Rittal: Data Centres Sustainability & Energy Efficiency

It's estimated that data centres around the world consumed up to 450 TWh - that’s around 1.75% of annual global electricity demand, in 2022. Using all this power produces a lot of heat, so data centre hardware requires cooling to remain stable.

As the world's leading systems provider for enclosures, power distribution, climate control, IT infrastructure, 19" racks and software & services, Rittal has more than 60 years of experience in professionally designing and manufacturing system solutions. Rittal is supporting green transformation across industries and making its own sustainable changes as the climate crisis grows more urgent.

“The upheaval we are all experiencing is profound,” said Markus Asch, Rittal International CEO. “Managing energy supply, digital transformation of factories or smaller product carbon footprints in industry cannot be achieved in isolation.”

The company says economic success and progress depend upon its corporate responsibility. Renewable energy is key to Rittal’s operational sustainability – uptake has reduced the company’s carbon emissions by 40% since 2019. All of Rittal’s German locations are supplied with entirely green electricity, and others have photovoltaic systems or are planning and preparing for them. 

Sustainable developments by Rittal

Data centres are the infrastructure behind technical innovations powering the modern world, like AI and cloud storage. Cooling systems account for about 40% of data centre power consumption, so Rittal came up with a solution.

Rittal cooling units are the benchmark for maximum energy efficiency, consuming up to 75% less energy on average than comparable competitor devices. On average, a Rittal Blue e+ cooling unit saves one tonne of carbon per year.

The company offers a range of sustainable solutions, including the Rittal ePocket that replaces thousands of pieces of paper used for system documentation.

Rittal also launched a dedicated business unit for the energy market, tailored to supporting sustainable energy supplies.

“We have now combined these long-established solutions with application-oriented modules,” said Raphael Görner, Executive Vice President for Rittal’s BU Energy and Power Solutions Unit. “That is to say solutions for renewable energies, conventional power plants, power transmission and distribution, battery storage systems, charging infrastructure and hydrogen-based applications.” 

Rittal: More than 60 years of experience

Rittal’s system solutions are represented in more than 90% of all sectors worldwide. The company is a family-owned business founded in 1961 with a workforce of over 9,000 employees and nine production sites worldwide.

In 2023 the Friedhelm Loh Group, of which Rittal is the largest company, turned over €3bn (US$3.2bn).

Rittal supplies thousands of companies including Airbus and Ford with cooling units to prevent hardware components overheating and Nestlé with Hygienic Design products for food production.

Engineering firm Bosch Rexroth is partnered with Rittal to reduce energy consumption of chillers.

Rittal fitted a Blue e+ chiller for a CNC lathe, significantly reducing energy consumption.

“The Rittal Blue e+ chiller consumes 50% less energy than the old chiller,” said  Leo Pototzky, Head of Sustainability for Bosch Rexroth. 

Nestlé‘s coffee research centre in Switzerland is also host to Rittal’s Blue e+ solution.

Rittal expects the unit will use 72% less power over a year than its older Blue e devices. 

“Tackling climate change is imperative to the long-term success of our business, for the ecosystems we rely upon and the communities we serve,” said Mark Schneider, Nestlé CEO.

With AI’s potential to revolutionise sustainability, analysing large-scale data and optimising resource use, sustainable data centre infrastructure is becoming an important part of every sector.

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