Energy Efficiency Center of Excellence

The Energy Efficiency Center of Excellence (EE CoE) maximizes the impact of key sustainable technologies across our data center portfolio by taking a long-term, uniform approach and supporting our local Operations teams to achieve ambitious Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) targets within our IBX data centers.

Equinix initiated the first phase of the framework in 2022. Optimizing airflow is a significant first step in increasing energy efficiency, as it ensures our equipment is properly placed to allow for separation between hot and cold air streams. We have several tools that make it easy for staff and customers to ensure airflow is fully optimized in data centers. Employees use an application developed by Equinix called “Airtight” that makes it easy to report issues regarding airflow within data centers. At each location, our critical facilities engineers also conduct walk-throughs to search for potential areas that may not meet compliance standards. Our engineers use Airtight to create a ticket that notifies our customers of the issue and provides advice on how to resolve it. Should the customer prefer Equinix to resolve the issue on their behalf, our SmartHands® team provides this service and closes the ticket. In 2022, approximately 13,000 tickets were created, and our teams worked diligently to resolve them as quickly as possible with around 85% of them closed.

We also continued developing our digital dashboards and further integrating them into our business practices. The dashboards support our energy efficiency reward structure that incentivizes engineers, management and staff based on progress at IBX locations.

Led and supported by the EE CoE, 45 IBX locations in APAC implemented more than 100 energy efficiency initiatives. These initiatives included installing motion-activated and LED lighting, adding more efficient chillers and improving airflow management throughout facilities. In addition to cost savings, the team’s efforts resulted in approximately 18,000 MWh of energy consumption savings and an overall PUE reduction of 8% in the region. The supporting toolbox also enjoyed significant uptake, with 2,000 users accessing the resource during Q4 2022.

Please visit the Energy Efficiency CoE e-book for more details on our four-phase process.

Sustainable Water Management

Water is a valuable resource in data center operations, where it is commonly used as a cooling agent. Improving water management practices is becoming increasingly important in adapting to the consequences of climate change. While energy usage remains the largest contributor to Equinix’s environmental impact, we are also committed to improving our management of water resources through investments in new technology and enhanced tracking systems. We currently track monthly water usage at several locations and intend to expand this program in 2023. The balance between water and energy usage is one challenge that Equinix continues to evaluate, especially with careful consideration for locations with higher water risk. To support this, our internal data information systems will track monthly and annual water stress data by conducting water risk assessments to inform the best approach at each data center. While we consciously consider water stress levels, we are actively exploring and employing methods to minimize the impact of water consumption, such as using gray water to minimize the processing before consumption or using rainwater capture where possible. To learn more about our physical climate risk assessments, review our TCFD page.

Over the past several years, we built our capacity to accurately measure our water usage baselines and track yearly progress at the facility level. As part of our data optimization process in 2022, we improved our water usage effectiveness (WUE) management systems for the approximately 40% of our sites that use water for cooling. Newly created dashboards track progress on WUE in finer detail, providing greater visibility for our team that will help to set targeted water consumption reduction goals in the future and identify improvements for our facilities globally.

Waste Management

We maintain compliance with ISO 14001 in managing our waste, including hazardous waste and electronic waste.

As part of driving circularity at Equinix, we are partnering with our peers in the EU Climate Neutral Data Centre Operator Pact to scale waste efforts across the industry. Within our own teams, we integrate circularity through several means, including responsible electronic disposal which prioritizes remarketing and refurbishment before responsible recycling.

In 2023, we will investigate the possibility of reusing more of the components in our whitespace installations, such as cabinets, and exploring other options to repurpose them for other uses outside our IBX data centers.

Low-Carbon Fuels

The Sustainability and Global Operations teams began piloting near- and medium-term fuel replacement strategies for diesel generators and technologies that will help reduce our Scope 1 emissions. Of note, hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), a bio-based liquid fuel produced using a variety of organic feedstocks, emerged as a leading contender to immediately reduce Equinix’s Scope 1 emissions without requiring a complex on-site generation shift away from generators. Compared to diesel, HVO can reduce GHG emissions by up to 90%.

In 2022, Equinix trialed HVO in SV11 and in our UK sites in London and Manchester, with a positive outcome. The results of the testing confirm the effectiveness of HVO as a drop-in fuel for diesel generator sets. In comparing the performance criteria between diesel and HVO fuel, we found no significant effects on general performance.