Insights
Technical articles
and industry insights.
CRAC vs CRAH, DX vs CDW vs CHW comparisons, refrigerant guides, sensible heat load calculations, ASHRAE TC 9.9 set-point recommendations, and Australian Standards explainers.
Technical Guides · 8 min read
CRAC vs CRAH: Which Precision Cooling Technology Suits Your Australian Data Centre?
CRAC units use direct expansion refrigerant; CRAHs use chilled water from a central plant. Here is how to choose between them for your site.
14 June 2026
Compliance · 8 min read
AS/NZS 3666 Cooling Tower Compliance: What Data Centre Operators Must Know
AS/NZS 3666 Legionella compliance is a legal requirement for any data centre operating a cooling tower in Australia. Registration, risk management plans, monthly microbiological testing, and annual audits are all mandated. Here is what each obligation involves.
31 May 2026
Compliance · 8 min read
Refrigerant Types in CRAC Systems: R410A, R134a, R513A, and R32 Under Australia's Phase-Down
Australia's Kigali Amendment obligations are reshaping refrigerant choices for precision cooling. Here's what R410A, R134a, R513A, and R32 mean for your data centre.
24 May 2026
Technical Guides · 8 min read
How to Calculate Sensible Heat Load for Server Rooms
Sensible heat load calculation is the foundation of correct CRAC sizing. Get the inputs wrong and you'll either undersize cooling or waste capital on excess capacity.
17 May 2026
Maintenance · 9 min read
CRAC Spare Parts Guide: What to Stock On-Site for Liebert, Uniflair, and Stulz Units
Lead times for CRAC spare parts can stretch to 6–12 weeks. Here's what to hold on-site for Vertiv/Liebert, Schneider/Uniflair, and Stulz units.
10 May 2026
Maintenance · 12 min
Deferred CRAC Maintenance and the Compounding Risk to Data Centre Uptime
Skipping a single CRAC service visit saves $800 to $1,500. A cooling failure costs $250,000 or more. The maths should be obvious, yet deferred maintenance remains the leading contributor to precision cooling failures in Australian data centres.
2 November 2025
Maintenance · 11 min
Continuous CRAC Monitoring: Early Warning Signs That Prevent Cooling Failure
A compressor does not fail without notice. Current draw rises weeks before seizure. Discharge temperatures creep upward. Suction pressures drift. The question is whether anyone is watching the data.
19 August 2025
Maintenance · 10 min
CRAC Service Life: When to Replace Aging Precision Cooling Units
Most CRAC units are designed for 10 to 15 years of operation. After that window, compressor wear, refrigerant losses, and rising energy costs compound rapidly. Here is how to assess whether your units have life left or are quietly becoming a liability.
11 June 2025
Topology · 10 min read
Set-Point Recommendations for Data Centres (ASHRAE TC 9.9)
Operating your data hall at 22°C costs you 30% more cooling power than 25°C — for no reliability benefit. Here's the case for raising set-points to the warm end of ASHRAE TC 9.9.
7 April 2025
Compliance · 9 min read
Refrigerant Types in CRAC Systems Australia (R513A, R32, R134a, R410A)
The Australian HFC phase-down means CRAC refrigerant choices have changed substantially since 2020. Here's what each common refrigerant is, what equipment uses it, and what the regulatory trajectory looks like.
5 April 2025
High-Density · 9 min read
In-Row vs Perimeter CRAC for High-Density Racks
Once rack density crosses 10 kW per cabinet, perimeter CRAC efficiency drops sharply. In-row cooling, rear-door heat exchangers, and direct-to-chip become the practical alternatives. Here's the decision tree.
2 April 2025
Sizing · 8 min read
How to Calculate Sensible Heat Load for Server Rooms
Heat load drives every CRAC sizing decision. Get this wrong and you either over-spend on cooling capacity or run hot under load. Here's the practical method our engineers use for Australian server rooms.
31 March 2025
Topology · 10 min read
DX vs CDW vs CHW Data Centre Cooling Compared
Direct expansion, condenser water, and chilled water are the three precision-cooling topologies you'll encounter in Australian data centres. Here's what differentiates them, where each wins, and how to size them.
29 March 2025
Topology · 9 min read
CRAC vs CRAH: Complete Australian Buyer's Guide
CRAC and CRAH look the same from the outside but the cooling source is fundamentally different — and so is the cost, the efficiency, and the maintenance regime. Here's the buyer's guide that compares them honestly.
27 March 2025
Maintenance · 9 min read
CRAC Spare Parts Guide: Liebert, Uniflair, Stulz
When a CRAC fault is racing the room temperature, the right spare part on the truck is the difference between recovery and a thermal incident. Here's our parts guide for the major Australian CRAC fleets.
25 March 2025
Compliance · 8 min read
AS/NZS 3666 Cooling Tower Compliance for Data Centre Operators
Cooling towers serving data centre CDW and CHW plants are regulated under AS/NZS 3666 for Legionella control. Here's what data centre operators need to know.
23 March 2025