AS artificial intelligence (AI) workloads continue to push computing densities to new heights, conventional cooling systems are being stretched to their limits, particularly in tropical climates where server racks can exceed 100kW per cabinet.
Anticipating these growing demands, Midea Building Technologies recently unveiled its comprehensive cooling solutions for AI data centers (AIDC) at its “Feel the Future” event in Kuala Lumpur.
The solutions targets key industry pain points – slow deployment, energy efficiency concerns, and high total cost of ownership.
End-to-end solutions for high‑density computing
Midea’s solution covers consulting, design, delivery and maintenance, forming a closed-loop service from cooling source to terminal equipment.
The company has also developed a liquid‑cooling technology matrix integrating chillers, CDUs (coolant distribution units), liquid‑cooling terminals and digital operations, plus a “wind‑fluid synergy” architecture enabling flexible air‑cooling and liquid‑cooling for server racks.
Three core products have been developed for tropical climates:
> Midea maglev active CDU: This product integrates magnetic‑bearing cooling source and distribution unit, reducing footprint by over 50%. Under tropical conditions, it achieves system PUE <1.2, while cutting delivery time and operating costs.
> Midea air‑cooled magnetic‑bearing chiller: Designed for water‑scarce, high‑temperature environments, it maintains high energy efficiency with low performance degradation.
> Midea Industrial‑grade CDU: With a cooling capacity up to 2,600 kW, it supports high‑availability architecture for safety, stability and continuous operation.
Liquid cooling smart manufacturing base
In March, Midea began construction of a cooling smart base in Shunde, China, to achieve independent, large‑scale production of core components such as chillers and CDUs.
The base – with over Chinese yuan renminbi (RMB) RMB 1bil in investment – was introduced to global customers at the event and is expected to start production in August 2027.
Academic collaboration
During the event, experts from National University of Singapore (NUS) shared their insights
The university’s College of Design and Engineering department lecturer, Assoc Prof Md Raisul Islam, spoke about the Sustainable Tropical Data Centre Testbed (STDCT) – a 0.5 MW open laboratory in Singapore addressing energy, water and carbon challenges for tropical data centres. Midea is actively discussing collaborative efforts with NUS on next‑phase testbeds.
Guo Shuai – a research fellow from NUS’ Mechanical Engineering faculty, noted that for racks above 20 kW, AM cold plates with topology‑optimised fins are key to breaking cooling bottlenecks.
In a panel discussion, the experts agreed that thermal design is shifting from support to core architecture, especially in the tropics, where future metrics should go beyond Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) to focus on “compute efficiency” and total cost of ownership.
Integrated real‑world testing and system engineering are also seen as critical to reducing risks and accelerating adoption.
With full‑stack system capabilities, complete product portfolios, local manufacturing, and an open innovation approach, Midea Building Technologies is positioning itself as a key enabler of global AI computing infrastructure.
