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Cooling · Reviewed 28 August 2026

Make the cooling package comparable.

A neutral requirement and evidence framework for air, liquid and hybrid cooling: align the duty, system boundary, energy and water measurement, controls and acceptance plan before comparing offers.

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Requirement basis

Describe the duty before selecting the method

DOE's design guidance treats IT conditions, air management, cooling and electrical systems as connected decisions, while UNEP's procurement guidance begins with defined operating conditions and measurable criteria. Keep the requirement technology-neutral until the duty and interfaces are explicit.

Input 1

Thermal duty

State the present and planned IT heat load, rack or zone profile, diversity, operating modes, growth steps and the equipment environmental limits that the design must maintain.
Input 2

System boundary

Draw the path from the IT equipment to the final heat sink. Mark every air, liquid, water, refrigerant, power, controls and structural interface included or excluded from the package.
Input 3

Site conditions

Record climate data, water availability and quality, discharge constraints, noise, space, access, contamination risks and any planning or environmental limits that affect the options.
Input 4

Resilience and failure response

Define the required operating state during maintenance and credible failures, detection and alarm points, isolation strategy, recovery time and the assumptions behind any redundancy claim.
Input 5

Measurement plan

Name each meter, sensor, boundary, sampling interval, owner and calculation method needed to verify energy, water, capacity and environmental performance at agreed load conditions.
Input 6

Acceptance and lifecycle

Set design reviews, factory and site tests, integrated commissioning, seasonal proving, training, spares, water treatment, maintenance, warranties and change-control records.

Evidence matrix

Assign every input and record

Evidence set

Design basis

Minimum comparison record

Heat-load schedule, environmental limits, site inputs, operating modes and a controlled assumptions register

Accountable input

Owner, IT and design team

Evidence set

Interface control

Minimum comparison record

System schematic, responsibility matrix, connection data, controls points, water chemistry limits and leak-management plan

Accountable input

Designer, integrator and suppliers

Evidence set

Performance model

Minimum comparison record

Energy and water calculations with stated boundaries, climate, load cases, part-load method and excluded consumers

Accountable input

Designer and supplier

Evidence set

Test and metering

Minimum comparison record

Instrument schedule, calibration basis, test scripts, acceptance tolerances, trend data and issue close-out record

Accountable input

Commissioning and controls teams

Evidence set

Operations evidence

Minimum comparison record

Setpoints, alarm response, maintenance tasks, consumables, spares, water treatment, warranty conditions and refresh triggers

Accountable input

Supplier and operator

Measurement

Define the boundary before the target

Energy

Trace total and IT energy

UNEP and the EU JRC identify PUE as an important facility-level measure. State the calculation boundary, load case, time period and meter ownership so tendered and measured values refer to the same system.
Water

Measure withdrawals and use

Defra's current strategy calls for total water consumption and WUE reporting in relevant procurements. Identify the water source, treatment, cycles, discharge route, load and climate context behind each figure.
Cooling

Separate plant performance

UNEP includes cooling effectiveness among its procurement criteria. Define which pumps, fans, heat rejection, controls and auxiliary loads are included, then test the agreed operating points.

Offer comparison

Keep design, resource use and operations together

01

Normalize the duty

Require every offer to answer the same load cases, site conditions, system boundary, resilience objective and acceptance method.
02

Compare metrics with context

Record the calculation boundary, climate, load profile, metering points and water source behind every energy or water figure. A headline ratio without that context is not comparable.
03

Price the operating model

Compare controls, treatment, consumables, maintenance, spares, training, reporting, warranty conditions and future expansion—not equipment cost alone.

Build the research set

Connect the package to the directory

Use the filtered records to identify organisations for further research, then issue the same controlled requirement and evidence matrix to every candidate. Directory inclusion is not proof of design authority, compatibility, resource performance, installed capacity or delivery availability.

Cooling, Liquid Cooling & Water suppliersDesign, Build & Commissioning suppliers
Design & BuildFit Out & CommissionOperate & MaintainUpgrade & Exit

Primary references

Sources used for this guide

UN Environment Programme — Sustainable Procurement Guidelines for Data Centres and Servers
The 2025 guidance frames robust procurement criteria around operating conditions and measures including PUE, WUE, IT equipment efficiency and cooling effectiveness.
US Department of Energy — Best Practices Guide for Energy-Efficient Data Center Design
DOE's 2024 guide connects IT environmental conditions with air management, cooling, electrical systems, heat recovery, metrics and benchmarking.
US Department of Energy — Energy Efficiency in Data Centers
The current FEMP hub links design guidance, metering resources, assessment tools and cooling case studies for defining and checking an efficiency plan.
UK Defra — Digital sustainability strategy 2025 to 2030
Defra calls for supplier reporting of total water consumption and WUE in relevant procurements, alongside practical work to reduce data-centre water use.
European Commission JRC — EU Code of Conduct for Data Centres
The voluntary framework uses PUE as an overall facility-efficiency measure and emphasizes regular monitoring to identify improvement opportunities.

Sources checked 28 August 2026. Project requirements vary by equipment, cooling method, climate, water context, market and contract; confirm the design basis and obligations with the responsible specialists.