Information technology - Data centres key performance indicators - Part 9: Water usage effectiveness (WUE)

Overview

The standard is the ninth part of the ISO/IEC 30134 series of data centre key performance indicators and defines water usage effectiveness (WUE). WUE is a simple indicator that quantifies a data centre's water consumption during the use phase, giving a common way to report the water intensity of operation. Edition 1 was published on 24 March 2022 and runs to 19 pages. It is a paid standard; only the publisher's public catalogue abstract and product details were used here.

The standard does more than give a formula. It introduces WUE measurement categories and defines how measurement, calculation and reporting are carried out. The categories imply that the same indicator can be obtained at different depths of measurement and that a reported value should state the category it came from, so that WUE figures from two sites are not compared without knowing their measurement approach.

According to the catalogue abstract, the standard also addresses the relationship of the indicator to infrastructure and IT operations and gives guidance on interpretation. This signals that WUE should be read not as a standalone measure of merit but together with cooling design, operating mode and energy efficiency. Related standards recorded include ISO/IEC 30134-1, EN 50600-4-9 and The Green Grid WP35. Limits: the full text was not read, so formula details, category definitions and any thresholds are absent from this record. For a designer its value is in steering the water-management module to be handled alongside PUE and with the same measurement discipline.

Key points

1. WUE quantifies the water consumption of a data centre during the use phase.
2. WUE is a simple method for reporting the water intensity of data centre operation.
3. The standard introduces WUE measurement categories.
4. It defines measurement, calculation and reporting of WUE.
5. The indicator is interpreted in relation to infrastructure and IT operations.
6. Edition 1, published 2022-03-24, 19 pages.
7. Related standards: ISO/IEC 30134-1, EN 50600-4-9, The Green Grid WP35.

Using it in design

• In the water module, derive WUE (L/kWh_IT) from the hourly cooling model (evaporation, blowdown, humidification) and tag it with its measurement category.
• Show WUE next to PUE so the trade-off between evaporative and dry or adiabatic cooling is visible.
• Document which measurement category a reported WUE rests on; do not compare different categories directly.
• Do not write thresholds or targets without consulting the standard itself; this record only summarises scope.

Who should read it

Engineers designing cooling and water management, and operators doing sustainability reporting.

Related standards

• ISO/IEC 30134-1
• EN 50600-4-9
• The Green Grid WP35

Publication details

Authors

ISO/IEC JTC 1

Publisher

ISO/IEC

Year

2022

Document number

ISO/IEC 30134-9:2022

Document language

English

Source type

Standard

Access

Citation only

Licence

Copyright retained; citation only — the publisher’s terms apply to the original document

Citation