IT Equipment Energy Assessment Tool (IT Efficiency Tool), Version 2.5 (October 2023)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Center of Expertise for Energy Efficiency in Data Centers · Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
The DOE's Excel-based tool, maintained by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, that identifies savings from upgrades of server, storage and network equipment.
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Overview
The IT Efficiency Tool is an Excel-based tool of the US Department of Energy (DOE), maintained by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) Center of Expertise for Energy Efficiency in Data Centers. It is used to identify the savings that can be achieved by upgrading IT equipment, meaning servers, storage and network devices. The resource page is freely accessible, and the tool is distributed as an Excel file with a user manual (Version 2.5, 27 October 2023).
Citing the Uptime Institute (2020), the resource page states that many IT efficiency opportunities in servers, network and storage remain untapped. The tool's purpose is to make those opportunities measurable. It acts as a counterweight to efficiency work that focuses mostly on cooling and power infrastructure while overlooking the IT equipment itself. The November 2023 version brought two notable changes. The first is that on-site water savings can be calculated using the WUE metric. The second is improved interoperability among the IT Equipment, Air Management and Electrical Power Chain system tools. As a result, the knock-on effect of an IT refresh on cooling and power losses can be followed within a single tool family.
The tool is a resource and calculator rather than an independent standard or regulation, and its results depend on the quality of the input data. ISO/IEC 30134-9 (WUE) is named as the related standard.
Key points
- The DOE's Excel-based IT Efficiency Tool is maintained by the LBNL Center of Expertise.
- It identifies savings from server, storage and network equipment upgrades.
- The November 2023 version added on-site water savings using the WUE metric.
- Interoperability among the IT Equipment, Air Management and Electrical Power Chain tools was improved.
- Distributed as an Excel tool with a user manual (Version 2.5, 10-27-2023).
- The page cites Uptime Institute (2020) that many IT efficiency opportunities remain untapped.
- Related standard: ISO/IEC 30134-9 (WUE).
Using it in design
- In IT-refresh scenarios, propagate savings through cooling losses, power losses and water (WUE), as the DOE tool suite does.
- Align input fields with this tool suite so users can cross-check results.
- Model server, storage and network refreshes as separate items.
- Report water savings through WUE and use definitions consistent with ISO/IEC 30134-9.
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Who should read it
Data centre engineers and energy managers assessing the energy and water impact of IT equipment refresh scenarios.
Related standards
- ISO/IEC 30134-9 (WUE)
Publication details
- Authors
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Publisher
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Center of Expertise for Energy Efficiency in Data Centers
- Year
- 2023
- Document number
- Version 2.5
- Document language
- English
- Source type
- Government / public
- Access
- Free to read
- Licence
- Copyright retained; citation only — the publisher’s terms apply to the original document
Original licence note
LBNL (contractor-operated DOE laboratory) resource; not US-Gov public domain. Cited only.
Citation
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (2023). IT Equipment Energy Assessment Tool (IT Efficiency Tool), Version 2.5 (October 2023). Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Center of Expertise for Energy Efficiency in Data Centers. Version 2.5. https://datacenters.lbl.gov/resources/it-efficiency-assessment-tool
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Related sources
All sources on this topicLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory 2024
2024 United States Data Center Energy Usage Report (LBNL-2001637, December 2024)
Take AI rack and node power assumptions (3.4 to 12.2 kW per 8-GPU server, 20% idle) as a cross-check on IT load models, not as a substitute for vendor data.
- U.S. data centers used about 76 TWh (1.9% of U.S. electricity) in 2018 and 176 TWh (4.4%) in 2023.
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory 2016
United States Data Center Energy Usage Report (LBNL-1005775, June 2016)
Use the space-type PUE table as a sanity check on early-stage PUE assumptions, remembering these are 2014 national averages, not design targets.
- Electricity use grew about 4% over 2010-2014, versus about 24% over 2005-2010 and nearly 90% over 2000-2005.
European Commission 2026
Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the energy efficiency of data centres in the EU - COM(2026) 500 final
Set the PUE target for new designs against the bands in the report (below 1.2 excellent, above 1.5 needs improvement) and possible future minimum-standard thresholds, noting that the 500-1000 kW class averaged 1.64.
- EU data centres consumed 68 TWh of electricity in 2024, expected to reach 114 TWh by 2030 (3.2% of EU electricity).
European Commission 2026
Annexes 1 to 3 to Commission Delegated Regulation C(2026) 3472 - EU data centre energy (PUE) and water (WUE) efficiency classes, data centre label, and amendments to Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1364
Translate PUE and WUE targets into A-G classes: class A needs a design PUE of 1.15 or below and WUE of 0.1 or below; the class D boundary is 1.5 and 0.6. Write the class target into the design specification.
- WUE classes: A <= 0.1; B 0.1-0.2; C 0.2-0.4; D 0.4-0.6; E 0.6-0.8; F 0.8-1.0; G > 1.0.
European Commission 2026
Commission Delegated Regulation C(2026) 3472 of 21.9.2026 supplementing Directive (EU) 2023/1791 and amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1364 as regards the establishment of a common Union rating scheme for data centres (main act)
As labels will be issued every year from 15 August 2027, set PUE and WUE class targets (Annex I) at design stage for new and existing sites and build the metering infrastructure to the reporting requirements.
- Labels are generated automatically by the European database every year from 15 August 2027 and are publicly available electronically in all official Union languages.
European Commission, DG Energy 2025
Assessment of the energy performance and sustainability of data centres in EU - First technical report (July 2025)
Compare your design PUE target with the real EU spread: 1.21 on average above 10 MW, 1.55 at 1-2 MW; set a realistic bound for your facility size.
- Rule of thumb cited: PUE below 1.2 excellent, 1.2-1.5 good, above 1.5 room for improvement.