Case Studies | Power Supplies
MEAN WELL: Rethinking Power Supply for Data Centers
Frank Stocker
Field Application Engineer (FAE) Power Supplies
24.09.2026
Data centers are currently among the fastest-growing industries, driven by the increasing use of artificial intelligence. At the same time, high demand is creating new opportunities for related industries, including manufacturers of energy storage systems (ESS), fuel cell technology and liquid cooling solutions, whose products are increasingly needed to meet the growing requirements of modern IT infrastructures. As a result, the focus is shifting beyond computing power alone to the question of how the underlying infrastructure can be supplied with energy reliably and efficiently.
Figure 1: As modern data centers continue to expand, power supply and cooling are becoming increasingly important. (Source: Shutterstock)
What are the power supply requirements of modern data centers?
With the continuous expansion of renewable energy and e-mobility, the demand for intelligent energy storage is growing—systems that can flexibly transfer energy in both directions, from the grid to the device and back. This is where bidirectional power supplies come into play: they feed surplus energy, for example from wind and solar systems, back into the grid and draw it again when needed (Fig. 2). In doing so, they help compensate for grid fluctuations, reduce peak loads, and enable the targeted use of renewable energy, while also lowering electricity costs in home energy storage systems and industrial applications. In the electric vehicle sector, bidirectional charging stations open up additional possibilities: vehicle batteries can not only be charged but also used as mobile power sources or for feeding energy back into the grid.
How can reliable power supply and cooling be ensured in AC data centers?
AC data centers use scalable three-phase power supply and online UPS systems that include inverters, battery chargers and battery storage systems, among other components (Fig. 2). Since the power electronics installed in these systems also generate heat, they require continuous cooling. Three-phase power supplies such as MEAN WELL's XTR-480-24 or XTR-960-24 are suitable for this purpose. They supply the UPS cooling units, which consist of several 24 V DC fans typically rated at around 50 W, and are designed to withstand short-term voltage peaks from the inverter during startup. Even more heat is generated within the server racks themselves. Liquid cooling systems are therefore used to circulate coolant between hot and cold areas. Rear Door Heat Exchangers (RDHx) installed directly on the compute racks support heat dissipation. To power these systems, MEAN WELL offers the DHP-1UT-B rack chassis with 3,200 W NCP-3200 series rack power supplies. The 19-inch system provides 12.8 kW of power per unit, is scalable in terms of output power, and is suitable for powering the BLDC motors used for hot and cold water circulation as well as the 500 W DC fans of the RDHx.
Figure 2: Traditional AC-based data centers combine three-phase power supply, online UPS systems, emergency generators and liquid cooling. (Source: MEAN WELL)
What advantages do HVDC data centers offer?
In a DC-based infrastructure (Fig. 3), the computer racks are supplied with 800 V DC instead of 400 to 480 V AC. HVDC power distribution can reduce power requirements and thereby lower power losses as well as the amount of cabling material needed. At the same time, an 800 V DC battery energy storage system (BESS) can take over the function of a conventional AC online UPS. This can reduce costs and improve overall system efficiency by several percentage points. In the event of a power outage, the BESS supplies energy for several minutes until the emergency generator takes over. However, components such as the energy management system, display or controller require lower DC voltages. For these applications, MEAN WELL offers the RSDH-150/300 and DDRH-120/240 DC/DC converter series for HVDC applications. With their wide input voltage range of 250 to 1,500 V DC, they can step down the high DC voltage to a lower DC voltage for the respective devices.
Figure 3: In a DC-based data center, an 800 V BESS replaces the conventional AC online UPS. (Source: MEAN WELL)
What role can fuel cells play in data centers?
In addition to battery storage systems and diesel generators, fuel cells can also serve as a potential energy source for data centers. Powered by hydrogen, they can provide energy over a period of several days. As a result, fuel cell systems can potentially replace both the diesel generator and the BESS. Another advantage is that no start-up waiting time is required. For the hydrogen production required for this purpose, MEAN WELL offers high-power supply solutions such as the SHP-30K-55, which can be operated in parallel to provide the high power levels needed for electrolyzer stacks. These stacks produce hydrogen outside the data center for subsequent use in the fuel cells.
MEAN WELL provides both AC/DC and DC/DC power supply solutions for data centers. (Source: MEAN WELL)
MEAN WELL thus provides both AC/DC and DC/DC power supply solutions for various areas of modern data centers. The new XTR series and the DHP-1UT-B rack system support thermal management, while the RSDH-150/300 and DDRH-120/240 series are designed to convert 800 V DC to low DC voltages in HVDC systems. In addition, power supply solutions are available for high-power applications such as hydrogen production.
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As a power supply distributor we stock power supplies from various manufacturers such as MEAN WELL, Recom, Self Electronics and others. We keep around 8,000 different types of power supplies in stock in production-ready quantities at our automated central warehouse in Monheim am Rhein. As a reliable supplier we also offer fast and competent support, for example through direct contact persons and a field service for on-site problem solving. Our customers benefit from the rapid processing of their enquiries, the provision of data sheets and samples, and different delivery quantities from samples to series production.
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