Data Center Cooling: Why Intelligent Cooling Is Security

By Benedikt Langer · March 18, 2026 · 9 min read

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Updated: April 2026

A data-centre outage isn’t an IT problem–it’s a business risk. Cyber-attacks grab headlines, but the most common cause of unplanned downtime is cooling failure. Intelligent, anomaly-detecting cooling systems with predictive maintenance should therefore be a cornerstone of every data-centre resilience strategy. NEXAIRA.Systems from ebm-papst shows how it works in practice.

Key Takeaways

43 % of all unplanned data-centre outages stem from power-supply issues; cooling failure is the second-most common factor (Uptime Institute, Annual Outage Analysis, 2024).
Average downtime cost: 9,000 US dollars per minute in a Tier-III facility (Uptime Institute, 2023).
Predictive maintenance spots anomalies weeks early: rising vibration, clogged filters, heat-exchanger faults–before they escalate into emergencies.
On-premises architecture: all operational data stays inside the local network–no cloud mandate for sensitive infrastructure telemetry.
Up to 50 % cooling-energy savings–validated at a German data-centre operator (900 MWh, 240 t CO₂ per year).

What is NEXAIRA.Systems? NEXAIRA.Systems is an AI-driven platform from ebm-papst that monitors and optimises cooling systems in data centres. It builds a digital twin of the cooling infrastructure, detects anomalies in real time, delivers predictive-maintenance recommendations, and slashes cooling energy use by up to 50 %–all on-premises, without touching the IT stack.

Why cooling is a security topic

Traditional data-centre security focuses on firewalls, access control and data classification. Physical plant appears in risk registers, yet rarely tops CISO priority lists. That is changing fast, because rack densities–and therefore cooling dependence–are climbing exponentially. A single GPU rack for AI workloads now draws 40–80 kW. A 15-minute cooling outage can trigger thermal throttling; 30 minutes often force automated shutdowns; longer failures risk permanent hardware damage. Industry analyses show cooling-related incidents often drag on for an hour–far beyond the tolerance of modern high-density racks. For CISOs, that means cooling failure is an availability risk that belongs in the business-impact analysis. Prevention starts with sensing, not the emergency playbook. The EU Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) tightens the screws further: from 2025, every data-centre above 500 kW must publish annual energy data. The NIS2 Directive widens mandatory reporting to an estimated 30,000 German organisations. Skimp on systematic physical-infrastructure monitoring and you risk not only outages, but also compliance breaches carrying heavy fines.

43 %

of all unplanned data-centre outages trace back to power-supply issues–cooling is the second-most common factor.

Source: Uptime Institute, Annual Outage Analysis, 2024

Anomaly Detection in the Cooling Circuit

NEXAIRA.Systems from ebm-papst monitors all components of the cooling circuit in real time: fans, chillers, cooling towers, pumps, and heat exchangers. The system creates a digital twin of the entire cooling infrastructure and continuously compares actual values with target values. What this means in practice: a fan whose vibration frequency shifts by 0.3 Hz may go unnoticed by operations staff. The digital twin detects the deviation within hours and correlates it with other sensor data. Result: a maintenance recommendation three weeks before the fan fails–aligned with the next scheduled maintenance window. Filter contamination follows a similar pattern: pressure loss increases gradually, cooling performance drops, and neighboring modules compensate by increasing their energy consumption. Without monitoring, this only becomes apparent when room temperature rises. With NEXAIRA.Systems, the filter condition is proactively reported.

Data Stays Local–Why That’s Non-Negotiable for Data Center Operators

Cooling system data is infrastructure data. It reveals where vulnerabilities lie, how load is distributed, and when maintenance windows are scheduled. For an attacker, this is valuable intelligence about the physical attack surface of a data center. NEXAIRA.Systems therefore operates entirely on-premise. All sensor and operational data remain within the local network. Connectivity is via MODBUS-RTU, Ethernet, or WiFi–within the data center network, not over the internet. An optional cloud connection for remote monitoring exists but is not a prerequisite for operation. For operators subject to the NIS2 reporting obligation, the on-premise architecture significantly simplifies documentation of technical and organizational measures. No data processing in third countries, no dependency on cloud providers for critical infrastructure.

Is cooling a failure risk in the data center?

Yes. If cooling fails or runs inefficiently, temperatures rise and servers throttle or shut down – hitting availability as hard as a cyberattack. That is why the cooling infrastructure belongs in a data center’s security concept.

Why is intelligent cooling a security topic?

Because availability is a protection goal of information security. Continuously monitored, intelligent cooling detects deviations early and lowers the risk of unplanned outages – contributing to standards such as NIS2 and EN 50600.

On-Premise

All operational data local, no forced cloud dependency

NIS2-ready

Documentable TOM for cooling infrastructure

Zero Trust

No external access to infrastructure data required

Retrofit: Legacy Protection for Operational Systems

Integration into existing cooling systems happens while they’re running–no small feat. Many monitoring solutions demand downtime just to install sensors. NEXAIRA.Systems taps into the existing BMS interfaces and only adds sensors where gaps exist.

The digital twin calibrates itself on the fly. After a brief learning phase of just a few weeks, the system understands the operating characteristics of every component and begins real-time optimization. The transition is gradual, so operators keep full control over all cooling parameters and can step in manually whenever needed.

From a security standpoint, this matters: the step-by-step integration slashes the risk of misconfiguration. Every optimization measure is validated against historical operational data before it goes live. Unintended disruptions to cooling performance from faulty algorithms are ruled out. The system’s mantra: optimize, don’t gamble.

Connectivity is deliberately broad: MODBUS-RTU, WiFi, Ethernet, Bluetooth, and NFC. That means even older legacy systems–never designed for IoT monitoring–can be integrated. If you’re planning to modernize hardware down the line, ebm-papst’s AxiBlade.Perform fans come with native NEXAIRA integration built in.

A cooling failure in a high-density data center isn’t just an inconvenience. With 40 kW per rack, air temperatures hit critical levels within 10 minutes. Continuous monitoring is the only reliable prevention strategy.
ebm-papst, NEXAIRA.Systems product documentation

What This Means for Data Center Security Strategy

In data centers, the convergence of physical and digital security is no longer theoretical. If you take NIS2 reporting obligations seriously, you must monitor physical infrastructure just as closely as network perimeters. Cooling systems with real-time monitoring, anomaly detection, and on-premise data processing are a tangible piece of that puzzle.

NEXAIRA.Systems by ebm-papst addresses three needs at once: availability through predictive maintenance, efficiency with up to 50 percent cooling energy savings, and compliance through traceable technical and organizational measures (TOMs) with local data processing. For operators of critical infrastructure, this isn’t a nice-to-have–it’s a cornerstone of a holistic security architecture.

We recommend three concrete steps for integrating this into your security strategy: First, include cooling failure as a distinct risk scenario in your business impact analysis, with defined RPO/RTO values. Second, implement real-time monitoring of cooling infrastructure as a technical measure in your ISMS. Third, regularly review anomaly thresholds and maintenance intervals as part of your continuous improvement process under ISO 27001. NEXAIRA.Systems provides the technical foundation and data backbone for all three.

For data centers already using ebm-papst hardware, the transition is especially smooth: AxiBlade.Perform fans communicate natively with NEXAIRA and supply additional telemetry data. But even heterogeneous environments with components from multiple vendors are fully integrated through open protocols.

Learn more about NEXAIRA.Systems and intelligent cooling system monitoring.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does NEXAIRA.Systems work technically?

The system creates a digital twin of the entire cooling circuit in the grey space. Real-time data is captured via sensors and BMS connections, then analyzed by an AI-driven Cooling Supply Optimizer. This continuously calculates the most energy-efficient operating parameters for each component, adaptively adjusting setpoints based on load, weather, and operational status.

Which protocols does the system support?

MODBUS-RTU, WiFi, Ethernet, Bluetooth and NFC. This also enables integration with older legacy systems that were not originally designed for IoT monitoring. Cloud-to-cloud connectivity is optional.

Is NEXAIRA.Systems NIS2-relevant?

For operators of critical infrastructure (KRITIS, NIS2 Annex I/II), documented monitoring of cooling infrastructure can be considered a technical and organisational measure (TOM) under Article 21 NIS2. The on-premise architecture simplifies compliance documentation.

What happens if NEXAIRA fails?

The existing building management system resumes control using the most recently configured setpoints. NEXAIRA.Systems is an optimisation overlay, not a replacement for the primary control. Cooling continues to operate in any case.

Which standards and norms does the system address?

Documented monitoring of cooling infrastructure can serve as a measure under NIS2 Article 21, ISO 27001 Annex A.11 (physical security) and EN 50600 (data-centre infrastructure). The on-premise architecture also meets GDPR requirements for data locality.