Liquid Cooling in Data Centres: Why It Matters and What It Means for Future Projects
Mitchell McDermott is currently supporting delivery of liquid-cooled data centre projects in Europe
As the technology evolves, it is reshaping how teams approach planning, coordination and delivery.
Read on to learn how data centre liquid cooling technology works and
how our Project Management team can support your next development.
Why cooling is a critical
issue for data centres
Cooling has always been a key consideration in data centre design, but over the past few years, it has become one of the industry’s most significant challenges. The rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI), high-performance computing and GPU-driven workloads is pushing rack power densities far beyond what many traditional facilities were originally designed to support. With that increase in computing power comes a major heat increase.
Historically, many data centres operated at rack loads of 5–20kW. Today, it is increasingly common to see requirements of 50–100kW per rack, and in some high-performance environments, even higher densities are emerging. At these levels, conventional air-cooling systems begin to reach their practical limits, and the industry is increasingly turning to liquid cooling as a more effective way to manage heat.
As a result, liquid cooling — particularly direct-to-chip cooling — is quickly moving from a niche solution to a core part of modern data centre design, especially on new-build facilities intended to support next-generation compute infrastructure.
Mitchell McDermott’s Project Management team is currently supporting the delivery of data centre developments in Europe, where direct-to-chip liquid cooling forms part of the base design. Working on these projects has highlighted that the move to liquid cooling is not simply a change in cooling technology; it affects the overall approach to design coordination, procurement and construction across the entire project lifecycle.
What is data centre liquid cooling
and how does it work?
In simple terms, liquid cooling uses a liquid coolant rather than air to remove heat from IT equipment. Because liquids transfer heat much more efficiently than air, they allow data centres to manage significantly higher power densities while maintaining stable operating temperatures.
In a traditional air-cooled data centre, chilled air is circulated through the data hall, removing heat from the servers before being cooled and recirculated. This approach works well at lower rack densities, but becomes increasingly difficult to manage as heat loads increase.
Data centre liquid-cooling technology takes a different approach by bringing the cooling medium much closer to the heat source. In direct-to-chip systems, coolant is piped into the data hall and delivered directly to cold plates attached to high-power components such as CPUs and GPUs. Heat is absorbed by the coolant and then transferred back to the facility’s cooling system through heat exchangers and cooling distribution units (CDUs).
Removing heat directly at the source enables much higher rack densities than traditional air cooling can handle. However, because the cooling infrastructure becomes more closely integrated with the IT hardware, these systems require careful coordination between designers, equipment suppliers and the project delivery team.
Why the data centre industry is shifting to liquid cooling
The main reason the industry is moving towards liquid cooling for data centres is the increase in compute density associated with AI and accelerated workloads.
AI infrastructure relies on highly specialised processors and GPUs that consume far more power than traditional servers. Rack loads that were once around 10–20kW are now commonly exceeding 100kW in high-performance environments, creating far greater heat output than air-cooling systems were designed to handle.
Liquid cooling allows heat to be extracted more efficiently, making it possible to support higher-density deployments without increasing the footprint of the facility. This is particularly important for hyperscale and colocation operators, where maximising computing capacity within a fixed building envelope is a key requirement.
Although liquid cooling systems can involve a higher upfront cost, they can improve cooling efficiency and reduce operational energy demand in high-density facilities. For this reason, many new developments are now being designed with liquid cooling capability from the outset rather than attempting to retrofit existing air-cooled facilities.
Types of data centre liquid
cooling technologies
Several different liquid cooling approaches are currently used in data centres,
depending on the density of the equipment and the specific requirements of the facility.
| Technology | Description | Typical Use |
|---|---|---|
| Direct-to-chip cooling | Coolant is delivered directly to cold plates attached to CPUs or GPUs | High-density AI and HPC deployments |
| Rear-door / hybrid cooling | Liquid heat exchangers integrated with air-cooled racks | Upgrades to existing facilities |
| Immersion cooling | Servers fully submerged in a dielectric fluid | Specialist high-density environments |
Of these approaches, direct-to-chip cooling is currently the most widely adopted for modern high-density data centres, as it provides strong cooling performance while remaining compatible with standard server hardware.
Impact on design, construction and operations
Introducing liquid cooling to data centres has a noticeable impact on how they are designed and delivered.
From a design perspective, additional infrastructure is required, including coolant pipework, heat exchangers, cooling distribution units and supporting plant systems. These elements need to be considered early in the design process, as they influence everything from plant space requirements to routing strategies and equipment layouts.
The construction phase can also become more demanding. Because coolant is circulated directly to sensitive electronic components, pipework systems must be manufactured, installed and cleaned to a much higher standard than conventional mechanical services.
Maintaining system cleanliness is particularly important. Any contamination within the pipework could affect the performance of the cooling system or potentially damage equipment, so fabrication and installation standards need to be tightly controlled. On some liquid-cooled projects, the level of cleanliness required can be closer to that seen in high-purity or pharmaceutical environments than on a typical building services installation, with strict control over materials, fabrication, flushing and commissioning procedures.
Programme planning is also affected. Some liquid cooling components are relatively new to the market, and lead times for specialist equipment such as cooling distribution units can be longer than for traditional cooling systems. Early engagement with suppliers and careful procurement planning, therefore, become essential parts of the project delivery strategy.
Challenges and considerations with data centre liquid cooling technology
While liquid cooling for data centres offers clear performance benefits, it also introduces new technical considerations that need to be carefully managed during design and construction.
Maintaining a clean system environment is one of the main challenges. Because coolant flows directly through cooling plates attached to critical hardware, even small amounts of contamination can affect performance or damage equipment. This means higher-grade materials, tighter fabrication tolerances and more rigorous flushing and commissioning procedures than would normally be required on a conventional air-cooled facility.
Cost is another factor that clients need to consider. Liquid cooling systems can involve higher capital expenditure at the start of a project, particularly where additional pipework, plant and specialist equipment are required. However, the ability to support higher rack densities and improve cooling efficiency can offset these costs over the life of the facility.
Supply chain considerations are also becoming more important. Many of the components used in liquid cooling systems, such as cooling distribution units and associated plants, are still relatively new to the market, and lead times can be longer than for traditional cooling equipment. This makes early design decisions and procurement planning critical to maintaining programme certainty on high-density data centre projects.
Retrofitting existing data centres to liquid cooling is possible, but it can be complex and disruptive. For this reason, many new facilities are now designed with liquid cooling capability built in from the outset, allowing operators to accommodate increasing power densities in the future.
The future of cooling in data centres
The move towards liquid-cooling data centres is expected to accelerate as AI workloads continue to evolve.
Chip technology is advancing quickly, and power densities are likely to keep increasing over the coming years. In response, many new data centres are being designed to support higher loads than are currently required, ensuring that facilities remain viable as computing requirements grow.
Across Europe, liquid cooling is moving from early adoption towards becoming a standard feature of high-density data centre infrastructure. As this transition continues, clients are increasingly looking for delivery teams with experience in integrating these systems into complex projects.
Mitchell McDermott has been involved in the delivery of liquid-cooled data centre developments in Europe during the early stages of this shift. Experience gained on these projects highlights the importance of early design coordination, careful planning and strong project management when introducing new technologies into large-scale infrastructure developments.
Mitchell McDermott’s Insight on Data Centre Liquid Cooling
Liquid cooling represents one of the most significant developments in modern data centre design. Driven by the rapid growth of AI and high-density computing, it is changing how facilities are designed, built and operated.
While the technology offers clear advantages, it also introduces new technical and delivery challenges that require careful planning and coordination.
As liquid cooling becomes more widely adopted, experience in delivering these types of projects will become increasingly important. By supporting clients on high-density developments across Europe, Mitchell McDermott’s data centre consultants are helping organisations navigate this transition and deliver facilities capable of supporting the next generation of computing infrastructure.
Contact us to explore liquid cooling for your data centre.
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