Developing the sustainability connection: Energy efficiency practices in Canadian data centres
While many data centres have become more sustainable in recent years, there is still work to be done to lessen their environmental impact. In this blog, we’ll explore how Alfa Laval can help Canadian data centres save dramatic amounts of energy and reduce carbon emissions without sacrificing profitability.
DATE 2024-08-12Data centres support nearly every sector of the Canadian economy and it’s almost impossible to run a business today without computing power. However, data centres consume about one percent of the total electricity used in Canada every year and by 2025, they will be responsible for one-fifth of worldwide energy consumption.
While many data centres have become more sustainable in recent years, more work needs to be done to lessen their environmental impact. In this blog, we’ll explore how Alfa Laval can help Canadian data centres save dramatic amounts of energy and reduce carbon emissions without sacrificing profitability.
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Who Did We Survey?
Our survey respondents came from data centres facilities across Canada. 32% (the majority) were in Quebec, followed by Alberta at 29%. Ontario was a close third at 26%. There was a large gap between these three provinces and the rest, with Manitoba and British Columbia at 5% each and Saskatchewan at 3%.
Meanwhile, 42% of our respondents identified as Process Engineers, followed by Plant Engineering Managers at 21%, making this the only industry where engineers outranked other titles among the respondents. C-suite and Maintenance Managers were tied at 11% each, followed by Sustainability Directors at 8%. Plant Managers and Plant Operations Managers were tied at 3% each.
Sustainability Practices: A Breakdown
Canadian data centres are serious about sustainability, but there is room for improvement: 74% report they have sustainability goals in place and 26% report they do not. Of those that have a plan in place, 79% said they were investing in new equipment, 71% are focusing on employee training and 50% are optimizing processes.
When we asked for more details on how these businesses were optimizing their processes, Effective Channelizing, Technology and Miscellaneous optimizations each came in at 29%. Optimizing Efficiency and Assessments were tied at 21% as a focus for improvement.
Strategies to Increase Sustainability
We then asked these data centres which sustainability strategies they were prioritizing. Water conservation initiatives and using renewable energy sources were tied at 64%, followed by energy efficiency improvements at 57%. 43% cited waste reduction and recycling programs as their sustainability focus.
How else are respondents optimizing their processes?
Energy reducing programs
- 68% are switching to renewable or less carbon-intensive energy sources
- 61% are reducing energy thermal consumption
- 46% are reclaiming waste thermal energy
- 39% are reducing electrical energy consumption
Waste energy recovery
- 76% are recovering waste energy
- 24% are not recovering waste energy
Waste energy reuse
- 76% are reusing waste energy
- 21% are not reusing waste energy
- 3% are unsure about waste energy reuse practices
Wastewater reclamation
- 75% are focusing on water reduction strategies
- 64% are focused on water reclamation for other parts of their business processes
- 57% are focusing on water recovery strategies
Alfa Laval’s liquid cooling systems can help data centres save up to 30% of their cooling energy costs, allowing for increased rack density and more revenue per square foot.
Challenges and Barriers to Sustainability Goals
61% of our respondents said financial constraints were their main obstacle to sustainability progress, while 55% cited a lack of awareness or understanding of sustainable practices. 50% said technological limitations were an obstacle and 37% said regulatory compliance issues were holding their sustainability progress back.
These challenges are easier to overcome when you partner with Alfa Laval. Across the world, we’re accelerating the transition to cleaner energy solutions and moving the circular economy forward through our expertise in:
1. Clean Energy
Alfa Laval can help data centres transition to cleaner energy with a wide range of advanced heat transfer and separation technologies including clean hydrogen, fuel cells, Power-to-X, biofuels, carbon capture, concentrated solar power and more.
2. Circular Economy
Thanks to our unique understanding of separation and thermal technologies, Alfa Laval has led the way in the development of new solutions to advance the circular economy, helping optimize production processes for reliability and sustainability.
3. Energy Efficiency
Waste heat recovery is one of the most effective ways to improve energy efficiency in data centres. Alfa Laval’s heat exchanger technology can recover heat captured by heat pumps in data centre cooling or water treatment applications.
Alfa Laval has been a trusted partner to the IT industry for decades, and our deep experience in thermal technology allows us to find new opportunities for free cooling and energy savings in server rooms of all sizes.
Plug Into Greater Sustainability with Alfa Laval
Efficient and reliable technology is what we do. Only Alfa Laval offers a full range of heat exchange technology for data centres with performance certification from the independent Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI).
No one understands the challenges you face—and how to overcome them—better than Alfa Laval. This makes us the right partner to help ensure your data centre’s cooling system is set up to deliver long-term, reliable sustainability.
Learn how Alfa Laval’s sustainable solutions can reduce your energy consumption and make your data centre’s cooling more energy-efficient. Contact one of our experts today.