On May 30, 2012, ABB and Swiss data-center provider Green unveiled a 1 MW, 380 V direct-current (DC) distribution system at Green’s Zurich-West facility. The project demonstrated how a data center could reduce electrical conversion losses by distributing high-voltage DC to compatible servers and storage—but its reported savings were partner claims, not universal guarantees.
What ABB and Green actually unveiled
The installation was an internal DC power-distribution system, not a facility connected directly to a DC utility grid. Green’s Zurich-West data center still received alternating current (AC) from the electrical grid. The innovation was converting that power to DC within the facility and distributing it to compatible information-technology equipment.
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The project served an approximately 1,100-square-meter expansion—about 11,800 square feet—with a rated distribution capacity of 1 MW and a distribution voltage of 380 V DC. The contemporary announcement described Zurich-West as Switzerland’s first Tier III-certified data center. That certification described the facility’s availability and maintainability characteristics; it did not mean that Tier III depended on the DC architecture.
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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsAt the time, the project was described as the most powerful data-center application of DC. That was an attributed 2012 industry claim, not a current ranking.
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Contemporary coverage of the announcement identified Green, ABB, and Validus DC Systems as the principal participants. Validus, a DC data-center specialist, supported the project after being acquired by ABB the previous year.
How the power path differed from conventional AC distribution
Servers ultimately use DC internally, but conventional data centers generally deliver AC to each server’s power supply, which converts it to the lower-voltage DC required by the electronics. A typical simplified path looks like this:
Conventional path:
Utility AC → UPS conversion → AC distribution → server power supply → DC electronics
DC-distribution path:
Utility AC → rectifier/UPS → DC distribution → DC-compatible server electronicsThe DC design did not eliminate conversion altogether. The grid supplied AC, so an AC-to-DC conversion stage remained necessary. Its purpose was to reduce the number of conversions and move the remaining conversion closer to the facility’s power-entry and backup-power systems.
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Every conversion produces some loss, usually as heat. Reducing conversion stages can therefore lower electrical losses and, in some circumstances, reduce the heat that the cooling system must remove. The resulting facility-wide benefit depends on the efficiency of every component, the load profile, distribution distances, and the cooling design—not simply on whether the system is labeled AC or DC.
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The project’s reported results
| Metric | Reported figure | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| DC distribution capacity | 1 MW | Project specification |
| Distribution voltage | 380 V DC | Project specification |
| Expansion area | About 1,100 m2 / 11,800 sq. ft. | Approximate project size |
| Efficiency improvement | 10% | Green and ABB’s reported comparison with comparable AC technology |
| Cost reduction | 15% | Partner-reported figure; the cost boundary was not specified |
| Potential grid-to-chip and cooling savings | Up to 20% | Green’s projection when the system was fully loaded |
These figures should be read carefully. The available report does not disclose the test duration, measurement equipment, load level, cooling boundary, AC baseline, or whether an independent organization verified the results.
The 10% figure was presented as a test result by Green and ABB. The 15% figure was described as a cost advantage, but the announcement does not establish whether it referred to capital expenditure, operating expenditure, electrical infrastructure alone, or total cost of ownership. Green’s 20% figure was a maximum projection tied to full loading; it was not a statement that the facility consistently saved 20%.
Why ABB, Green, and HP pursued the design
Green framed the installation as part of a long-term energy-optimization strategy. The expected benefits included lower conversion losses, reduced operating costs, a smaller electrical footprint, simpler maintenance in some areas, and potential reliability improvements.
ABB engineered the DC distribution system to Green’s requirements. HP supplied equipment designed or adapted for high-voltage DC operation, including the HP X1800 G2 Network Storage System, HP DL385 servers, and HP BladeSystem c3000.
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HP’s participation was important because a 380 V DC distribution bus cannot simply be connected to ordinary AC-only servers. The downstream equipment must have compatible power supplies, connectors, protection, and vendor support. HP presented the equipment as part of a broader high-voltage-DC strategy, but the project did not demonstrate that the entire server market had adopted that approach.
Reliability was an architectural question, not an automatic DC benefit
ABB said DC could enhance reliability while reducing footprint, installation, and maintenance costs. That claim depends on the complete electrical design. Relevant factors include:
- Utility-feed arrangement and redundancy.
- UPS, rectifier, and battery topology.
- DC bus segmentation and distribution redundancy.
- Protection, selective coordination, and fault-clearing time.
- Grounding, bonding, monitoring, and controls.
- Server compatibility and dual-corded equipment.
- Maintenance procedures and spare-parts availability.
- Technician training and contractor competence.
Fewer conversion stages may remove failure points, but DC introduces its own engineering requirements. High-voltage DC arcs behave differently from AC arcs because DC has no natural current-zero crossing. Switchgear, breakers, connectors, grounding systems, arc-flash controls, lockout/tagout procedures, and maintenance practices must therefore be selected for the actual DC system.
Why the savings were not guaranteed for every facility
Low utilization
The largest projected saving was tied to full loading. At low utilization, fixed losses in rectifiers, UPS equipment, cooling systems, and distribution equipment can reduce the advantage. A comparison must use the operator’s real load curve rather than only the nameplate capacity.
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- Instructions for use: (Please note: That when the DC power supply is too hot, please stop using it and wait for it to cool down before use to prevent irreversible damage to the DC power supply.)
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Mixed AC and DC environments
Many facilities contain storage, networking, appliances, and future equipment that do not share one DC input standard. Supporting both AC-only and DC-compatible loads may require parallel distribution systems, increasing operational complexity and reducing some footprint or cost benefits.
Equipment refresh and lifecycle support
The economics depend on continued access to compatible servers, storage, power supplies, connectors, and replacement parts. A system that is attractive at commissioning can become harder to maintain if later equipment generations use different rack-power architectures or return to standard AC inputs.
Modern high-density loads
The Zurich-West project predates today’s widespread deployment of AI accelerators, high-density GPU racks, liquid cooling, and newer rack-level power designs. Its 2012 equipment list should not be treated as a current recommendation or assumed to map directly onto modern AI halls.
Cooling accounting
Lower electrical losses can reduce heat production, but cooling savings depend on the thermal design and operating conditions. Operators should ensure that electrical savings and cooling savings are measured across defined boundaries and are not double-counted.
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- What You Get - 1 x Kungber Variable DC Power Supply, 1 set of Output Power Cords , 1x Input Power Cord, 1 x User Manual, and Technical Support from Kungber.
What operators should evaluate today
A modern DC or hybrid-power assessment should examine the whole system rather than rely on a headline percentage.
Electrical design
- Utility input and rectifier/UPS efficiency at actual loads.
- DC bus voltage, topology, redundancy, grounding, and bonding.
- Short-circuit behavior, protection settings, selective coordination, and arc-flash risk.
- Fault-clearing time, monitoring, alarms, and controls.
IT compatibility
- The proportion of servers, storage, networking, and accelerators that can accept the proposed DC input.
- Dual-cord and failover requirements.
- Vendor warranties, approved power supplies, and rack-level distribution compatibility.
- A migration plan for AC-only equipment.
Economics
- Capital cost of rectifiers, switchgear, busways, protection, cabling, and rack equipment.
- Cost and availability of compatible IT hardware.
- Installation labor, maintenance contracts, training, and spares.
- Energy prices, utilization, expected payback, and the cost of operating a mixed environment.
Facility operations and sustainability
- Technician qualifications and safe maintenance procedures.
- Expansion flexibility and contractor availability.
- Measured facility energy reduction, including cooling.
- Battery lifecycle, embodied impacts, renewable-energy integration, and whether the design reduces total energy use rather than only distribution losses.
Enterprise operators considering this architecture would normally begin with an engineered power assessment, then obtain proposals from qualified infrastructure suppliers or integrators. ABB, Schneider Electric, Eaton, and Vertiv all offer data-center power and distribution portfolios, but a vendor’s general data-center offering is not proof that a particular 380 V DC design is suitable.
- ABB data-center infrastructure
- Schneider Electric data-center solutions
- Eaton data-center power infrastructure
- Vertiv data-center infrastructure
- Uptime Institute resilience and certification resources
What the Zurich-West project proved—and what it did not
The project proved that a substantial data-center expansion could be designed around a 380 V DC distribution system and compatible enterprise IT equipment. It also showed why DC was attractive to operators seeking fewer conversion stages and a differentiated efficiency strategy.
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It did not prove that DC is always more efficient, cheaper, safer, or more reliable than AC. The reported 10% efficiency and 15% cost figures were not accompanied in the available coverage by a detailed methodology. The 20% number was a qualified projection. Nor does the announcement establish the project’s long-term operating results, later expansion, or industry-wide adoption.
Its historical importance is therefore best understood as a serious real-world demonstration at a time when high-voltage DC was still an emerging data-center approach. For a 2026 facility, the relevant question is not whether the Zurich numbers can be copied. It is whether a complete DC or hybrid architecture delivers a verified lifecycle advantage for the facility’s present equipment, safety regime, load profile, and future expansion plans.
Conclusion
ABB and Green’s 2012 Zurich-West installation was a 1 MW, 380 V DC distribution project serving an approximately 1,100-square-meter expansion. By distributing DC to compatible HP servers and storage, the partners aimed to reduce conversion losses and associated cooling demand. Green and ABB reported a 10% efficiency improvement and 15% lower cost, while Green projected up to 20% grid-to-chip and cooling savings at full load.
Those results remain useful as historical evidence of what the architecture was intended to achieve, not as universal performance guarantees. For modern operators, compatibility, protection, safety, redundancy, lifecycle support, utilization, and independently measured whole-facility economics matter as much as nominal conversion efficiency.
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