Vertiv and Compass Datacenters Collaborate on Combination Liquid and Air Cooling System To Accelerate Deployment of Liquid Cooling for AI Applications

By: Vertiv Holdings Co via Business Wire

November 18, 2024 at 09:00 AM EST

First-of-its-kind cooling solution integrates air and liquid cooling technologies to meet the evolving and mixed cooling needs of data centers supporting AI

Data center operators face the challenge of supporting rapidly evolving environments in which established IT applications increasingly co-exist alongside the high-density computing being deployed to support AI. Vertiv (NYSE: VRT), a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions, and Compass Datacenters, which designs, builds and operates data center campuses for some of the world’s largest technology companies, announced today they have collaborated to develop a first-of-its-kind solution that enables future deployments of AI with the ability to flex between air and liquid cooling to support high-density computing. Vertiv and Compass engineers collaborated on this vision for a future-forward cooling solution, with Vertiv developing and manufacturing the technology solution. The initial units will be deployed at a Compass facility in 1Q 2025 as part of a planned multi-year, multi-billion dollar supply arrangement.

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Compass’ modular data centers and equipment yards offer the flexibility to make adoption of the Vertiv™ CoolPhase Flex possible without major retrofitting or costly rebuilding. (Attribution: Photo by Tadd Myers. Copyright Compass Datacenters 2024.)

The Vertiv™ CoolPhase Flex, the next generation of the high-efficiency Vertiv™ Liebert® DSE Packaged System, integrates liquid cooling capabilities with refrigerant-based air-cooling technologies and heat rejection in a single packaged system. As data center customers plan their growth strategies, Vertiv CoolPhase Flex can be used initially as a direct expansion (DX) cooling system with integrated economization to support reliable and efficient air cooling, and then as more high-density computing is deployed, the liquid cooling capabilities can be simply and quickly engaged to support liquid cooling applications.

“Our customers are looking for fast, practical and energy-efficient ways to introduce liquid cooling to support AI and other high-density applications, but want the flexibility to leverage air-cooling and support mixed loads in those same facilities,” said Chris Crosby, CEO of Compass. “We had a vision for a future in which we could be prepared to quickly deploy air or liquid cooling to meet changing customer requirements and Vertiv brought that vision to life in a very innovative way. The Vertiv™ CoolPhase Flex provides a level of flexibility that is unparalleled in the marketplace and that is highly valuable to us and to our customers.”

“AI is not only bringing change to data centers, it is also changing how key industry players work together to enable growth. Data center operators, customers, chip manufacturers, infrastructure providers, utility companies and others must work together to innovate and reduce barriers to AI adoption,” said Giordano (Gio) Albertazzi, CEO of Vertiv. “Compass Datacenters and Vertiv engineers worked together to make this important project a reality. Vertiv™ CoolPhase Flex makes it possible to support today’s IT and quickly enable the data center of the future. With our deep expertise and understanding of the complexities of AI applications, Vertiv was uniquely able to bring this solution to market.”

Key benefits of the Vertiv CoolPhase Flex include:

Faster, simpler deployment of high-density computing: With the packaged hybrid design of the Vertiv CoolPhase Flex, the complexity associated with liquid cooling adoption is minimized, reducing time to deploy, as well as associated costs and downtime.
Uncompromised efficiency: For air cooling, the solution uses pumped refrigerant economization (PRE) technology that automatically switches to free cooling whenever external conditions are suitable. When IT loads are better served by liquid cooling, the same system is designed to easily convert for liquid fluid distribution and heat removal, and is compatible with liquid cooling solutions that include Vertiv™ XDU 1350.
Cost & space savings: The self-contained packaged system is installed outside the data center, freeing up valuable data center space. Compass’ modular data centers and equipment yards are designed for flexibility and scale so that it can adapt to evolving requirements and new technologies. This means customers will be able to upgrade to the Vertiv CoolPhase Flex with little impact to operations and without high costs associated with rebuilding or extensive retrofitting.

Compass has also deployed the Vertiv™ Next Predict service platform, leveraging predictive analytics to enable the company to shift from reactive to proactive maintenance on select cooling units. The platform provides visibility into equipment operations and uses historical and operating data to pinpoint when maintenance is required.

“A predictive tool that lets us know when equipment needs maintenance ahead of time as opposed to waiting until there is a potential availability issue is just a massive game changer for cooling equipment,” said Crosby. “It's been awesome to have Vertiv leading the way alongside us.”

For more information on critical digital infrastructure, visit Vertiv.com, and for AI-ready data centers, visit compassdatacenters.com.

About Vertiv

Vertiv (NYSE: VRT) brings together hardware, software, analytics and ongoing services to enable its customers’ vital applications to run continuously, perform optimally and grow with their business needs. Vertiv solves the most important challenges facing today’s data centers, communication networks and commercial and industrial facilities with a portfolio of power, cooling and IT infrastructure solutions and services that extends from the cloud to the edge of the network. Headquartered in Westerville, Ohio, USA, Vertiv does business in more than 130 countries. For more information, and for the latest news and content from Vertiv, visit Vertiv.com.

About Compass

Compass Datacenters, one of Inc. Magazine’s 5000 fastest growing companies, designs and constructs data centers for some of the world’s largest hyperscalers and cloud providers on campuses across the globe. Our corporate culture is predicated on continual improvement and innovation and has enabled us to marry technology with modern manufacturing methods to enhance our ability to consistently deliver our customer’s projects faster, with no sacrifices in quality. Since our inception, our sustainability efforts have encompassed the entire data center from its design to its post-delivery performance, including the efficient use of land, water-free cooling and a focus on Green House Gas reduction in the materials used to build our facilities and in their operation. Compass embraces a long-term perspective with the financial strength of investors Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Brookfield Infrastructure.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27 of the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act. These statements are only a prediction. Actual events or results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements set forth herein. Readers are referred to Vertiv’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for a discussion of these and other important risk factors concerning Vertiv and its operations. Vertiv is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.