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Data Centre’s aren’t exactly known for their beauty, in fact most data centres are hidden out of plain sight and to most, entirely inconspicuous. However, many have popped up over the years in some very strange places and for all manner of reasons such as ensuring optimum security, combating technological challenges, reacting to climate change, coping with energy restrictions and protection from natural disasters.
It is a fact that data centres consume more energy than the entire aviation industry, so data centre developers need to get creative, especially when faced with current pressures, and look to work with nature and not against it.
Take a look at our list below and see how some people in the industry have taken the data centre design concept to the next level.
The Nautilus Data Centre
The clever team at Nautilus Data Technologies are leading the way in changing the industry and becoming energy efficient by creating the world’s first floating data centre. Whilst floating on the water in California, the centre uses water cooling technology which it says makes the centre 80% more energy efficient. It also lowers operational costs by 30%, uses zero water consumption and produces 30% lower emissions.
Project Natick
Google got seriously creative when they designed an underwater data centre in a unique experiment in energy efficiency. Using submarine technology, the centre draws cool water from the ocean to cool the servers, making it more energy efficient and reducing its carbon footprint to near 0%.
Disused Papermill
Google makes the list, yet again, with its re-purposed historic 1950’s papermill. The building provides the data centre with a unique and extremely efficient cooling system. The centre takes seawater directly from the Gulf of Finland, which then runs through an underwater tunnel that was originally built for the use of the papermill. Hamina papermill is actually one of Google’s most advanced and energy efficient data centres.
Underground Caves
The Academica server centre in Helsinki, Finland, once stood as a truly breath-taking Cathedral, and before it was re-designed as a state-of-the-art Data Centre for Facebook, served as a World War II bomb shelter. Under the Cathedral there lies a network of caves, 30 metres below ground. This proves to be the perfect environment for a data centre as the naturally cool air keeps the temperature low and any additional cooling requirements come from the seawater which is pumped in directly through pipes.