Powering The Green Data Centre Revolution with Digital Twins

It is becoming increasingly important for data centre companies to have clear environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies.

With huge volumes of data being generated daily, there is a greater need for infrastructure to host and process this data. Global electricity demand grew 2.2% in 2023, according to a report by the IEA which suggests that the need for electricity will grow by an annual average of 3.4% between 2024-2026.

When considering how digital transformation efforts such as AI continue to dominate the global business landscape, society is inevitably becoming more ESG-conscious as it seeks to tackle swathes of data. Data centres are also considering if these new technologies could help, rather than hinder, industry progress.

A “paradigm shift” for data centre operations

The data centre industry has a greater responsibility to support the digital economy in an environmentally conscious way.

With the sector estimated to be responsible for up to 3% of global electricity consumption in the near future, a strong focus on ESG principles and ‘getting ahead’ is starting to become the norm. As data centres seek to commit to environmental challenges of demand for new technologies like AI, in addition to increased energy and water consumption, they face a better chance of aligning with mainstream sustainability goals.

“We believe the industry has started a paradigm shift as it migrates into the power and cooling business,” says Bart Holsters, Senior Director of Operations at Khazna Data Centers. “By championing ESG principles, data centre companies can foster a positive impact on the planet and position themselves as leaders in a rapidly evolving industry that is central to the digital transformation of society.”

Holsters suggests that data centres are already transitioning to cleaner energy alternatives, leading the charge in adopting sustainable initiatives, stating: “It is at the forefront of environmental responsibility, with ambitious targets set to reach carbon neutrality, becoming water positive and reaching zero waste status.

“Many options are available to reach cleaner energy alternatives - regionally, solar, nuclear, wind and geothermal. These clean energy solutions, along with cheaper energy storage systems, provide opportunities for data centres to pursue highly resilient energy strategies within grid-integrated prosumer environments.”

Significantly, Khazna Data Centers has adopted a “future first” strategy, which consists of building green data centres, using less energy, generating less waste and decarbonising its entire fleet.

The data centre company continues to optimise its environmental metrics, such as switching its diesel generators to biofuel. Likewise, by investing in the latest software stacks, the company is embedding AI and machine learning technologies to improve its analytics and decision-making capabilities. The new technologies are integrated into its sustainability programmes to optimise efficiency within its existing fleet.

“These powerful messages encourage us to pioneer, transform and surpass conventional environmental expectations,” Holsters highlights. “We do believe that the data centre industry is uniquely positioned to lead in carbon neutrality efforts.

“Such a strategic shift ensures better use of our energy resources and establishes a clear pathway to achieving zero carbon emissions. It simply requires some forward-thinking to re-invent the conventional setup and configuration.”

Digital Twins: A power management revolution

With such forward-thinking mindsets, data centre businesses could benefit from turning their attention to new technologies to power a sustainable revolution. Indeed, AI and machine learning already helps data centres to improve data processing, storage and security solutions.

In line with the sustainable strategies highlighted above, one such solution could be digital twin technology.

According to IBM, a digital twin is a virtual representation of an object or system designed to accurately reflect a physical object. The technology can work to help reduce energy and water consumption, in addition to enabling new, low-impact business models.

“It allows operators to test adding new equipment, predict potential issues with existing components, and optimise power distribution across the entire data centre,” Dave King, Senior Principal Product Engineer at Cadence explains. “This can all be done virtually before any changes are made in the real world.” 

Digital twins can enable proactive and informed decisions that lead to greater optimisation and downtime prevention, which can be costly. Cadence’s own findings reveal that protecting businesses from downtime is the biggest cause of sleepless nights within organisations. 

Reducing this downtime leads to greater environmental efficiency, helping data centres make good on their sustainability pledges. King highlights that digital twin technology can be seen as a “crystal ball” for data centre power management in this way. 

“Maintaining a constant, reliable power supply is mission critical, something digital twins can support by simulating and troubleshooting changes to power systems and enabling failure analysis,” he says.

Using digital twins for data centre power management can have multifaceted benefits, including improved resilience and efficiency, as well as delivering cost savings, as King explains.

“First, by allowing the simulation of different power profiles and failure conditions, digital twins can predict and allow data centre managers to prevent potential power outages before they occur, significantly reducing the risk of data centre downtime. 

“For managers, this translates to substantial financial savings as every second offline can cost thousands.”

He continues: “Digital twins eliminate wasted resources by bringing power and cooling delivery together into one unified view. This allows maximising usage while minimising risk. While this naturally contributes to potential cost savings through reduced energy consumption, it also brings another, possibly more important, benefit.”

Whilst data centre power is stretched, given such increased demands, businesses that can capitalise on their existing capacity will be at an advantage. Digital twins could be one key to facilitating such advancements.

“With digital twins, users can navigate through the entire power network, as well as individual components,” King highlights. “From the utility level down to the power socket level, this enables data centre managers to have an all-encompassing view.”

During a turbulent and transformative time for the data centre industry, advances in IT could lead to greater sustainability progress. With digital twins being able to map out current and future scenarios, data centre leaders can make more informed decisions about expanding their power and cooling infrastructure.

“With the power to simulate the environment to see imbalances, operators can strategically deploy, or plan to deploy, equipment to match power and cooling needs,” King says. “This proactive approach prevents stranded capacity, saving both precious physical space and financial resources. 

“By approaching power management proactively rather than reactively, data centre managers can ensure the facility is well-equipped for current and future demands.”