Direct-to-chip (DTC) cooling circulates coolant through cold plates mounted on CPUs and GPUs, removing heat at source. Neumo UK supplies the stainless steel tube, fittings and valves for the loops that make it work — from CDU connections through TCS distribution to the pipework feeding rack manifolds.
DTC has become the principal cooling method for AI-ready new builds because it removes heat where air can’t: at chips whose thermal design power now routinely exceeds 700 W, in racks pushing past 100 kW. The IT hardware, cold plates and manifolds usually arrive with the servers. The pipework that feeds them is facility scope — and that’s where Neumo comes in.
Where our scope sits in a DTC system
A typical single-phase DTC architecture, chip outwards:
- Cold plates & server loops — arrive with the IT hardware (not our scope)
- Rack manifolds & quick disconnects — usually OEM-supplied
- Row/room distribution to racks — Neumo scope: sanitary stainless tube, clamp fittings, isolation valves
- CDU connections and skids — Neumo scope: tube, unions, butterfly valves, fittings for skid fabrication
- Technology Cooling System (TCS) loop — Neumo scope: ½”–8″ tube, fittings, flanges
- Facility Water System (FWS) — Neumo scope option: pressure-rated metric tube system and PN16 flanges
What DTC demands of its pipework
- Cleanliness: microchannel cold plates make coolant purity a reliability issue — controlled internal surface finish is the passive defence (why surface finish matters)
- Chemical compatibility: treated water and PG25-type glycol mixes, with inhibitor packages intact over years
- Warm-water readiness: supply temperatures of 30–45 °C for free cooling and heat reuse are comfortably inside stainless steel’s envelope, with no pressure de-rating
- Programme certainty: DTC halls are built fast; UK-held stock and early engagement keep pipework off the critical path
Frequently asked questions
Single-phase or two-phase DTC?
Our stainless range serves single-phase water/glycol systems — the dominant architecture. For two-phase dielectric systems, contact us to discuss material compatibility case by case.
Do you supply the cold plates or manifolds?
No — we supply the facility-side infrastructure that feeds them, which is typically the contractor’s or skid builder’s procurement.
Talk to us about your project
Kevin Windsor — Product Manager, Data Centre Liquid Cooling
kw@neumo.co.uk · 01952 583 999