Nidec Develops "STC 1.0" Liquid Cooling Prototype for AI Data Centers
On June 2, 2026, Nidec announced the development of a prototype for the "STC 1.0," a next-generation liquid cooling solution designed to enhance data center design flexibility. Featuring a stackable structure of up to five Coolant Distribution Units (CDUs), the system provides scalable cooling capacity of up to 1MW, with flexible customization supporting up to 1.6 MW .
As generative AI becomes more prevalent, the heat density of servers continues to rise annually. Traditional CDUs with fixed cooling capacities required implementing high-capacity equipment in advance. The "STC 1.0" was developed to balance future scalability with optimal initial configuration .
Key Features:
Scalable Cooling Capacity: Up to five In-Rack CDUs can be stacked based on server thermal load specifications, supporting configurations from containerized data centers to large-scale facilities .
Balancing Maintainability and Reliability: Each unit in the stack is independently configured, achieving high system-wide reliability. The redundant CDU configuration enables maintenance operations while keeping servers online .
The prototype is scheduled for its debut at "Interop Tokyo 2026" and "IDCExpo 2026" in June 2026 to gather feedback from data center operators and server manufacturers .
