Data centre design reference
A public reference for data-centre design: power systems, cooling, controls and automation, and operations.
On this page
What this reference is
Reference designs for the power, cooling and control systems of data centres built for AI, with the reasoning behind each choice. They are drawn by a power-systems engineer, from the patterns in real design models and from public sources, cited on each technical page.
Every design here is generic. Ratings are parameters you set for your own load, and the sizing calculator turns them into numbers. Nothing on this site is a design for a specific site, and nothing describes one.
The reference designs
Site power
Two grid supplies, a split medium-voltage switchboard, a generator plant with one spare set, and identical power blocks behind it. Power systems
The 2N power block
Two independent power trains, each able to carry the whole block, to dual-corded racks on overhead busway. Power systems
Power for AI halls
Rack density, load swings from training jobs, the reserve-UPS alternative to 2N, and the move to 800 V DC. Power for AI halls
The heat path
Cold plates, CDUs, a closed facility-water loop, plate heat exchangers and a raw-water heat sink, with a branch for heat reuse. Cooling and heat reuse
Control architecture
Redundant controllers per block, two ring networks, power monitoring and building management, and a guarded link to the enterprise systems. Controls and automation
Operations from day one
One asset register that joins the 3D model, live data, maintenance and documents, so operations start with a complete record. Operations and maintenance
Walk through a cooling plant room
A generic plant room for one liquid-cooled block of about 4 MW: duplex strainers and duty and standby pumps on variable-speed drives for the raw-water and facility-water loops, three plate heat exchangers in a row, drive and control cabinets, and a tracked inspection robot on its route. Drag to look around; the buttons jump to the main views.
Interactive 3D view: needs JavaScript and WebGL.
Illustrative. The layout is a reference arrangement, not a design for any site.
Designing in Norway
Cold climate, clean power, a grid with long connection queues, district heating that can use the heat where a network is close, and Norwegian rules on registration, electrical safety and energy. What they mean for the design.
How this reference was made
The topology patterns come from reverse engineering detailed 3D design models: what repeats, what is redundant, where the power chain and the heat path run, and what the models leave out. Every name, place, tag and product was removed, and quantities were rounded or turned into parameters. The design positions were then checked against public standards, vendor reference designs, research papers and Norwegian law, with every quoted source saved and checked word for word. Sources and method.
Who publishes this
Tusen AS, a Norwegian engineering and software company. We design the power systems of data centres, and the controls and operations that keep them running. About Tusen AS.