Why data center growth requires smarter energy management | Hanwha
The shift toward more intelligent energy management is not solely focused on automating existing processes. It emphasizes decision-making across interconnected systems, where optimizing a single component can enhance the performance and reliability of others.
Traditional energy management software has supported the monitoring, forecasting, and optimization of energy usage. However, artificial intelligence (AI) is expanding these capabilities by detecting potential faults and anticipating changing conditions. Furthermore, agentic AI introduces the capacity to translate recommendations into automated actions, pending human approval and within set operational limits. This innovative approach is exemplified by EnergyFluo™, an award-winning agentic AI energy management system (EMS) developed by TransGrid Energy, a company under Hanwha Group. This platform integrates AI-driven analysis, optimization, and fault detection with physics-based equipment models and digitized operating procedures to proactively identify issues and coordinate energy management across various facilities.
For example, consider a data center bracing for colder weather. As outdoor temperatures drop, cooling requirements may also decrease, creating an opportunity to lower electricity consumption. EnergyFluo could anticipate this adjustment, recommend reducing chiller operations, and autonomously make this change following operator approval within established equipment limits.
The potential benefits of this approach extend throughout data center operations. By enabling earlier detection of equipment issues, optimizing energy resources, and minimizing the need for manual adjustments, AI-driven management can enhance operational efficiency. In facilities with fixed electrical capacities, reducing unnecessary consumption can maintain available capacity for computing, assuming reliability requirements are upheld.
Dr. Youngchoon Park, CEO of TransGrid Energy, articulated that EnergyFluo “orchestrates grid, storage, and on-site generation as one system and optimizes the load behind them, allowing operators to maximize megawatts for IT and manage their entire fleet from a single intelligent perspective.”
As AI increasingly manages critical infrastructure, the importance of safeguards also grows. EnergyFluo was among the first AI-enabled products globally to obtain certification from UL Solutions under UL 3115, which outlines safety evaluation standards for AI-based products, in March 2026. This evaluation highlighted safeguards including operator approval, explainability, audit trails, and rollback capabilities, underscoring the necessity of maintaining human oversight as AI assumes a more prominent role in critical operational decision-making.
