Critical Facilities
Critical facilities are becoming more diverse as technology advances create market shifts. The industry’s next challenges include innovating in urban spaces, creating more energy-efficient operations, and achieving carbon goals.
Southwestern College Institutional Technology Building, Chula Vista, CA
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The environmental impact of data centers, combined with their energy demands, will drive innovation solutions in the space to make these spaces more viable.
—Joost Lansbergen, Critical Facilities leader
24 Items
Microsoft Mass Timber Hyperscale Data Centers
Northern Virginia
Gensler partnered with Thornton Tomasetti to employ a sustainable approach on two groundbreaking mass timber hyperscale data centers for Microsoft in Northern Virginia.
Wonder Valley
Data Centre Park
Alberta, Canada
At full build-out, the 7.5-gigawatt (GW) Wonder Valley development will be the world’s largest AI data centre campus, eventually encompassing 7,700 acres in the Canadian Rockies.
Nationwide Children’s Hospital — Data Center + Conference + Medical Simulation Facility
Columbus, Ohio
A centrally-located campus hub integrates a leading-edge data center with staff-facing training facilities, creating new harmony between utility and community.
Guangzhou Substation Concept Proposal
A non-typical approach to urban infrastructure creates community and supports local ecologies in the development of a new electrical substation.
Future Digital Data Systems Data Centre
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Gensler’s Critical Facilities design team was tasked with planning the concept and schematic design for a first-generation Future Digital Data Systems (FDDS) data centre that maximises functionality and bestows an aspirational response.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Data Center
Memphis, Tennessee
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Data Center houses mission-critical functions and serves to advance cures and means of prevention for pediatric diseases.
New York Power Authority (NYPA)
White Plains, New York
As part of their Strategic Plan, NYPA turned to Gensler to design their new Integrated Security Operations Center (iSOC), Innovation Zone, and Emergency...
Advocate Security Command Center
Confidential Location
The goal for the Advocate Security Command Center was to renovate an existing space and create a centralized security command center to serve Advocates 12...
Memorial Hermann Hospital System Network Operations Center
Houston, Texas
Memorial Hermann’s Network Operations Center lets them monitor the attributes of network and IT operations as well as the status of mechanical, electrical...
Charter Communications National Center West
Centennial, Colorado
As they looked to expand their National Center West facility near Denver, Colorado, then-owner Time Warner Cable turned to Gensler to lead the design, which...
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Gas Operation Control Center
San Ramon, California
The client’s new Control Center in San Ramon represents an efficient and streamlined prototype for information sharing, and provides a frontline for public...
Software Engineering Company
Oregon
As part of a multi-year effort to consolidate this software engineering company’s worldwide data centers, three new regional centers are being engineered as...
Multinational Computer Software Company
Hillsboro, Oregon
Foregoing the typical fortress prototype, this data facility strikes a balance between the complexity of its equipment and the needs of those who work...
IBM Guadalajara
Guadalajara, Mexico
Deciding that its previously designed warehouse would serve better as a data center, IBM enlisted Gensler to adapt the original design to this new purpose...
Cleveland Clinic Data Center
Brecksville, Ohio
The Clinic treats 4.6 million patients a year through 26 health institutes, and its medical records (which are maintained digitally) need to be available...
Southwest Energy Company Renovation/Repurpose
Southwest, United States
When the economic downturn scrapped a ground-up project, Gensler’s design team had a new directive: repurpose an 80,000-square-foot, 40-year-old building...
University of Illinois NCSA Petascale Computing Facility
Champaign, Illinois
This state-of-the-art, LEED®-NC Gold-certified building, designed to withstand an EF-3 tornado, provides a secure, efficient operating environment for one...
High-Performance Research Computing Center at Princeton University
Plainsboro, New Jersey
Situated on Princeton’s Forrestal campus, this 47,000 square-foot project is the new home to powerful research computers capable of such highly technical...
Banner Health Technology Center
Confidential Location
The design and documentation of this two-story, 65,000-square-foot facility were completed using BIM modeling software, which integrates the mechanical...
Financial Services (Full-Service Insurance) Company
Rochelle, Illinois
Data center requirements often consign design to a box — typically a windowless one. Rather than conform to conventional constraints, Gensler used them to...
Fannie Mae Data Center
Urbana, Maryland
The first mission critical facility to achieve LEED certification, this data center serves as the cornerstone of Fannie Mae's technology operations.
Financial Services (Auto Insurance) Corporation
Colorado
This Gensler-designed call center enables the client to be an employer of choice, while providing superior service to more than 700 independent insurers...
Financial Services (Banking) Company
Confidential Location, China
The final piece of the client's three-facility construction program, this state-of-the-art data center will be among the largest in China for domestic...
Project Cardinal
North Carolina, United States
Targeting LEED® Gold certification, this project serves as the prototype of the client’s next-generation data center program. At this fault-tolerant...
INSIGHTS
Blog
Historic Buildings: A New Solution for Modern Data Centers
Repurposing historic buildings into data centers is a compelling strategy for heritage preservation, sustainability, and digital transformation.
Blog
How AI Is Driving Innovation in the European Data Centre Market
The scale of data centre demand is driving innovations in energy generation, grid infrastructure, and cooling technologies.
Blog
How the AI Gold Rush Is Influencing Data Center Design Trends
Gensler’s Critical Facilities leaders discuss how the AI boom is influencing the shape, speed, and operations of data center design.
Blog
Fusion Center Models: The Future of 24/7 Banking Support Hubs
In an increasingly digital world, banks are turning to Fusion Centers to protect and respond to cybersecurity threats, financial fraud, and other concerns.
Blog
How Communities Can Benefit From Mixed-Use Data Center Integration
As suburban communities restrict new data centers, innovative master planning development is challenged with integrating critical facilities into mixed-use settings.
Blog
Why Industrial Developments Must Be Good Community Neighbors
How architects and designers can help data centers and industrial facilities become good stewards of the populations they serve.
Blog
Data Keeps Us Going:
Data Keeps Us Going:
How Data Centers Power Society
In today’s digital age, data, and data centers, have become as essential a utility as electricity or water.
Blog
Micro-Fulfillment: The Next Step to Faster, More Efficient Last-Mile Delivery
As more people shop online, micro-fulfillment strategies can improve delivery times. Here are five considerations to meet the challenges of last-mile delivery.
Blog
The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Data Center Design
The increased demands on data centers to perform AI computing is driving architects, engineers, and owners to find innovative design solutions.
Research
Designing for Lower Carbon Concrete in Data Center Constructions
The construction boom of data centers raises questions about their carbon footprint. We convened industry experts to understand how we can reduce the embodied carbon of data centers with lower carbon concrete.
Blog
Data Centres and the Forgotten Landscapes of Digital Infrastructure
Through regenerative design, we can change the perception of data centres from ‘bad neighbour’ developments to community assets.
Research
Utilizing Waste Heat From Data Centers
We interviewed expert engineers and conducted case study reviews to understand how to reduce the steep environmental costs related to the energy consumption and carbon emissions from waste heat.
Blog
An Evolving Practice: Industrial Architecture
Today, we are seeing production and logistics facilities pop-up closer to, and even within, our cities and communities.
Blog
Using Algae to Offset the Carbon Cost of Data Centres
Data centres use about 1% of the planet’s electricity and are responsible for about 0.25% of the world’s carbon footprint. What if there were a way to capture those carbon emissions within the building itself?
Blog
Living (and Thriving) at the Edge of Technology
Edge computing can improve performance, reduce costs, and help fuel the growth of next-generation technologies and applications.
Trends in Critical Facilities
The scarcity of power sources and suitable land drives design strategy.
Early site reservation and strategic planning in data center development is more crucial than ever as power and suitable land become scarcer. Operators must prioritize sites with the necessary infrastructure and secure power commitments in advance.
Decarbonization and sustainability efforts reshape the industry.
Clients are turning to low-impact materials, recycling and reusing equipment, and investing in renewable energy sources to reduce their carbon footprints. In order to decarbonize fully, data center operators are intertwining their operations with utilities — from providing waste heat export to on-site generation and sharing of sustainable energy.
Competition for skilled talent drives data center workplace design.
As competition for skilled workers intensifies, data centers must be more than just functional. Demand is up for spaces that offer attractive, well-designed environments with better interior design and amenities.
CRITICAL FACILITIES LEADERSHIP
David Fanning
Critical Facilities Leader
Dave Fanning is a Global Leader of Gensler’s Critical Facilities practice who has helped the world’s largest tech companies build and operate data centers.
Joost Lansbergen
Critical Facilities Leader
Joost Lansbergen specializes in BIM and modern construction techniques as a global leader of Gensler’s Critical Facilities practice.
Jackson Metcalf
Critical Facilities Leader, Principal
Jackson Metcalf is a global leader of Gensler’s Critical Facilities practice.
Josh Rosenthal
Studio Director
Josh Rosenthal is Studio Director in Gensler’s Houston office who specializes in the planning and management of complex technical projects that require particular consideration of security, process, and operational uptime.
NEWS
In The Media
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Fortune
Gensler’s Jordan Goldstein and Marriott’s Kristen Conry Lead Discussion on “Designing a New Way to Think” at Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech
Gensler co-CEO Jordan Goldstein and Kristen Conry, SVP of Global Design at Marriott International, shared insights on how tech is reshaping design through “phygital” experiences that empower human connection and personalization.
September 10, 2025
In The Media
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Fortune
Fortune Features Insights From Gensler Co-CEO Jordan Goldstein on How AI Is Reshaping Design
Gensler co-CEO Jordan Goldstein shares how AI is influencing design and transforming business. He describes AI as a creative partner that helps prototype more empathetic experiences, from calming hospital visits to reducing stress in airports.
September 03, 2025
In The Media
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Interior Design
Interior Design Spotlights the Gensler-Designed Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio
Gensler Healthcare Leader Randy Guillot shared how the five-story hub brings together a hybrid-use data and conference center and a state-of-the-art simulation center, with “hospital in a park” as the theme.
August 22, 2025
In The Media
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Fast Company
Fast Company Spotlights the Rise of Supersized Data Centers, Including the Gensler-Designed Wonder Valley
Gensler Critical Facilities Leader Rob LoBuono discussed Wonder Valley, a data center in Alberta, Canada, developed by O’Leary Ventures, which is set to be the world’s largest sustainable AI data center industrial park.
July 31, 2025
In The Media
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Fast Company
Fast Company Covered How Gensler Is Leading With Creativity In The Booming Data Center Sector
Gensler Design Manager Joy Hughes describes the explosive growth in data center projects and how creativity is helping these facilities become more sensitive to their surroundings.
February 05, 2025
In The Media
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Microsoft
How Microsoft Is Building Its First Datacenters With “Superstrong” Hybrid Mass Timber
Designed by Gensler and Thornton Tomasetti, Microsoft’s two Virginia datacenters will significantly reduce their embodied carbon footprint by 35% compared to conventional steel construction.
October 31, 2024
In The Media
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Data Center Knowledge
Critical Facilities Leader Jackson Metcalf Shares Best Practices for Building Sustainable Data Centers
The data center industry is addressing sustainability challenges through innovations in green materials, adaptive reuse, energy efficiency, and advancements in cooling technologies.
October 24, 2024
In The Media
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CoStar News
Gensler Retained Its Position As the #1 Architecture Firm in the U.S. in 2024
Sports facilities and data centers fueled revenue growth at top firms. Andy Cohen discussed the “growing demand for places and spaces that foster connection, promote interaction, and immerse people in real, visceral experiences.”
June 12, 2024
In The Media
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Healthcare Snapshots
Gensler Designed Nationwide Children’s Hospital Data Center + Conference Facility as a “Hybrid-Use Building”
The new “hybrid-use building” in Columbus combines a public learning and conference space with the security and resiliency of a leading-edge data center.
April 02, 2024
In The Media
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Healthcare Design
Nationwide Children’s Hospital Data Center + Conference Facility Adds New Data & Education Center on Campus
Designed by Gensler, the new building welcomes the pediatrics industry with a multipurpose conference facility and simulation labs, topped with a state-of-the-art data center.
February 16, 2024
In The Media
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Information Week
Reusing Waste Heat from Data Centres
Information Week interviewed Gensler Critical Facilities Leader Joost Lansbergen and Architect Matt Redding in a feature on reusing waste heat from data centres.
January 04, 2024
In The Media
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Green Building & Design
The Pros and Cons of Building With Precast Concrete
Gensler’s Jackson Metcalf shared the surprising benefits of precast concrete as a sustainable building material in the short- and long-term.
October 24, 2023
In The Media
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Commercial Observer
The Popularity of Converting Office Buildings Into Industrial Warehouse Product
Gensler’s Ben Koenig noted the most viable office-to-industrial conversions are offices that started their lives as industrial buildings.
June 20, 2023
In The Media
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Mission Critical Magazine
Gensler Critical Facilities Leader Jackson Metcalf Discusses Data Center Design Trends
Mission Critical interviewed Jackson Metcalf on the “Thought Cloud” podcast about the design trends shaping the booming data center industry.
May 26, 2023
In The Media
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ThisWeekinFM
ThisWeekinFM Highlights 10 Trends That Will Change the Built Environment From Gensler’s Design Forecast 2023
From the office as destination to mobility to decarbonization and more, here are 10 trends and design strategies that are changing the built environment.
February 16, 2023
In The Media
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Digital Journal
Digital Journal Named Gensler Among the Key Players in the Data Center Design Market
Gensler is featured in an annual growth market research report that details value chain analysis, price trends, opportunities, challenges, and strategic growth assessment.
January 09, 2023