DT-CNTR

Data centers are essential for our digital world but they pose significant challenges. They are massive energy consumers, producing enormous amounts of waste heat that is typically lost. Located far from cities, they are inaccessible, detached from urban life, and contribute to environmental strain. As demand for data processing grows exponentially, so does their impact, raising urgent questions about their sustainability, integration, and potential role in urban ecosystems. How can we rethink these infrastructures to address their environmental and spatial consequences?

DT-CNTR explores the possibility of thinking and designing an “Urban Data Center” as an active landmark inside the city fabric, bridging technology and people, while trying to mitigate the enormous impact that this infrastructure has on our environment. By establishing the data center in a repurposed building, we significantly limit land consumption, but the driving factor of the design is the synergy that the data center is able to establish with complementary functions like a sports hub. A careful and thorough implementation of cutting-edge technologies enabled the design of a system to capture the waste heat coming from the cooling of the data center servers. This recovered heat can later be redistributed into other parts of the complex, like the sports hub, significantly cutting its energy consumption and costs. The intervention consists of three distinct parts. The Data Center, the project's core, lies on one wing of the complex, has autonomous accesses, but still remains visible through large glass surfaces, engaging with the public space around it. The Sports Hub occupies the rest of the building, and it’s organized around a central nave, which serves as the main entrance and distribution space. The defining feature of this space is a wooden walkway, designed to provide access to certain upper-floor spaces and to serve as a vantage point for enjoying a privileged view of the surrounding sport areas. This whole intervention follows principles of Reversibility, cost-effectiveness, and minimal intervention. Last but not least, The Square -a public space created on the site of a demolished factory section, as a welcoming interface between the complex and the city.