XRT-CDC Modular & Prefabricated | UPS Solutions
20+ years • 100,000+ UPS units supported • 24/7 support
Containerised Data Centres, Built & Tested in the Factory
Delivered and Supported Australia-Wide
A traditional data centre build means a slab, a building fabric, a mechanical contractor, an electrical contractor and a commissioning window measured in quarters. The XRT-CDC range compresses all of it into a factory process, so what arrives on your site is a finished, witness-tested facility rather than a construction project.
Racks, precision cooling, UPS, batteries, distribution, fire suppression, access control and monitoring are installed and proven under load before the container leaves the floor. Site works reduce to footings, a supply connection, a data path and final commissioning, whether that site is a mine in the Pilbara, a forward defence position, an offshore support base or an AI compute cluster.
Need a containerised data centre scoped or costed?
- Free heat-load & power assessment
- Configuration & sizing to your brief
- Factory acceptance testing
- Install, commission & 24/7 support
Inside the rack row
Cutaway, 20ft all-in-one
One Container, a Double Bay, or a Container Park
Modularity is only useful if the second unit costs less effort than the first. Deployments are planned so distribution, cooling headroom and monitoring are sized for the end state, and each expansion is an addition rather than a rebuild.
A complete data centre in one enclosure. IT racks, wall mounted cooling, AC and DC power, battery storage, distribution, monitoring and fire protection, built and load tested before it ships.
Available in 10ft, 20ft and 40ft. IP55 rated and thermally insulated for deployment from -40°C to +55°C ambient.
Two containers joined along their length to make a single room 4876mm wide. Racks face in from both sides onto a true central contained aisle, which is how a 2 x 40ft bay reaches up to 32 racks.
Integrated racks, cooling, power, battery systems, distribution, monitoring and fire protection, IP55 rated and thermally insulated.
Dedicated modules for data halls, power rooms, monitoring spaces, lobbies and support functions, linked into a single site. This is where megawatt scale AI and mining deployments live.
Campus style deployment with IP55 protection and thermal insulation, scaled by adding modules rather than rebuilding the original units.
Built for the Site, Not the Server Room
Every XRT-CDC ships as a hardened enclosure before anything is installed inside it. These are the protections that decide whether a container survives a decade on a mine pad, a coastal support base or a forward position.
IP55 sealed
Dust and water protection to IEC 60529, so the IT space stays clean on an open mine pad.
C5M corrosion protection
Optional high durability coating with 750 hour alternating salt spray resistance for coastal and offshore sites.
Ballistic rated
Optional ballistic protection on the enclosure for defence and secure government deployments.
Fire rated to 120 minutes
Fire rated construction options, VESDA class aspirating detection and FM200 or Novec 1230 clean agent suppression.
Rock wool insulated
1.6mm steel plate walls and a 4mm stainless steel floor, with heat transfer held at or below 0.4 W/(m²·K).
-40°C to +55°C
Rated for continuous operation across the full Australian range, from alpine to Pilbara ambient.
Steel plate walls, insulated panels and a sealed floor. The enclosure is built and hardened before anything is installed inside it.
Plan View of Each Configuration
Drawn to true relative scale, so the footprints compare honestly.
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Why the Layout Matters More Than the Label on the Door
Roughly twice the IT in the same steel box
A conventional container splits the box in two and gives half of it to a condenser section. The XRT-CDC keeps the cooling on the wall and runs the racks as a single row on sliding rails, which is how the same footprint ends up holding roughly twice the IT.
Cooling is mounted inside the container envelope before shipping, so nothing is loose on the roof, transit damage drops and commissioning on site is shorter. Racks run out on rails for front and rear access, so a technician is not working blind in a narrow aisle, and cable management and airflow paths both improve as a result.
Hot and cold channels are sealed so supply air cannot short circuit back to the return, which is what holds rack inlet temperatures stable at high density. Full containment is optional and is CFD modelled against the specific rack layout and heat load.
Wall mounted cooling releases the floor area a split condenser section would otherwise consume.
More usable rack space
Where a conventional container layout takes four racks, the XRT-CDC layout takes eight.
Lower energy consumption
Free cooling and modulating EC fans cut the energy needed to hold the same rack inlet temperature.
Faster deployment
Prefabrication and factory acceptance testing move the build off your site and into the factory.
Cooling Sized to the Load and the Site
Container cooling is not one product. A 5kW per rack comms container in Adelaide and a 100kW per rack training cluster in the Pilbara need different machines, so we size it rather than force one architecture on every project.
Side & Wall Mount Cooling
5.5 – 31.5 kW
- Highest usable rack density per container
- Secured for shipping, minimal site commissioning
- Independent internal and external loops keep dust out
Top Mount Cooling
Sized to load
- Maximum internal wall space retained
- Good fit for tightly grouped container parks
- Serviced from roof level walkways
In-Row Cooling
5.6 – 90 kW
- Close coupled to the heat source
- Handles high density racks inside a mixed row
- Scales by adding units rather than resizing plant
Room Based Cooling
5.5 – 122.9 kW
- Suits dual bay and multi-container halls
- Highest single unit capacity
- Straightforward N+1 and 2N redundancy
Fully Integrated Systems
Factory installed
- Cooling wired, charged and tested before dispatch
- Monitored through the same DCIM platform
- N+1 redundancy as standard
Liquid Cooling for AI and HPC Racks
Air runs out of headroom somewhere around 30 to 40 kW a rack. GPU training racks start where air stops, so the heat has to be taken at the chip, at the rack door or in the tank, not carried across a room. All three are available inside an XRT-CDC container and all three are commissioned by us.
Explore liquid cooling →Rear door heat exchanger
Bolts onto the back of a standard rack and captures the heat as it leaves. The lowest disruption route to high density.
Up to 65.8 kW per rackDirect to chip
Cold plates on the processors, fed by a CDU. The route NVIDIA class rack-scale systems are designed around.
100 kW in 4U · CDU to 2020 kWImmersion
Servers fully submerged in dielectric fluid. Highest density per square metre and no mechanical refrigeration in most Australian climates.
Up to 200 kW per cabinetWhere the Heat Actually Goes
Both sections are the same container width at the same scale. Air cooling manages a room air path. Liquid cooling removes the heat before it becomes room air.
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Direct free cooling with hybrid air technology reaches a PUE as low as 1.1 in favourable conditions. Indirect free cooling reaches 1.2.
Mechanical mode EER of 3.9, rising to 28.9 in free cooling mode, with R134a refrigerant and no water consumption.
EER figures are typical, based on 37°C return air at 35°C ambient in mechanical mode and 5°C ambient in free cooling mode. PUE depends on load, climate and configuration.
From a 10kVA Comms Hut to a Multi-Megawatt Container Park
The same integration approach carries across the whole range. What changes is the UPS topology, the battery chemistry and how many containers share a distribution spine.
Rack Mount UPS
Online double conversion in the IT rack itself. Suits remote comms shelters, edge nodes and single rack deployments.
Modular Rack UPS
Hot swappable power modules with N+1 redundancy inside a standard rack footprint. Capacity grows by adding modules.
Modular Floor UPS
Floor standing modular systems for compute halls and high density containers. Configurable to Tier I to IV distribution.
48VDC Rectifier Plant
19-inch rectifier shelves with optional solar input, LiFePO₄ strings and operation to 75°C ambient.
How the Power Actually Runs
Mechanical services sit upstream of the UPS so cooling never draws on battery autonomy, and a manual bypass lets the UPS be serviced with the load still live.
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Intelligent Monitoring & DCIM
One view across every container on the site
One operations view across every site
Every container on every site rolls up into a single console, so a Pilbara pod and a Sydney edge node are watched the same way, by the same team, against the same thresholds.
The controller in the container
An on-board DCIM controller and touchscreen run the container on their own. If the link to head office drops, alarms, interlocks and logging carry on regardless.
Local touchscreen in 10-inch, 21-inch or 42-inch formats, with remote web access.
- Full visibility of UPS, cooling, power panels and sensors
- SNMP, Modbus-TCP and BACnet protocol support
- Remote access by web, with SMS and email alerting
- Leak, smoke, door, temperature and humidity sensors
- Integrates with existing BMS platforms
- Alarms and interlocks keep running if the site link drops
AI Infrastructure: Two Containers, One Cluster
You supply the servers, we supply the facility
GPU platforms in the class of NVIDIA rack-scale systems put 40kW to well past 100kW into a single rack, and they need power quality, thermal capacity and physical security that a plant room retrofit cannot deliver quickly. The answer is to split the problem across two purpose-built containers and deliver both as one commissioned system.
How the Two Containers Split the Job
Battery energy and liquid cooling sit in separate steel boxes, each with its own fire compartment, each scaling on its own clock.
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Heat and hazard stay apart
Battery energy sits in its own fire compartment with its own suppression and detection, so the compute container is free to run a liquid loop at the density AI training demands.
Each half scales on its own clock
Add compute containers as the cluster grows and uprate the power container once, rather than rebuilding a single box every time the GPU count changes.
Deployable where the power is
Compute can go where land, grid capacity and fibre are available rather than where a building already exists. Both containers ship on standard transport.
Where We Have Already Put Steel on the Ground
Containerised infrastructure earns its keep where a building is slow, expensive or simply not permitted. These are the environments the XRT-CDC platform is already hardened for, and the list is not a limit on what we will quote.
Deployable and secure
Ballistic rated enclosure options, three-in-one access control by PIN, card or fingerprint, integrated surveillance and a footprint that moves when the mission does.
Read more →Dust, heat and distance
IP55 sealed enclosure, operation to +55°C ambient, rock wool insulated envelope and independent internal and external cooling loops that keep dust out of the IT space.
Read more →Corrosive and remote
C5M high corrosion protection for coastal and offshore support environments, salt spray tested construction, and fire rated options up to 120 minutes.
Read more →Density without a building
Liquid cooled compute containers paired with dedicated power containers, sited where grid capacity and fibre exist rather than where a data hall happens to be.
Read more →Container construction
- Designed to ISO 668 container standards
- Service life beyond 15 years to ISO 2394:1998
- IP55 water and dust protection to IEC 60529
- 750 hour alternating salt spray corrosion resistance
- Rock wool insulation, heat transfer ≤0.4 W/(m²·K)
- 1.6mm steel plate walls, 4mm stainless steel floor
- Operating range -40°C to +55°C, RAL 7035 finish
- Optional ballistic rating and C5M coastal protection
Racks, fire and security
- 1800kg static load capacity per rack
- 600mm or 800mm width, 1100mm or 1200mm depth
- Sliding rack design for front and rear service access
- Optional hot and cold aisle containment, CFD modelled
- Fire rated protection options up to 120 minutes
- VESDA class early aspirating detection
- FM200 or Novec 1230 clean agent suppression
- IP55 three-in-one access control and video surveillance
Every configuration, the complete construction and cooling specifications, and the deployment detail behind this page.
Your environment is probably on the list even if it is not on this page
Healthcare, utilities, transport, broadcast, research and government have all bought the same platform under a different brief. If you can describe the load, the ambient conditions and the access constraints, we can configure and cost it, including one-off requirements that are not in any brochure.
Why Choose UPS Solutions for Containerised Data Centres
Australian owned critical power and cooling specialists. We design, supply, install, commission and maintain the whole facility, not just the box it arrives in.
Australian field team
Local technicians across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and beyond, so the people who commission your container are the people who come back to service it.
Tested before it ships
Every unit is built, wired and load tested at the factory with witness testing available, so site works reduce to footings, a supply connection, a data path and final commissioning.
One contract, whole facility
Enclosure, racks, cooling, UPS, batteries, distribution, fire suppression, access control and monitoring under a single scope, rather than five vendors pointing at each other.
24/7 support after handover
Preventive maintenance, battery replacement, cooling service and emergency call-out across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, day or night.
Installed and Tested Before Dispatch
A container that arrives half finished is still a construction project. Every XRT-CDC is built, wired, charged and load tested on the factory floor, so what lands on your slab is a facility you can energise rather than a shell to fit out.
- Enclosure, racks & containment
- Precision or liquid cooling
- UPS, batteries & distribution
- Fire detection & suppression
- Access control & surveillance
- DCIM monitoring & alerting
Containerised Data Centre FAQs
The questions we are asked most often when scoping a containerised data centre, switchroom or power train unit.
What is a containerised data centre?
A containerised data centre is a complete data centre built inside a shipping container sized enclosure. IT racks, precision cooling, UPS, batteries, power distribution, fire suppression, security and monitoring are all installed and tested at the factory, so the unit arrives on site as a finished facility rather than a shell to fit out. It is also called a modular, prefabricated or container data centre.
What is a containerised switchroom?
A containerised switchroom is an ISO container fitted out as a complete electrical room, with switchgear, distribution, protection, metering and environmental control installed and tested in the factory before it ships. It is the same build approach as a containerised data centre, with the electrical infrastructure as the payload instead of IT racks. Outside Australia the same product is usually called an e-house. XRT-CDC covers both, and the two are frequently ordered together so the switchroom and the IT container arrive as a matched pair.
What is a power train unit (PTU)?
A power train unit is a prefabricated module that carries the whole electrical path feeding an IT load: transformer, switchboard, UPS, batteries and output distribution, integrated and factory tested as one assembly. It is also called a modular power skid or a prefabricated power module. Building the power train off site means the electrical works stop being the critical path on your programme, because the module arrives commissioned rather than being assembled in a live building. XRT-CDC power train units are available in N, N+1 and N+N configurations.
Is a containerised data centre the same as a modular or prefabricated data centre?
They overlap. Modular data centre is the broadest term and covers any facility built from repeatable prefabricated blocks, whether those blocks are ISO containers, skids or purpose built modules. A containerised data centre is the subset built inside shipping containers, which is what makes it transportable on standard road and rail. A prefabricated data centre means the same thing as modular in most Australian tenders. XRT-CDC is all three.
What is an edge or micro data centre?
An edge data centre puts compute close to where the data is created rather than in a capital city colocation facility, which cuts latency and the cost of backhaul. In Australia that usually means a mine site, a port, a telecom exchange, a regional hospital or a 5G aggregation point. A micro data centre is the smallest form of this, typically a single rack or a 10ft container. XRT-CDC starts at that scale and uses the same components as the multi-container builds, so the spare parts and the support contract are common across your fleet.
How many server racks fit in a 20ft or 40ft container?
The XRT-CDC layout holds up to 8 racks in a 20ft container and up to 18 racks in a 40ft container, because the cooling is wall mounted rather than occupying a separate condenser section. A conventional split cooling container of the same size typically takes four racks. A dual bay configuration of two 40ft containers takes up to 32 racks with a central contained aisle.
Can a containerised data centre run AI and GPU workloads?
Yes. High density AI and HPC racks are handled with liquid cooling rather than air, using rear door heat exchangers, direct-to-chip cold plates or immersion tanks. The common pattern for AI is two containers: one holding the UPS, batteries and distribution, and a second holding the liquid cooled compute racks. The customer installs their GPU nodes and the facility is otherwise complete.
Can I add a container to house my existing UPS?
Yes. A container switchroom for an existing UPS is one of the more common XRT-CDC applications, particularly where a site has outgrown its electrical room but the UPS itself still has service life. We build the enclosure, cooling, distribution and environmental monitoring around the equipment you already own, rather than requiring you to replace it. The XRT-CDC range is UPS agnostic, so client supplied gear is supported.
What cooling options are available?
Wall and side mounted cooling from 5.5 to 31.5kW, in-row cooling from 5.6 to 90kW, room based cooling from 5.5 to 122.9kW, top mounted cooling, and liquid cooling for high density AI workloads. Direct and indirect free cooling are available to reduce PUE, with indirect free cooling reaching a PUE as low as 1.2 and direct free cooling with hybrid air technology as low as 1.1 in favourable conditions.
What UPS capacity can be installed in a container?
From 3kVA rack mounted units up to 600kVA modular floor standing systems in a single container, plus 48VDC rectifier plant from 60A to 1200A. Multi-megawatt capacity is achieved by deploying dedicated power containers alongside compute containers in a multi-container configuration.
How long does a containerised data centre take to deploy?
Because the unit is prefabricated and factory acceptance tested, deployment is typically around 20% faster than an equivalent traditional build, and site works reduce to foundations or footings, a power connection, a data path and final commissioning. Lead time depends on configuration, cooling selection and UPS sizing, so we quote it against your specific brief.
How much does a containerised data centre cost?
There is no single list price, because the cost is driven by the IT load in kW, the redundancy target, the cooling architecture and the site conditions rather than by the size of the box. A 10ft edge enclosure with a single rack and a small UPS sits at one end of the range and a liquid cooled 800kW AI hall with 2N power sits at the other. Send us the rack count, kW per rack, redundancy target and site location and we will put a configured price in front of you rather than a range.
Will it survive an Australian mine site or coastal installation?
The enclosure is IP55 rated, salt spray tested, rock wool insulated and rated for operation from -40°C to +55°C, with optional C5M high corrosion protection for coastal and offshore environments and fire rated construction up to 120 minutes. Cooling uses independent internal and external loops so dust and moisture do not enter the IT space.
What is the difference between XRT-CDC and XRT-AI?
XRT-CDC is the containerised data centre platform: the enclosure, racks, cooling, UPS, distribution and monitoring, configured to whatever the site needs across defence, mining, oil and gas or general IT. XRT-AI is a set of seven pre-engineered configurations built on that same platform specifically for accelerated computing, from a 25kW single rack node up to an 800kW liquid cooled containerised hall, plus multi-pod AI farm campuses.
Do you install and maintain the container after delivery?
Yes. UPS Solutions designs, supplies, installs, commissions and maintains the complete system across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, including preventive maintenance, battery replacement, cooling service and 24/7 support.