Artificial intelligence is reshaping our world in many ways, but behind the scenes, it’s also driving one of the most urgent infrastructure challenges of our time: keeping data centers cool. As AI energy demands skyrocket, the pressure to deliver smarter, more efficient cooling has never been greater. This challenge represents real risk and real cost. With cooling accounting for an estimated 30-40% of a data center’s total energy consumption, AI’s growing processing demands c

As any facility manager can attest, failure of freeze protection systems can have serious and costly consequences. Designed to protect hydronic systems from freezing and subsequent pipe or coil ruptures, these systems serve as critical safeguards against damage during frigid weather. Over the past five decades, MSC has encountered numerous freeze-related issues, including HVAC coil breaks, frozen sprinkler lines, plumbing failures, steam condensate problems, and condenser wat

Painting: The Crew by Igor Stepankowski. Image courtesy of John Zanelli In my decades-long journey at Mechanical Service Corporation, it has sometimes felt like we are on a ship together, and we are the crew. This feels especially so in the rear of our building, which has a long, narrow hallway. Several years ago, we had a first-year apprentice show up at 0700 on his first day with a green canvas seabag over his shoulder containing his tools and foul-weather gear. As I direc

During the startup phase of a major laboratory project, several significant challenges emerged. One critical issue involved the building's HVAC instrumentation, which had been specified for factory calibration. However, sufficient time had elapsed that the instruments' factory calibrations would expire during the commissioning phase. The project's commissioning process needed to proceed on schedule with fully calibrated instruments throughout the entire phase, requiring immed