AI-ready and sustainable data centres
AI-ready and sustainable data centres
From design to operation: how Equans prepares data centres for AI, growth and sustainability
The digital economy relies on data centres. They form the beating heart of cloud platforms, online services, industrial data exchange and, increasingly, AI applications that demand enormous computing power. But this growth brings with it new demands: significantly higher energy consumption, stricter regulations regarding security and business continuity, and a clear expectation that data centres should also be designed to be sustainable and future-proof. In this article, you can read about how Equans designs and builds data centres that are AI-ready, energy-efficient, secure, NIS2- and GDPR-compliant, and operationally robust, and how all of this is brought to life in reference projects such as BRU01, the new data centre by KevlinX Data Centres in Brussels.
AI is transforming the data centre
AI workloads (such as model training, image processing and intensive inference) often run continuously and require an exceptionally high density of computing power. This translates into an enormous demand for electricity and cooling, and consequently into stricter requirements for the technical infrastructure.
Today, data centres are still often cooled using traditional air cooling. However, for high-density AI servers, liquid cooling is increasingly being considered as a forward-looking alternative. This technology is not only more efficient and energy-efficient, but also makes it easier to reuse waste heat, for example via district heating networks.
Equans’ added value lies in our integrated approach. We do not view this development merely as a cooling issue, but as a holistic challenge in which energy infrastructure, cooling technology, monitoring, fire safety and security must all work together seamlessly; from concept and design through to day-to-day operations.
Belgium as a data centre hub: strategic, connected… and under grid pressure
Belgium has strong assets on the European data centre map: a strategic location, excellent connectivity and a growing ecosystem, centred on and around Brussels. At the same time, there is one factor that will prove decisive in the coming years: grid capacity. Data centres are currently growing faster than the electricity grid can keep up with. To enable further growth, it is crucial to manage energy more intelligently and to focus on combinations of renewable energy, batteries, smart control systems, on-site generation, heat recovery and energy optimisation.
Within this complex landscape, Equans positions itself as the leading partner for energy infrastructure in Belgium. We help developers and end customers to ensure that projects are feasible in terms of planning permission, energy and technical requirements within a complex landscape, without compromising on availability and security.
A single partner throughout the entire lifecycle
Data centres are critical environments where reliability and continuity are non-negotiable. That is why more and more customers are choosing a partner who can not only design and build, but also maintain and optimise the infrastructure in the long term. Equans offers an end-to-end approach with in-house expertise in:
- Electrical infrastructure
- HVAC & cooling
- Security & access control
- Fire safety
- Monitoring & automation
That ‘single point of contact’ approach makes all the difference: shorter lines of communication between disciplines, fewer interface risks and greater predictability in planning, budgeting and performance.
Cloud, colocation or on-premises?
These days, the question is rarely ‘Should we use the cloud?’, but rather ‘Which workloads should go where?’. Broadly speaking:
- The cloud is ideal for flexibility and rapid scaling.
- Colocation (renting server space in an external data centre) is suitable for workloads requiring high computing power, efficient cooling or low operational costs.
- On-premises remains relevant for sensitive data, local processing or extremely low latency.
Equans builds and manages all three environments, from cloud-connected data centres to colocation facilities and on-premises server rooms, and can therefore provide impartial advice on the ideal mix, taking into account technical, energy and security considerations.
Sovereignty, compliance and security: from ‘nice-to-have’ to design criterion
European regulations and sector-specific requirements set the tone. For sectors such as the public sector, healthcare and financial institutions, data location and protection are often crucial: data must remain within the EU and be subject to European rules. Even organisations that are more flexible often want portability these days: the certainty that they can switch to another cloud later on or return (partly) to their own infrastructure.
Equans translates these requirements into concrete design and build choices: we build in accordance with strict EU standards for security, privacy, access and infrastructure, and support clients in making choices that comply with frameworks such as the GDPR, NIS2 and the Data Act.
Sustainability as an engineering principle
Sustainability is no longer just an added bonus in data centres. The key question is: ‘How do you reconcile growth (particularly with AI) with efficiency, CO₂ reduction and grid constraints?’ Technology helps, provided it is properly integrated.
A number of trends with a demonstrable impact:
- Smart monitoring and control (via SCADA/energy monitoring) helps to continuously monitor and adjust efficiency.
- Liquid cooling can drastically reduce energy consumption and (in many situations) water consumption as well.
- Heat recovery makes it possible to utilise server heat for homes or businesses, for example via district heating networks.
Equans approaches sustainability as an integral part of the design: we aim for maximum energy efficiency and optimal PUE values. Not as an afterthought to the design, but as a guiding principle in the engineering process.
What can you expect from Equans?
Based on our approach and practical experience in complex data centre projects, we see the same ‘value drivers’ recurring time and again:
- AI-ready infrastructure: from energy architecture to cooling concepts that evolve in line with higher densities and new server technologies.
- Energy under control, even during grid constraints: solutions such as smart control systems, batteries, on-site generation, heat recovery and energy optimisation help keep projects feasible and scalable.
- Security & compliance by design: from physical security and access control to design choices that comply with European frameworks such as the GDPR, NIS2 and the Data Act.
- Lifecycle partner with in-house expertise: engineering, implementation and maintenance in a single integrated process, with monitoring and optimisation as an ongoing process.
Data centres are not merely buildings housing servers. They are energy-intensive, mission-critical ecosystems where engineering, sustainability, compliance and business continuity converge. Equans brings these disciplines together in a single integrated offering, from concept and design through to implementation, monitoring and maintenance.
Would you like to discuss a new data centre, an expansion or a refurbishment (AI-ready, NIS2-compliant, with a focus on network capacity and sustainability)?
BRU01 Data Centre: the added value of Equans
BRU01, the new data centre from KevlinX Data Centres in Brussels (Neder-over-Heembeek), recently officially achieved ‘Ready For Service’ status: all systems have been tested and validated, and the site is ready to support critical workloads.
The project comprises a Tier 3 data centre with eight data halls, each measuring 700 m². In total, BRU01 can host 14.5 MW of IT load, with authorised expansion capacity for a further 16 MW of IT load.
Equans was responsible for all technical installations in this project, from design through to on-site implementation. Equans’ contribution included, amongst other things:
- Complete power architecture: high, medium and low voltage, including transformers, generators and UPS systems.
- Europe’s first 11 kV medium-voltage UPS in a data centre, a first of its kind that prioritises reliability and scalability.
- A comprehensive SCADA system for (energy) monitoring and management.
- Advanced cooling and HVAC, including technologies such as Excool units (outdoor air cooling) and IAC units.
- Water mist fire protection, CCTV, access control and outdoor lighting.
In terms of energy consumption, KevlinX is aiming for a PUE of 1.2: for every 1 MW of IT load, the aim is to consume a maximum of 1.2 MW of electricity, including cooling. This is an ambitious target that reflects a highly efficient design concept.
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