[Report] Digital Realty Data Center Preserves Iconic Design by Renowned German Architect [How to Coexist in the AIDC Era] ⑩

Ⅳ. 'Strong Connectivity' at Europe’s Internet Hub: Germany

A Network of 11 Interconnected Data Centers

Preserving the Architectural Legacy of Egon Eiermann

Direct Link to the World's Largest Internet Exchange Node, DE-CIX

Supplying Heating from Waste Heat to Facilities Covering 30,000 Square Meters

Editor's NoteIn the era of artificial intelligence (AI), the government has announced plans to build a total of 18.4 GW of data center capacity by 2035 as part of its three major megaprojects, aiming to make them a driving force for national future growth. While data centers were once facilities mainly supporting IT services, web applications, and data storage and sharing, they are now evolving into industrial platforms for producing and supplying AI computing resources. However, despite a common awareness of data centers as core infrastructure critical to national industrial competitiveness, there remain many challenges to the expansion of AI Data Centers (AIDC). The Asia Business Daily directly reported from abroad on successful cases in Finland, Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands—countries that skillfully resolved issues surrounding AIDC such as electricity, permits, water use, and resident conflicts—and seeks solutions for how AIDC can become assets that coexist with local communities in Korea.

"A total of 11 data centers will be interconnected, with completion targeted for 2030. Going beyond a single data center, this project will be incorporated into a vast fiber-optic network spanning all of Frankfurt, enabling highly integrated connections."

Upon entering the 'Digital Park Fechenheim' campus currently being constructed by global data center operator Digital Realty in the eastern part of Frankfurt, Germany, several enormous data center buildings come into view. Covering a total area of 100,000 square meters within the industrial complex, Digital Park Fechenheim is a mega-scale digital infrastructure campus under construction in Frankfurt—a leading European digital hub and telecommunications nexus—with a design IT capacity of 200MW. The campus is equivalent in size to more than 12 football fields and has been planned to meet surging demand for AI and high-performance computing (HPC). Following the first facility on the campus, FRA17, additional data centers FRA18 and FRA27 have been established, and numerous others—including FRA20—are scheduled to be built and brought online in sequence.

Exterior view of FRA18 data center, part of Digital Realty's 'Digital Park Fechenheim' campus located in Frankfurt, Germany. Photo by Sojung Seo.

On July 20 (local time), after passing through thorough security procedures, a reporter visited FRA18—a part of the Digital Park Fechenheim campus with an individual IT capacity of 16.2MW—which was constructed last year. This building makes use of the former headquarters of Neckermann, a historic structure designed by one of Germany's leading modern architects, Egon Eiermann.

Volker Ludvig, Senior Vice President (SVP) of Digital Realty, explained, "Throughout the redevelopment of the former Neckermann headquarters industrial site, there was a consensus that the existing cultural heritage should not be demolished. Since the building is legally protected, only the interior was renovated while preserving the primary superstructure designed by the renowned architect. By doing this, we were able to revive its iconic exterior and incorporate state-of-the-art technology to transform it into a data center." He described this as a case where over 25% of the original structure was reused while constructing a facility that meets the requirements of advanced IT infrastructure.

Volker Ludvig, Senior Vice President (SVP) of Digital Realty, is explaining the 'Digital Park Fechenheim' campus being developed in the eastern part of Frankfurt, Germany. Photo by Sojeong Seo.

Given the large scale of the campus, there were also challenges in constructing the data centers. Ludvig stated, "As Frankfurt's data centers have reached saturation, there was not enough power available. We undertook construction work to bring electrical supply underground from the city of Karben, which is located about 16 kilometers from Frankfurt. Negotiating with the landowners was the most difficult part, but it has been resolved successfully now."

Near the entrance to FRA18, expansion work on the campus's power infrastructure was underway. Digital Realty is building a 110kV, 16-kilometer-long power grid linking the Karben substation and Digital Park Fechenheim, as well as substations within the campus, thereby laying the groundwork for future expansion of power supply.

Fire and smoke control panel at the entrance of the FRA18 data center, part of the Digital Park Fechenheim campus in Frankfurt, Germany. Photo by Sojeong Seo.

One of Digital Park Fechenheim's most distinguishing features is connectivity. The campus is directly connected to DE-CIX, one of the world's largest internet exchange nodes, offering an outstanding network environment. Additionally, more than 20 other Digital Realty data centers throughout Frankfurt are interconnected via multiple optical fiber rings, ensuring redundant communications networks are accessible anywhere in the area. Ludvig said, "We are connected to major nearby facilities, such as the Ostend campus, through redundant fiber-optic cables, enabling an ultra-low-latency network. The proximity to DE-CIX provides the optimal environment for AI and digital transformation." When training AI models, vast numbers of GPUs must constantly exchange data, so network bottlenecks must be avoided. This is accomplished by providing a high-bandwidth, ultra-low-latency network architecture that supports ultra-fast internal communications.

Sustainability is a core priority for Digital Realty in the Digital Park Fechenheim project. The company aims to meet the European Union's stringent green regulations and achieve its own ESG (Environmental, Social & Governance) goals. In particular, waste heat produced by the data center is directly reused for heating adjacent Eiermann office buildings. The hot waste heat generated by cooling servers is raised to a suitable temperature for heating via a large heat pump, making it immediately usable in everyday life. In cooperation with energy companies, the data center's waste heat is also supplied directly to Frankfurt's district heating network. Starting in October this year, office and logistics facilities covering approximately 30,000 square meters will receive heating powered by data center waste heat. Importantly, 100% renewable energy is used to operate the heat pumps. This waste heat recycling technology is expected to reduce annual CO2 emissions by up to 690 tons.

Digital Realty data center exterior located in Frankfurt, Germany.

Ludvig emphasized, "Data centers produce enormous amounts of heat, so cooling them efficiently is key. We are focused on building environmentally friendly data centers by applying advanced liquid cooling technology, high-efficiency energy systems, and heat reuse systems that supply waste heat from data centers to the local district heating network."

The recycling of rainwater for landscape irrigation is another notable feature. The Digital Park Fechenheim project has restored green areas of about 10,000 square meters and planted roughly 296 trees. This ensures that rainwater naturally infiltrates into the soil, replenishing the local groundwater table. By maintaining the existing rainwater management system, rainwater is collected on-site and some of it is reused for landscape irrigation, thereby improving resource efficiency. This allows the necessary water for green areas to be secured in-house while reducing potable water consumption.

Digital Park Fehenheim, a total area of 100,000 square meters within the industrial complex. Following FRA17, the first facility on campus, FRA18 and FRA27 have been established, and multiple data centers, including FRA20, are scheduled to be built and operated sequentially. A view of the data center under active construction. Photo by Sojeong Seo.

It is worth noting that policy support from the government has played a significant role in realizing this kind of sustainable data center. The Hessian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Energy, Transport, Housing and Rural Areas (HMWVW) is supporting innovative energy technology projects that contribute to a carbon-neutral economy and a sustainable Europe, including this project, which is also funded by the European Regional Development Fund (EFRE).

Ludvig added, "Digital Realty has entered into a 10-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with the multinational energy company ENGIE, under which we will purchase power equivalent to 116MW out of a new 154MW solar power project in Germany. The estimated annual volume of purchased electricity is approximately 120GWh, as part of our strategy to procure renewable energy for our entire German operations."

This series was supported by a press development fund raised from government advertising commissions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.