Data centres and the path to sustainability

Jon Healy at Salute argues that there is more to data than simple metrics for data centres on the path to a sustainable future

 

For data centres, sustainability reporting has focused on metrics such as power usage effectiveness, water consumption and energy mix. Up until recently, they have usually passed over someone’s desk as mere box-checking activity, seen as something of a nuisance rather than anything particularly strategic. 

 

Now it’s a different story. We’re witnessing a major shift in attitudes towards sustainability data that takes the industry beyond simple reporting and into a time of instant, operational decision-making. 

 

Where there was once a gap between collecting data and acting upon it, there’s now a greater sense of urgency to move faster and operate in real time as the demand for digital services and AI workloads only increases. The industry can no longer afford to evaluate progress solely based on the snapshot captured in annual reports. Instead, data centres are beginning to treat sustainability metrics as live operational tools that can influence the way sites are designed, managed and maintained.

 

 

Doing more with data

Sustainability measurements were traditionally used to show investors, customers, and regulators that a company was complying and was transparent. Although this is still essential, the industry has realised that compliance alone is inadequate to handle the real problems that lie ahead. By 2030, data centre power consumption in Europe is predicted to more than triple, from the current level of 62 TWh to over 150 TWh. Grids that are currently experiencing capacity issues will be under tremendous strain from that expansion.

 

Metrics are no longer only static figures found in reports; they must serve as the foundation for choices that maximise effectiveness, minimise negative impact on the environment and maintain resilience.

 

What is changing is that sustainability data is no longer collected just for reports or compliance. Increasingly, operators are tracking performance in real time and adjusting as conditions change. This involves continuously monitoring cooling availability, performance and power consumption and taking prompt action in the event of problems emerging.

 

Practically speaking, that can entail redistributing tasks, modifying cooling parameters or alerting engineering teams as soon as something deviates from set limits. The same reporting frameworks that once fed annual disclosures are now being applied live, so that data informs operational teams rather than sitting in a document. This strategy guarantees that goals have a direct influence on how facilities are operated daily and enables the balancing of sustainability, resilience and cost.

 

 

Applying data to operations

Sustainability data only has real value when it is directly connected to operators’ actions, as reporting figures alone have given way to integrating them into operational procedures. This requires providing teams with clear guidelines to follow whenever performance deviates from the expected range. 

 

For instance, a procedure should be in place to investigate and modify equipment if cooling performance falls before resilience is impacted. If water consumption unexpectedly increases, teams must have a well-defined plan in place to search for leaks, optimise usage and switch to alternative sources if needed. This shifts the focus from evaluating performance to acting, guaranteeing that targets lead to tangible outcomes for daily operations.

 

 

Aligning sustainability with resilience

Although resilience and sustainability are often discussed separately, they are increasingly converging in practice, as data centres can optimise for both by using live metrics to guide decision-making. 

 

Consider power use as an example: by modifying load profiles based on real-time data, operators can maximise the availability of renewable energy sources while safeguarding vital systems. Data centres can use stored energy, flex demand or workload shifts during grid stress events. By lowering reliance on overloaded grid infrastructure, these measures not only increase sustainability but also resilience.

 

 

Keep people at the centre

Although technology and metrics play an important role, humans remain at the centre of operational success, as teams’ ability to analyse data and respond proactively accentuates the critical importance of training and skills. For instance, training regimes could include not only technical operations but also scenario-based exercises in interpreting data and responding to anomalies.

 

Human oversight is also crucial in the face of regulatory changes, including the EU Energy Efficiency Directive, which requires reporting of waste heat as well as energy use, and stricter national regulations in Germany, the Netherlands and Ireland that are pushing operators to embed sustainability metrics more deeply into their operations. Failure to act carries reputational and financial risks, making it clear that for data centres, metrics must drive action, not merely be disclosed.

 

 

The future of sustainability reporting

The application of metrics in data centres will continue to change - instead of waiting for problems to come up, operators are beginning to use predictive analytics to identify potential issues before they arise. So, it’s clear that the industry is moving in an exciting direction, where data triggers action rather than simple featuring in static reports. 

 

Operators can boost sustainability and resilience by using data for predicting issues, monitoring energy consumption, recovering waste heat and quantifying carbon more accurately. These sustainability metrics offer far greater value as real-time operational tools that inform choices and generate long-term benefits for customers, communities and the environment rather than as compliance exercises. 

 

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Jon Healy is MD EMEA at Salute

 

Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com and imaginima