Trane Technologies and Eaton have unveiled a joint reference design that combines power and cooling systems for next-generation AI data centers, targeting faster deployment and lower infrastructure costs. The companies say their integrated architecture can deliver energy-efficiency gains of up to 15%, reduce installation costs by as much as 30%, and cut copper use by up to 80% compared with conventional low-voltage designs. The design focuses on medium-voltage infrastructure for higher-power-density AI facilities and aligns with Nvidia’s DSX AI Factory Reference Design. Meanwhile, the companies describe the system as a first-of-its-kind approach to coordinating electrical, thermal and digital control infrastructure.
Trane Eaton Combine Power And Cooling
The announcement comes as AI workloads push data center operators toward significantly higher power densities and more demanding cooling requirements. Trane and Eaton are attempting to address those pressures by moving power and thermal engineering away from separate design processes and toward a coordinated architecture. Their reference design is included in the Trane Continuum Rubin DSX and Eaton Beam Rubin DSX platforms, with the systems designed around Nvidia’s DSX architecture. Moreover, Eaton’s technology provides power distribution for the Trane platform, creating a combined path from electrical infrastructure to thermal management.
“AI and high-performance computing are transforming the demands placed on data centers, and customers want solutions that can keep pace with their needs,” said Mauro J. Atalla, senior vice president, chief technology and sustainability officer at Trane Technologies. “By combining our advanced thermal management solutions with Eaton’s innovative power management solutions, we’re delivering a coordinated design that helps customers accelerate deployment, improve efficiency and confidently plan to scale for the future.”
AI Data Center Design Targets 15% Efficiency Gain
The headline efficiency claim comes alongside a potentially larger materials saving. Trane and Eaton say the medium-voltage architecture can reduce copper requirements by up to 80% versus conventional low-voltage approaches, while installation costs could fall by as much as 30%. The companies are tying those gains to the way the reference design handles higher-power-density environments rather than to a single equipment upgrade. For operators building large AI facilities, that combination could affect both construction economics and the physical footprint required for electrical infrastructure.
The economics are becoming more significant as AI infrastructure expands. The companies cited projections that global data center capacity could nearly triple by 2030, with AI accounting for roughly 70% of that growth. However, that expansion is increasing pressure on developers to build more computing capacity without allowing power, cooling, construction and material costs to rise at the same rate. Trane and Eaton are positioning their reference design as one response to that challenge.
Eaton Pushes Medium-Voltage AI Infrastructure
For Eaton, the announcement puts medium-voltage power distribution at the center of the AI data center deployment discussion. The company is combining its medium-voltage power systems and white-space thermal management capabilities with Trane’s thermal-management architecture. The goal is to give deployment teams a pre-coordinated infrastructure design that can be replicated across AI-factory projects. Meanwhile, that model could reduce the engineering work required when operators move from one AI facility to another.
“We’re advancing the industry standard for speed of deployment by progressing reference designs into unified systems teams can deploy repeatedly. Aligned with the NVIDIA DSX platform, we’re integrating our medium-voltage power systems and white space thermal management solutions with Trane’s advanced thermal management system architecture to help accelerate AI-factory deployment at scale,” said Michael Regelski, senior vice president and chief technology officer, Electrical Sector, Eaton.
“AI factories demand tightly coordinated power, cooling and compute infrastructure to operate efficiently at scale. By aligning with the NVIDIA Omniverse DSX Blueprint, Trane Technologies and Eaton are helping customers reduce complexity and accelerate deployment of next-generation AI data centers,” said Vladimir Troy, vice president of AI infrastructure at Nvidia. “This new integrated approach supports the robust, scalable foundations enterprises need to unlock the full potential of generative and reasoning AI and turn data into faster, smarter outcomes.”
Trane Eaton Plan For Liquid Cooling And DC Power
The companies are also positioning the reference design as an architecture that can evolve with AI infrastructure rather than remain tied to today’s equipment configuration. Trane and Eaton said they plan to adapt the system as emerging liquid-cooling technologies and direct-current architectures become more mainstream. Both areas could become increasingly important as accelerator densities rise and traditional power and cooling approaches face greater physical and efficiency constraints. Trane and Eaton are using their Rubin DSX platforms and Nvidia alignment to push that model into the emerging AI-factory market. Consequently, if the claimed savings translate into real-world deployments, integrated infrastructure could become an increasingly important lever for controlling the cost and complexity of the next generation of AI capacity.
