimated. In this phase, the installations are tested and validated against the assumptions and parameters of the design, where we only settle for a 10!"

Sustainable and environmentally friendly

Popular Lennox products for the data center market include Close Control downflow units, fanwalls, freecooler chillers, adiabatic chillers and indirect free coolers. For the NorthC data center in Rotterdam, a combination of chillers and drycoolers was chosen for free cooling, says Van de Rijken. "Our ultimate goal is always to realize a sustainable and environmentally friendly solution. And that is no mean feat, now that the power of the server racks (and thus their heat load) is rising rapidly. For this reason, we follow market developments closely. For example, we recently conducted a pilot for NorthC in Rotterdam, in which a server was immersed in a liquid. Instead of a unit on the floor air-cooling the servers, a non-conductive synthetic oil was chosen in this project." According to Vink, Lennox Benelux is closely following such developments. "The future will show whether this is a viable solution. The same applies to adiabatic cooling, for example, which seemed to be the solution for data centers about two years ago. However, because of the large amount of water consumed with it, alternatives are now increasingly being chosen. For example, we recently conducted a project with water-cooled servers, through which water runs and which are directly connected to the grid. In this case, it is very important to maintain flow and water temperature." Lennox Benelux's sustainable efforts and dedication were recently rewarded with EcoVadis Gold status.

Reuse of waste heat

Lennox Benelux sees a growing demand for CO2 chillers, which allow environmentally friendly cooling. Reuse of waste heat is also popular. For example, the NorthC data center in Rotterdam is part of a project, where over 10,000 households can get rid of gas. "An enormous amount of heat is produced in data centers, which in the past was discharged to the outside unused," Vink said. "With today's climate goals, this is actually no longer an option. That's why we are exploring - together with the market - the possibilities of preparing this heat for useful purposes such as district heating." For example, Lennox Benelux is contributing to this by increasing the temperature ranges of its units, while Kuijpers is in talks with data centers, government and energy companies to actually get heat exchange off the ground.