Tag: Rechenzentrum

Dielsdorf data centres to supply district heating for the region

Green Datacenter AG(Green) from Lupfig AG and BRUGG Pipes from Kleindöttingen have agreed to work together to supply several municipalities in the canton of Zurich with district heating. According to a press release, the waste heat from the new Green Metro-Campus Zurich will supply 11,500 households in Dielsdorf and five neighbouring municipalities as well as industrial and commercial companies with district heating.

In collaboration with the energy supplier Energie 360°, CO2-free heating is to be generated from the waste heat of the new data centre. An energy centre is being built right next to the Green Metro campus. The companies involved are relying on pipes from BRUGG Pipes to build the district heating network. The Aargau-based company has already supplied 126 pipes, each 12 metres long and with an external diameter of 70 centimetres. The pipe system is laid underground and is no longer visible after construction. The system is equipped with a smart monitoring system for maintenance purposes.

“The data centres in Dielsdorf are a good example of how waste heat can be used sensibly and CO2 can be saved,” said Martin Rigaud, CEO of BRUGG Pipes, in the press release.

Energie 360° aims to supply the first district heating in 2026. Green is already using the waste heat from the data centre to heat its own office buildings and a nearby industrial complex.

September 2025
Geothermal energy in underground structures

Engineers from the Laboratory of Soil Mechanics(LMS) at EPFL have investigated the use of geothermal energy in two very different applications: in a subway station and in an underground data center . In this Innosuisse project, the researchers, together with the internationally active engineering firm Amberg Engineering from the canton of Zurich, focused on optimizing air conditioning through the improved use of energy geostructures.

These are building components that are located in the ground and can be used for heat conduction. These include energy piles, floor slabs and basement walls. The two studies were published in the journal “Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology”.

The transferable models developed by the team took into account either most of the physical factors of the underground railroad infrastructure or the capacity to dissipate excess heat through geothermal activation, in addition to the geometry of the building and mechanical ventilation.

Among other things, the researchers found that a geothermal system in an underground data center pays for itself in three to seven years. If geothermal energy replaces the heat generated by gas boilers, annual CO2 emissions at the typical site in this case study could be reduced by 45 percent.

Sofie ten Bosch, a civil engineer at LMS and lead author of the study, was able to apply her PhD research to two specific applications in these two studies. She says: “The technology to assess the potential of geothermal energy in a given area is now mature and we see that the industry is ready to explore new opportunities for the optimal use of this sustainable heat source.”

May 2025
Expansion of the management team for data centre projects

Green Datacenter AG is expanding its management team. Markus Meier joined the company and management team at the beginning of May, the Aargau-based provider of data centres and related services announced in a press release. As Chief Construction Officer (CCO), Meier will be responsible for all of Green Datacenter’s own construction projects and those realised on behalf of customers.

“With Markus Meier, we are strengthening the organisation with an experienced leader in order to continue to implement the ongoing expansion of our high-availability infrastructures with high quality and efficiency,” Green CEO Roger Süess is quoted as saying in the press release. The new CCO is a qualified construction manager and has over 25 years of experience in managing construction projects, according to the press release. Meier’s professional background includes positions as Managing Director of the construction company Erne AG and Head of Master Builder Zurich at Implenia.

Green is currently building a new data centre in Lupfig and two data centres in Dielsdorf. “Our growth follows a clear strategic plan,” explains Süess. “We are setting new standards and strengthening Switzerland as a digital location in the long term.”

May 2025
New data center strengthens digital infrastructure in Winterthur

The data center operator NorthC Schweiz AG inaugurated its new data center in Winterthur on 20 March. The new data center is located on an area of around 1100 square meters in the Turm Areal. It will play a central role as a hub for regional data communication, according to a press release.

The data center offers SMEs and large companies in the region individual colocation solutions, secure and direct cloud connections as well as guaranteed bandwidths and speeds for business applications. The connection to the data centers in Münchenstein BL and Biel is intended to ensure reliable connections to a large number of cloud and IT service providers.

The data center currently has a capacity of 1.8 megawatts and is powered entirely by renewable energy. According to the press release, NorthC plans to use its 2030 strategy to initiate projects that will enable the waste heat generated in Winterthur to be put to good use in the future.

According to Patrik Hofer, NorthC relies on regional data centers with an international reach. “With our regional approach, we can offer tailor-made solutions for the Winterthur region that meet the high standards of quality, security and sustainability,” the Managing Director Switzerland at NorthC is quoted as saying in the press release.

According to Ralph Peterli, Managing Director of the Winterthur Chamber of Commerce and Employers’ Association, Winterthur is already home to many leading technology companies. “It’s good to know that with NorthC, a regional company is offering stable and secure IT infrastructures on the city’s territory,” said Peterli, according to the press release.

NorthC Switzerland is based in Biel and is a subsidiary of the NorthC Group based in Oude Meer in the Netherlands.

March 2025
New data centre in Geneva feeds waste heat into the district heating network

INFOMANIAK, a pan-European cloud provider and developer of web technologies, has inaugurated a new data centre at the company’s Geneva site in the presence of representatives of the authorities and project partners. According to a press release, the electricity consumed by the 10,000 servers installed underground at the centre can be reused as heating energy via the district heating network. Although it is an energy-intensive facility, the data centre is therefore considered an “active player in energy recovery”.

In November 2024, a start was made on converting 100% of the electricity consumed in this data centre into heat and feeding it into the cantonal district heating network. The server park is currently using 25 per cent of its capacity, and the system should be running at full capacity by 2028. An output of 1.7 megawatts is then expected for the district heating network. “This amount of energy can be used to heat 6,000 Minergie-A households or give 20,000 people a five-minute shower every day,” the press release states.

The new data centre is intended to change the previous loss of waste heat with a new functional principle. It transfers the heat generated from electricity at a temperature of 40 to 45 degrees to an air-water heat exchanger, which heats a hot water circuit. Heat pumps then allow the water temperature to be increased in order to channel the waste heat into the district heating network.

The location below a residential area also contributes to the positive climate effect. As a result, there would be no impact on the cityscape. This will solve several major challenges in the cloud industry and take steps towards greater technological independence in Europe, according to the statement.

February 2025
Schaffhausen seeks operators for heating networks

Stack Infrastructure Switzerland SA is building a large data centre in Beringen by 2025. The Swiss subsidiary of the globally active specialist for large data centres wants to achieve the highest possible energy efficiency. The engineering company Amstein + Walthert has now prepared a feasibility study for the use of waste heat for heat networks on behalf of the Schaffhausen building department.

According to the study, the energy requirement of the data centre in its final configuration is 30 megawatts, the thermal waste heat capacity 9 to 15 megawatts, and the waste heat quantity at least 79 gigawatt hours per year. Of this, a maximum of 26 gigawatt hours can be used for thermal grids.

The feasibility study concludes that the thermal energy of the data centre can be used for the expansion of an existing thermal network in Beringen and for three new networks. The canton, the city of Schaffhausen, the municipality of Beringen and Stack now hope that companies will show interest in setting up and operating such heating networks. According to a statement by the cantonal energy office, the cantonal economic development agency is acting as a contact for interested parties.

March 2023
Schaffhausen receives new data center

The Geneva data center operator Safe Host is investing in the Schaffhausen community of Beringen. He wants to build a data center on the site of the former SIG tennis club. According to a press release, the building application was submitted on April 9th. There are two projects to be approved: On the one hand, the data center itself with its ancillary buildings. On the other hand, a new substation for the electricity company of the canton of Schaffhausen ( EKS ). The latter should, among other things, enable the feed-in of larger amounts of renewable energies.

The data center will generate solar power itself. Photovoltaic shelves will be installed on all free roof areas and on the south facade. In addition, the office complex is heated with the waste heat generated by the data center itself. The rainwater is also stored where possible and processed for cooling.

According to the announcement, the municipality of Beringen sees the project as a "further milestone in the development of the industrial quarter". The local council is convinced that such a “high-tech building” has a “signal effect” in Beringen.

The architectural office Schmidli Architekten + Partner from Rafz ZH is responsible for the planning. This has already been entrusted with the planning of Safe Host's data center in Rafz, which is currently still under construction.

The Beringer data center is already the fifth owned by Safe Host. In addition to the new data center in Rafz, the company also has three centers in the greater Geneva area.

April 2021
Vantage Data Centers builds data centers in Winterthur

Vantage Data Centers is a data center operator based in California. The company is currently expanding in Europe and is investing a total of 2 billion dollars, according to a media release . One of its European locations will be in Winterthur. The company has already started building its campus there.

The three hectare campus in Winterthur will house a total of four data centers with a total area of 37,000 square meters. It will have an output of 40 megawatts. The shell has already been completed. Vantage Data Centers relies on “highly efficient cooling with integrated free cooling and minimal water consumption,” it says. A photovoltaic facade and charging stations for electric vehicles will also be installed.

Vantage Data Centers started expanding in Europe this year. To this end, it has taken over the companies Etix Everywhere from Luxembourg and Next Generation Data from Great Britain, among others. The American company built its first campus in Offenbach near Frankfurt. The second European campus is now being built in Winterthur.

"Winterthur is the first location where we literally started out on the green field", Wolfgang Zepf, Managing Director Vantage Switzerland, is quoted in the press release. "We look forward to welcoming our customers to this highly secure location with the best connectivity in the autumn of next year."

December 2020