Free tool · AI data center

AI Data Center Readiness Checker

Is your data center ready for AI? Answer seven questions about power, cooling, redundancy, network and space, and get a readiness score, your main blockers, the equipment that closes the gaps, and the facility upgrades to plan — for GB200-class GPU racks and warehouse-to-AI conversions.

Your facility

Readiness score

52/100

Major upgrades

Assessment

Significant power and cooling work is needed before AI racks.

Main blockers

  • Current coolingAir only (CRAC / CRAH)

Facility upgrade notes

  • Power available per rackAdd high-density rPDUs / busway to reach GB200 rack power.
  • Current coolingAdd liquid cooling — a CDU for direct-to-chip, or a rear-door heat exchanger for mid density.
  • Floor loading & spaceVerify point loading for heavy liquid-cooled racks.
  • Water for liquid coolingAdd a closed technical-water loop; do not run cold plates on potable water.

Required equipment

Browse all equipment →

How it's scored: each of the seven dimensions carries a 0–100 sub-score; the readiness score is their weighted average (power, cooling and utility weigh most). Any dimension below the "AI-ready" bar is listed as a blocker (if critical), an upgrade note, and — where equipment closes the gap — a linked recommendation. A weighted self-assessment for dense AI (GB200-class); confirm the real design with a solutions engineer.

How the AI data center readiness checker works

AI has moved the goalposts for what a data center must provide. A room built for 5–10 kW/rack air cooling cannot host a GPU rack that draws 40–120 kW and rejects nearly all of it as heat. This checker scores an existing facility against dense-AI requirements so you know — before committing capital — whether it is ready, needs upgrades, or is better replaced by a retrofit or new build.

It weighs seven dimensions, each scored from your answer and combined into one readiness score:

  1. Rack power densitykW available per rack (dense AI needs 40 kW+)
  2. Coolingair → rear-door HX → water loop → direct-to-chip liquid
  3. Utility capacitysubstation / feed in MW
  4. RedundancyUPS and N+1 / 2N distribution
  5. Network fabric10G → 100G → 400G → 800G
  6. Floor & spacestructural load rating and room for CDUs / containment
  7. Watertechnical-water loop for liquid cooling

The weighted average becomes a 0–100 score and a tier — AI-ready, minor upgrades, major upgrades, or not yet ready — and every dimension below the ready bar surfaces as a blocker, an upgrade note, and the catalog equipment that closes it.

What a GPU cluster facility actually requires

Modern AI concentrates enormous power into a small footprint. A GB200 NVL72 rack integrates 72 Blackwell GPUs at roughly 120 kW and ships with integrated direct-to-chip liquid cooling — an order of magnitude beyond a traditional rack. Hosting it means the building must deliver dense rack power, a technical-water loop and CDUs, multi-megawatt utility capacity, redundant UPS and generation, an 800G-capable low-latency fabric, and a floor that can carry heavy liquid-cooled racks.

That is why warehouse-to-AI conversions are common: warehouses already have the space, height and structure, so the project is really about power and cooling. The readiness checker turns "is my building ready?" into a scored list of exactly what to add — and links each gap to the transformer, UPS, CDU, rear-door exchanger, PDU or switch that fills it, so the assessment flows straight into a scoped quote.

Readiness tiers

How the overall score maps to a recommendation. Scores are a weighted self-assessment against dense-AI requirements; confirm with a full facility survey.

AI readiness score → tier
ScoreTierWhat it means
85–100AI-readyThe facility can host dense AI with minor tuning.
65–84Minor upgradesClose a few gaps and the site is ready for GPU racks.
45–64Major upgradesSignificant power and cooling work is needed before AI racks.
0–44Not yet readyA retrofit or purpose-built approach is the faster path.

AI facility readiness, answered

Is my data center ready for AI?

It depends on power density, cooling, electrical redundancy, network fabric and floor loading. Traditional enterprise rooms built for 5–10 kW/rack air cooling are usually not ready for modern GPU racks, which need 40–120 kW/rack and liquid cooling. This checker scores your facility across those dimensions and tells you the specific gaps to close.

What are GB200 data center requirements?

A GB200 NVL72 rack draws roughly 120 kW and ships with integrated direct-to-chip liquid cooling, so the facility must supply high-density rack power (busway/rPDU), a technical-water loop and CDUs, multi-megawatt utility capacity, N+1 (or better) UPS, an 800G-capable fabric, and a floor rated for heavy liquid-cooled racks. The checker flags which of these you are missing.

Can I convert a warehouse into an AI data center?

Often yes — warehouses have the floor space and ceiling height AI halls need. The work is in power and cooling: securing multi-MW utility capacity, adding transformers/switchgear and UPS, and installing liquid cooling (CDUs or rear-door exchangers) plus a technical-water loop. Run the checker to see the scope and the equipment required for your building.

What are the facility requirements for a GPU cluster?

The essentials are dense rack power (40 kW+/rack), liquid or hybrid cooling sized to the load, redundant power (UPS + generation), a high-bandwidth low-latency network (400/800G), sufficient utility feed, and structural capacity for heavy racks. The checker weighs each and returns a single readiness score plus the blockers.

Is this readiness score accurate for planning?

It is a fast, weighted self-assessment against dense-AI (GB200-class) requirements — accurate enough to gauge readiness, prioritise upgrades and budget the equipment. A full assessment depends on your one-line diagram, mechanical design, structural survey and utility agreements. Our engineers confirm the real picture when you request a quote.

Turn this assessment into a scoped upgrade plan

Our solutions engineers assess power, cooling and network together, size the equipment and confirm real lead times — no payment, no commitment, quotes back in about one business day.

Want a second opinion on a build?

Our engineers scope power, cooling and compute together. No payment, and quotes come back in about a business day.

Talk to an engineer