Rehlko Advances Carbon Reduction in Data Centers

Publication of a market-first environmental declaration for generators supports Data4’s plan to cut the carbon footprint of new data centers by 38% by 2030.

Rehlko, formerly Kohler, has provided Data4, a major European data center operator with crucial data on the environmental lifecycle impact of its mission-critical generators, allowing the company to make more informed decisions about low-carbon strategies.

Rehlko has more than 45 KD SeriesTM generators installed at Data4 sites in Paris, Madrid, and Frankfurt. Each unit, running on sustainable hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), provides backup power when required. Rehlko published the new data as part of the first certified environmental declaration for a generating set in mission-critical markets— in the form of a PEP ecopassport®. It provides customers with comprehensive information about the lifecycle impact of generators, with granular data on the impact of activities such as raw material extraction, manufacture, distribution, installation, use, and end-of-life. Data4 aims to slash the carbon footprint per megawatt of its data center capacity by an ambitious 38% between 2021 and 2030 and has already measured a 13% reduction over the past six years. To help it achieve its long-term aim, the company needs full transparency of the carbon embedded in the lifecycle of the systems and equipment within its facilities.

“Rehlko is at the forefront of sustainability, having published the first certified environmental declaration for a generating set in mission-critical markets,” says Linda Lescuyer, innovation leader at Data4 group. “The PEP ecopassport provides a detailed product lifecycle assessment of KD Series generators. This sort of supplier openness and transparency helps us understand the end-to-end environmental impact of our activities and will help us achieve our sustainability objectives.”

Under the lifecycle assessment methodology, Rehlko collected information on energy consumption, emissions, resource usage, and other relevant parameters for KD Series generators. The environmental declaration was then verified by independent third parties to ensure accuracy and compliance with the ISO 14025:2006, a Type III environmental declaration.

“We are committed to providing customers such as Data4 with complete visibility about the environmental impact of generators,” says Charles Hunsucker, President of Power Systems at Rehlko. “The issuing of the PEP ecopassport® was the result of several years of data collection, providing Data4 and the broader market with the information they need.”

Data4 aims to encourage a deeper understanding and reduction of the environmental impact of products among its suppliers. As part of its procurement process, Data4 will require an Environmental Product Declaration for all major equipment, including generators, in future projects. Manufacturers who comply will be preferred during the assessment phase of procurement. “Analyzing the lifecycle of data centers ‘from cradle to grave’ helps pinpoint how the industry can minimize its environmental impacts,” adds Linda Lescuyer.

“It is crucial to involve the whole value chain of suppliers, allowing us to collect more precise information on the impacts of equipment and material used in constructing a data center and encouraging them to find eco-designed solutions. We want to partner with forward-looking suppliers like Rehlko who are prepared to work collaboratively to deliver sustainable innovation,” she adds.

Rehlko plans to leverage insights from the environmental declaration to pioneer additional carbon footprint reductions in mission-critical generators. The lifecycle analysis for PEP ecopassport showed that emergency generators with an internal combustion engine comprise over 94% recyclable metals, and without the use of rare materials like lithium, nickel, manganese, or cobalt in the electric batteries. Future efforts on material selection and generator design could increase the figure. “Rehlko is dedicated to partnering with our customers, supporting their journey towards net-zero emissions,” concludes Charles Hunsucker.