Grundfos and Honeywell Present Joint Solutions for Data Center Cooling and Safety

On November 12 at the BOKO Seoul Gangnam hotel (Seoul), Grundfos and Honeywell jointly held a seminar titled "Integrated Solutions for Data Centers." Approximately 100 specialists from design, construction, operations, and end-user segments of the data center industry attended. The organizers aimed to discuss not individual systems but the organic integration of cooling, power supply, safety, and fire protection within a unified control loop.

Market Context: Delays and Workforce Shortages

In a presentation by Honeywell, market data was presented: as of 2027, 60% of planned capacity has yet to be commissioned, and 7% of projects face additional delays due to external constraints. The average lead time for transformers exceeds 2.5 years, while grid connection takes approximately 4 years. 46% of data center operators cite difficulties in attracting qualified personnel. Against this backdrop, Honeywell positions itself as a full-cycle integrator — from permitting and design through construction, operations, and service — acting as an MSI (Master Systems Integrator).

Cooling Circuit: Pumps, Controller, Monitoring

TP and TPE Circulation Pumps. Kwon In-O (Deputy Director, Grundfos) presented the range of single-impeller, solid-shaft in-line pumps. The key feature is the wearing ring: when worn, only this component is replaced, and the pump retains its original efficiency. According to him, reducing the ring gap by 0.1 mm increases pump efficiency by approximately 1%. The TPE model is equipped with an IE5 permanent-magnet motor; compared to the standard IE3 motor in Korea, energy losses are reduced by approximately 53%, and motor efficiency exceeds 96.7%. For a 20-kilogram motor, the annual economic benefit is approximately 8,800 kWh. Inverter-driven pumps with output from 55 to 90 kW are available. The use of such pumps reduces auxiliary equipment energy consumption and contributes to improved PUE.

On the control side, Kwon In-O compared sensor-based and sensorless control. The error of sensor-based control is approximately 1–3%, while sensorless control has an error of 5–10%. When the impeller wears or operating conditions change, the sensorless method loses accuracy, so for data centers where thermal regime stability is critical, Grundfos recommends sensor-based control. The TPE3 model with digital features integrates with Grundfos Connect and iGRID systems; LCA and EPD documentation is provided for the products.

GENIECON Controller. Kim Sung-Tae (Manager, Grundfos) presented a controller that combines pump management, cybersecurity, dry-run protection, and energy consumption optimization. The controller is certified to ISO 27001 and IEC 62443-4-1, uses TLS 1.2 encryption, two-factor authentication, and the proprietary GENIbus protocol. A tamper detection function is built in: upon attempted physical interference, the system sends an alert to the control room. Dry-run protection is implemented through redundant control with switchover to a backup pump in the microsecond range. The POPS function selects the optimal number of running pumps in real time based on the power curve and required flow. Supported control modes include differential pressure/temperature control, proportional pressure at constant flow, tank level monitoring, and pipe loss compensation.

According to Frost & Sullivan data, in 2025 Grundfos held a 19% share of the global CDU market (1st place), KSB — 10%, and Sulzer — 7%.

Grundfos Connect Cloud Platform. Kim A-Ram (Manager, Grundfos) described the cloud software for collecting and visualizing data from smart pumps and controllers. Data is transmitted through a Grundfos gateway to the cloud (Microsoft Azure), where it is accessible via a dashboard: runtime, start/stop history, electricity consumption, flow rate, water consumption, and load of each pump. Upon deviations, the system sends notifications via e-mail and SMS. The platform operates in parallel with BMS/PLC and allows remote parameter configuration and start/stop control. Security is ensured through TLS/HTTPS encryption, X.509 certificates, multi-factor authentication, and redundant cloud infrastructure. As an example, monitoring of booster pumps in the Tondemun district (Seoul) was presented.

Integrated Honeywell Platform

Kang Che-San (Consultant, Honeywell Korea) presented an End-to-End solution covering the segment from the point of electricity input to management of the entire site. Based on BMS, controllers for chillers, coolers, and generators are unified into a single platform; sensor data from AI data centers is linked through data ontology for integrated management and trend analysis. In the fire protection segment, early fire detection systems are offered; in the security segment, integration of access control, video surveillance, and cybersecurity on the LENEL/S2 platform with full encryption, FIPS 140-3 compliance, open API, and more than 145 standard audit reports.

During the operations phase, Honeywell provides regular preventive inspections, alarm analysis, reporting, and predictive maintenance based on equipment data.

Early Detection of Lithium-Ion Battery Thermal Runaway

Kim Jin-Bok (Deputy Director, Honeywell Korea) examined strategies for preventing fires from lithium-ion batteries (UPS rooms, BBU in server racks, ESS) with reference to standards NFPA 75, NFPA 76, NFPA 855, and FM Global 5-32, 5-33. According to him, standard LEL gas detectors cannot detect the initial stage of degradation, as the volume of gases released at the off-gas stage is minimal. NFPA 855 emphasizes that a combination of an LEL detector and cell voltage data is insufficient for early detection. A separate volatile decomposition product detector (off-gas detection) linked to the BMS is required. The Early Intervention concept (FM 5-33) provides for electrical isolation of the battery upon confirmation of a hazardous state, so that a cell does not progress to the thermal runaway stage. When early detection is combined with automatic charge disconnection, up to 30 minutes can be provided for response. To reduce false alarms, a reference detector is placed in open space near the battery: comparing readings allows distinguishing external gas from actual off-gas.

Company Statements

Im Jong-Hi (Head of the Construction Division, Honeywell Korea) noted that data centers have become key economic infrastructure, and the growth of AI and cloud services intensifies requirements for operational efficiency and sustainability. In her words, no single company can address all tasks on its own; the joint offering of Grundfos (water supply management) and Honeywell (fire protection and access control) is aimed at delivering practical value to the operator. The seminar, by her design, should serve as a starting point for discussing specific issues of the participants.

Kim Rae-Hyun (CEO, Grundfos Korea) recalled that the company was founded in Denmark in 1945, operates in 66 countries through 156 subsidiaries, employs more than 20,000 employees, and had revenue of approximately 8 trillion won in 2025. Grundfos holds the world's first position in pump manufacturing and has set a goal of achieving carbon neutrality across Scope 1, 2, and 3 by 2050 in accordance with SBTi.

Both companies stated their intention to continue developing technologies and solutions in line with the evolving requirements of the data center industry.