Yokogawa joins Singapore AI data centre testbed consortium

Yokogawa Engineering Asia has joined the Sustainable Tropical Data Centre Testbed Phase 2.0 consortium in Singapore, led by the National University of Singapore.

The consortium is expanding a tropical-climate AI data centre testbed into a multi-megawatt pilot facility as Singapore pushes to build more sustainable digital infrastructure. Yokogawa will contribute its industrial automation and autonomous operations expertise to improve operational efficiency, asset reliability and energy use in the project's next phase.

Demand for data centres has risen as companies expand their use of generative AI and cloud services. That growth has increased pressure on operators to manage electricity consumption, maintain uptime and address staffing constraints, particularly in tropical markets where high temperatures and humidity increase cooling loads.

Singapore has identified data centres as a strategic growth sector and is advancing plans to develop Jurong Island as a hub for next-generation facilities under an initiative led by JTC Corporation, with projected capacity of up to 700 megawatts.

STDCT 2.0 brings together academic, industry and government partners to develop and test energy management and cooling technologies for AI data centres in tropical conditions. The programme also aims to establish an operating model for facilities designed for dense AI workloads while reducing energy and water consumption.

Yokogawa will also explore a joint research agenda with the consortium to address issues not fully met by current commercial products. The effort is expected to support the company's research and development in AI-related systems for digital infrastructure.

System focus

The project takes a broad view of data centre design as operators contend with rising rack densities and more complex infrastructure. Rather than improving single components in isolation, the consortium is examining how computing, power, cooling, controls and operations can be managed as one system.

Professor Lee Poh Seng, Director of STDCT and Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Design and Engineering at NUS, outlined that approach.

"AI is fundamentally changing the design and operation of data centers. As rack densities rise and infrastructure becomes increasingly complex, improving individual components will no longer be enough. We need to optimize the data center as an integrated system spanning computing, power, cooling, controls and operations. STDCT 2.0 provides a real-world platform to bring these domains together and validate solutions under the demanding conditions of a tropical climate. Yokogawa's deep expertise in measurement, industrial automation and autonomous operations adds an important capability to this effort. Through this partnership, we hope to develop and demonstrate new approaches that make AI data centers not only more energy- and resource-efficient, but also more intelligent, resilient and scalable for deployment in Singapore and other tropical markets," Lee said.

The testbed is hosted by the College of Design and Engineering at NUS and serves as a live environment for evaluating and validating technologies before wider deployment in operating data centres.

Regional pressure

Tropical climates present a particular challenge for data centre operators because cooling systems account for a significant share of power use. In markets such as Singapore, improving efficiency in mechanical cooling and overall facility operations has become central to balancing digital growth with energy constraints.

For industrial groups such as Yokogawa, the sector also offers an adjacent market for automation tools already used in energy, chemicals, materials, pharmaceuticals and food production. The company operates globally through a network of 136 companies across 63 countries and has more than 18,000 employees.

Kin Wah Chay, President and Chief Executive Officer of Yokogawa Engineering Asia, said the company sees data centres as part of a broader expansion of its automation work.

"This initiative reflects Yokogawa's vision of enabling industrial autonomy and extending our expertise into the rapidly evolving digital infrastructure sector. We are honored to join the STDCT 2.0 Consortium and work alongside leading partners to accelerate and co-innovate solutions for next-generation AI data centers. Leveraging decades of experience in industrial automation and energy management, we aim to help drive smarter, more efficient and sustainable data center operations in tropical regions," Chay said.