Happy Friday all, and welcome to Data Center Digest.
We’re covering the business and technology of data centers and digital infrastructure.

Here’s what we’re looking at today:

• Vertiv is trying to make wooden data centers a thing

• Here’s Meta’s newly designed data center plan

• Big Deals: Brookfield is going off on AI development, and Tract plans to build a massive facility in VA

• Hot Links: A cool data center in Sydney, and a smart data center outlook for next year

Est. read time: mins secs

Vertiv leading the way in wooden data centers

Last week Vertiv launched its newest data center concept, a prefabricated, wooden data center module.

TimberMod + Others

TimberMod, a variant of their SmartMod and PowerMod container series, features mass timber for its structural elements, including the casing. Mass timber is essentially layers of wood fused using heat and pressure to create a sturdy, structural material.

The use of wood in data center construction is not entirely new. Both the EcoDataCenter and the Boden Type data center in Sweden incorporate timber structural design in their construction.

Vertiv’s innovation is that while others have used wood as a substitute for the structure’s concrete, TimberMod replaces the steel as well. 
Thus throughout the entire lifecycle of its materials, Vertiv says the TimberMod creates 3x lower carbon emissions than equivalent steel structures.

The company also emphasizes the aesthetic dimension the wood brings to data center architecture. Which is good too.

Burning question: what about fire?

There’s some skepticism regarding the fire risk. Wood’s one of the most flamible materials there is, and data centers contain a lot of heat.

However, proponents like famous architect Rune Abrahamsen argues that timber's burn characteristics can be advantageous. According to Rune, timber buildings can remain standing post-fire due to an insulating layer of charred wood that protects the structure's inner part.

For what it’s worth, Vertiv says that their wooden modules pass and adhere to all relevant fire tests and codes.
The product also meets all structural requirements necessary for data centers, demonstrating resilience against seismic, wind, and other structural demands.

TimberMod may be more of a statement than a structure. Perhaps a marketing nod to Vertiv’s focus on sustainability goals.

Meta froze all new data center builds, here’s the new plan:

DataCenterDynamics recently spoke to Meta’s global director of data center engineering, Alan Duong, about their new AI-optimized data center design.
(It’s a great article, you should definitely read it.)

Here’s what they covered:

• The facilities won’t be exclusively dedicated to AI. Meta foresees more of a transition towards AI, as opposed to a sudden shift.

• Meta’s new 7nm Training and Interference Accelerator (MTIA), which is a chip tailored specifically for Meta’s AI needs. There’s a great page that explains beautifully everything going on with this new chip.

• The cooling: Their new data centers will use liquid, direct-to-chip cooling for their GPUS, and air cooling for its traditional servers.
  The water temperature will be exactly 85°F, although Meta hasn’t yet decided on the medium through which the water will be piped to the chip.

• Critically, Meta has simplified and stripped down its power distribution equipment. Duong says going from the transformer to the rack allows them to scale rack density much more efficiently.

• The new design is 31% cheaper than their earlier frameworks, and it takes half the time to build.

• Meta still plans to use its existing data centers, some as old as 14 years, and projects these new ones will be viable for 20-30 years.

- What’s More -

Tract eyes land for a potentially massive campus outside Richmond

Tract, a data center park developer, is planning a substantial campus outside Richmond, Virginia. Tract seeks to rezone approximately 1,212 acres to develop a data center technology park.
The proposed site could host up to 46 buildings, with plans for eight on-site substations and multiple battery storage systems.

The completion timeline extends to 2043, but Tract's specific development plans remain unclear. The site, part of an economic development zone in Hanover County north of Richmond, is near historic places and a public park.

Tract, led by Grant van Rooyen, focuses on developing large-scale data center parks, providing infrastructure for data center developers. The company has recently announced another major development in Reno, Nevada.

 Read more here

Brookfield sees “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to acquire data centers for AI

The investment fund has been acquiring data center companies rapidly, focusing on the growth of artificial intelligence. Recently, Brookfield proposed to buy Cyxtera Technologies in a $1.3 billion bankruptcy sale, adding to its 2023 acquisitions of Compass Datacenters and Data4.

Brookfield plans to merge Cyxtera with its Evoque brand, creating a retail colocation platform with significant capacity in North America.

As an established infrastructure fund, Brookfield has the advantage of its real estate and energy development expertise to take advantage of the massive surge in demand for digital infrastructure.

This includes renewable power and management of critical infrastructure, making Brookfield a key player in supporting hyperscalers' global requirements.

Brookfield's data center investments include the acquisition of AT&T data centers to form Evoque, partnerships in South America and India, and recent deals with Compass Datacenters and European operator Data4.

The recent Cyxtera acquisition allows Brookfield to streamline its operations and secure crucial property and leases, enhancing its data center footprint.

Sam Pollock, CEO of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners, emphasizes the strategic value of combining Cyxtera with Evoque, aiming to meet increasing demands in AI and cloud deployments.

Read more here

Hot Links

Thanks for checking in with us, I hope you learned something

Please reply directly to this email and let me know how we did. And if you found this valuable, please share it with a friend or colleague!

- Taylor