In this latest article, we focus in on the UK Government’s decision to designate data centers as Critical National Infrastructure (CNI). The decision, confirmed by Technology Secretary Peter Kyle in September 2024, marks a strong move towards prioritising data centers as hubs of strategic technological innovation. The designation will mean that the Government will provide greater protection to ensure that the data housed and processed in UK data centers is less likely to be compromised during outages, cyber-attacks, and extreme weather events.

With the Government committed to assigning a team of senior government officials whose role it will be to monitor and anticipate potential threats to data centers, the CNI designation will ultimately mean that the sector can expect to receive greater Government support to recover from critical incidents.

The UK Government hopes that the designation of data centers as Critical National Infrastructure will provide greater reassurance to investors that the UK is a safe place to deploy capital, indicating the scale of the Government’s ambition to attract new data center projects across the UK. The Government announced that data center operator DC01UK expects to proceed with its data center project in Hertfordshire following the assurances provided by the CNI designation. The site is expected to become Europe’s largest data center and would create over 700 local jobs and support 13,740 data and tech jobs across the UK. 

The impact that data centers continue to have on the UK’s scientific and economic landscape is undeniable, but it is similarly vital that fire risks are appropriately addressed in design and in operation. While data center fires are rare, they are an ever-present risk, and the collateral damage and disruption caused by a fire could have profound and systemic consequences. 

Moreover, with more financial investment in data centers, it is imperative that fire protection is considered in the design stage of a project, and that fire engineers work to ensure that damage is kept to a minimum in the unlikely event that a fire occurs. 

Our Expertise

Joule Group’s fire engineering expertise is central to the protection of data centers and the CNI designation means that fire safety is an increasingly important consideration for designers and operators. 

The current challenge in the UK and some parts of Europe is the lack of Building Regulations design guidelines available specifically for data center projects. These are essential in adequately addressing the needs of data center buildings and associated processes. Some examples of misapplied building standards requirements span topics such as building use falling under storage and industrial (which is typically used for warehouses and logistics centres, where accumulation of combustible materials is far greater than in the case of data centers); and requirements surrounding insulation of the building envelope (roof and façade U-values) which in turn then increase the overall demand for cooling equipment required for the IT services. 

Until such time that a UK or EU specific data center design standard is prepared addressing the rapidly evolving data center designs, it is important to carefully consider the design standards used and applied on such projects. For example, in the UK, the currently published Approved Document B, Volume 2 in our opinion remains unsuitable for CNI and data center projects; while BS 9999:2017 has a better developed level of detail for industrial-type applications, there remain areas where BS 9999:2017 needs to be supplemented with details from other publications, such as industry or insurer-led guidance documents.

Here at Joule Group, we have a well-proven record of delivering data center projects across multiple regions, are fully versed in multiple international fire safety standards and guidelines and can bring our expertise to every project we work on. 

As data centers develop in the UK in both size and value, it is imperative that the fire safety architecture and protocols remain up to date. 

To ensure that fire engineering considerations are well maintained, it is equally crucial that those working at data centers are well versed in the technology deployed to minimise fires and fire damage. This is another area where Joule Group can be of assistance, providing our expertise to advise clients through design and during operation. 

Get In Touch

To learn more about how Joule Group’s fire safety expertise could help you better protect your data center project, please get in touch with us at info@joule-group.com. 

Sources 

Meesons – UK Government Classifies Data Centres as Critical National Infrastructure: What This Means and Its Implications

GOV.UK – Data centres to be given massive boost and protections from cyber criminals and IT blackouts  

JLL – Will data center fires spark tighter safety rules?

Fire Protection Association – Data Centres and Fire Risk

Data Center Knowledge – How to Prevent Data Center Fires: Lessons from the Biggest Incidents