An important regulation in cooling equipment is coming into effect soon, and it impacts your data center.
A fast-approaching U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) regulation states that new data center equipment must use refrigerants with low Global Warming Potential (low-GWP) rating below 700, starting January 1, 2027. GWP is a metric used to indicate how harmful a substance is to the climate, with a lower number meaning less harm to the environment. The refrigerants used by most data center air conditioners today, R-410A and R-407C, are well above this limit. While existing installations can continue to operate and be maintained, new air conditioners must use different, low-GWP refrigerants.
Why This Legislation Matters
The legislation at the center of these regulatory changes for refrigerants is the American Innovation Manufacturing (AIM) Act. The final details that affect data centers were finalized in late 2024 and the law seeks to reduce global warming by reducing HFCs and other pollutants.
While these ambitions are admirable and necessary, it’s important to remember that the data center industry currently relies on refrigerants that will soon be above the limits allowed by the EPA.
Let’s keep in mind that we’ve been here before.
What This Refrigerant Transition Means for Data Centers
Think back to 2010 when the EPA banned manufacturing of equipment using the R-22 refrigerant. Ten years later production and import of R-22 ended in the U.S. And today, facilities managers can only access R-22 if it’s been reclaimed from legacy systems.
The industry was able to easily navigate this transition because refrigeration systems could be easily adapted to use the new regulation-compliant refrigerant (R-407C). Unfortunately, the refrigerant transition is more complicated this time.
The operational impacts of low-GWP regulations for data centers include:
- Room-size requirements (charge/volume limits): In the past, the focus was on ensuring the cooling unit physically fit into the room and had good airflow paths. Now, you also must be mindful of the overall room size. Updated standards define the minimize room size for an air conditioner based on the amount of refrigerant it contains. This is intended to avoid reaching an undesirable air mixture should a refrigerant leak occur. This is why room size is now an important factor to include early in planning stages.
- Room Ventilation System – Best practices have always been to tightly construct spaces containing IT equipment with good vapor barriers. Now, if a room does not meet the minimum room size requirements, adding a ventilation system may be required. If needed, Schneider Electric’s cooling units include early leak detection and response logic that can be used to trigger a room ventilation system, helping to minimize installation complexity and expense.
Schneider Electric’s designs address these issues head-on.
Why Schneider Electric Is Ahead
Schneider Electric saw the legislation forming and took action to prepare. We’ve redesigned and been operating cooling units with low-GWP refrigerants in live data centers since 2023 in North America and additional units in Europe since 2024. Our proactive approach to validating new system performance in the real-world allows us to confidently offer robust low-GWP solutions to customers. While these systems will be new to many, Schneider Electric is no stranger to this technology.
Features of Schneider’s portfolio leveraging low-GWP refrigerants include:
- Built-in refrigerant detection with audible/visual alarms
- Automatic compressor shutdown on detection
- Fan operation to dilute refrigerant; optional room ventilation triggering
- UL-tested refrigerant detection performance (reliability)
Bottom line: Schneider Electric isn’t new to managing the impact of low-GWP regulations on data center cooling equipment. While there is still some time to prepare, we urge those overseeing data center cooling equipment to consider an action plan now.
What This Means for You
Positioning your organization for a smooth transition can start now with a few adjustments and shifts in current workflows. Consider these steps to prepare your business for the Jan. 1, 2027, low-GWP refrigerant deadline:
- Always work with a data center solution provider that not only has the technical solutions, but the experience of successfully deploying technology using low-GWP refrigerants in data centers.
- Confirm that any projects planned for the latter half of 2026 and beyond are using compliant refrigerants to avoid any last-minute disruptions.
- Educate your teams on the new refrigerants and how to respond in the event of a leak.
What’s Coming Next
Schneider Electric will launch our first low‑GWP‑compliant product in April 2026, with additional models rolling out in phased portfolio transitions.
Explore our first low-GWP-compliant product, the 11kW InRow cooling unit using R-32 available here:
Contact Schneider Electric sales for project‑specific guidance.
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