ASHRAE’s Data Center Thermal Guidelines -- Air-Cooled Evolution

Data centers have always had unique HVAC requirements because rather than serving primarily people, they cool information technology equipment (ITE). In addition, the equipment is typically high density, resulting in high HVAC energy consumption. Prior to 2004, guidance on the allowable environmental envelope varied from one manufacturer to another, and energy density trends, essential for “future-proofing” a facility, were not available to design engineers. Given this lack of guidance, IT industry leaders started to talk about standardization, first through an informal industry consortium, and eventually in the formation of ASHRAE Technical Committee (TC) 9.9, Mission Critical Facilities, Data Centers, Technology Spaces and Electronic Equipment, in 2003.