Sustainability

PFALZKOM attaches great importance to responsible corporate governance and fair and reliable partnerships. It goes without saying that we also have this aspiration towards our employees. We want to treat the environment and the use of resources in the best possible way and keep our ecological footprint as small as possible. Our commitment to sustainability therefore focuses on the areas of environment, social affairs and sustainable corporate governance – ESG for short.
Our premise: Taking responsibility for nature, employees and customers.

Member of the corporate climate protection network

In 2024, we joined the Climate Protection Business Network. Companies that want to actively contribute to climate protection network on the IHK platform. Here you will find useful information and training offers for the path to climate neutrality. Companies can also actively use the platform to exchange knowledge and experience with other companies.

Certifications

Sustainable, future-proof Data Centers

With our modern and energy-efficient Data Centers, we are setting a good example: we are continuously taking measures to further reduce our energy consumption and cause fewer greenhouse gas emissions. We have been using a photovoltaic system on the roof of DCRN I since 2010, and since 2017 we have also been operating our data centers with 100% green electricity, thus making a contribution to climate protection.
Achieving a high level of energy efficiency is a sustainability issue for us, which is also of economic interest to our customers.

We operate our Data Centers in an energy-efficient manner and achieve top PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) values.
This means less power consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Our Data Centers already meet the requirements of the Energy Efficiency Act in terms of PUE.

PUE < 1.3 (DCRN II)
PUE < 1.4 (DCRN I)

Since 2017, our Data Centers have been powered by 100% green electricity from hydropower plants (Germany, Austria, France and Switzerland).

We use the waste heat from the server rooms to heat the office areas of the Data Center (DCRN I). This allows us to dispense with 100% of the additional heating in the office wing of the Data Center.

To reduce energy consumption, we optimize cooling by consistently enclosing cold aisles, hot aisles and racks. We use physical barriers to reduce the mixing of cool supply air and warm exhaust air.

Sustainable, future-proof Data Centers

Energy efficiency

We operate our Data Centers in an energy-efficient manner and achieve top PUE values (Power Usage Effectiveness). This means less power consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. In terms of PUE, our data centers already meet the requirements of the Energy Efficiency Act.

PUE < 1.3 (DCRN II)
PUE < 1.4 (DCRN I)

Clean, renewable energy

Since 2017, our Data Centers have been powered by 100% green electricity from hydropower plants (Germany, Austria, France and Switzerland).

Waste heat utilization

We use the waste heat from the server rooms to heat the office areas of the Data Center (DCRN I). This allows us to dispense with 100% of the additional heating in the office wing of the Data Center.

Enclosure of the cold aisles and hot aisles

To reduce energy consumption, we optimize cooling by consistently enclosing the cold aisles, hot aisles and racks: we use physical barriers to reduce the mixing of cool supply air and warm exhaust air.

Energy-efficient Data Centers: What is the PUE?

In Data Centers, it is not only the information technology that requires electricity, but also the building technology. This includes air conditioning, lighting, cooling systems, uninterruptible power supply, fire protection and security technology. The so-called PUE value (Power Usage Effectiveness) is a measure of the efficiency of the data center infrastructure. It sets the annual energy requirement of the entire data center in relation to the annual energy requirement of the data center’s IT. This varies depending on the technical and local conditions. The closer the PUE approaches the value 1, the more energy-efficient the data center is.

Cooling systems

Use of energy-efficient cooling technologies
Precise coordination of the cooling technology with extensive sensor and control systems

Data analysis

Monitored control technology
Monitoring of operating data
Data management

Enclosure

Optimized cooling through consistent enclosure of the cold aisles or hot aisles and racks
Strict separation of warm air and cold air zones

Prevention

Careful maintenance and care
Preventive measures on the cooling systems (e.g. frequent filter replacement)
Stress tests

Optimization

Continuous improvement of the control and regulation of the (cooling) systems
Implementation of certifications
Energy consulting and energy efficiency management

Commitment to the Climate Neutral Data Center Pact

PFALZKOM has been part of the Climate Neutral Data Center Pact since July 2021. The initiative has set itself the goal of operating data centers in a climate-neutral manner by 2030. Its members are committed to supporting the EU’s climate neutrality target with concrete measures. The initiative was developed in collaboration with the European Commission.

Learn more

E-mobility: Charging stations for electric vehicles at our Data Centers

E-mobility protects the climate. At PFALZKOM, we believe it is important to supplement the public charging infrastructure so that this trend can continue to gain momentum. We want to offer customers, visitors, and employees the opportunity to charge their electric cars with green electricity at our Data Centers.

At our two locations, DCRN I and DCRN II, there are four AC charging points with up to 22 kW of power available at each site. In addition, our own vehicle fleet is currently being converted entirely to electric vehicles.

Tagesschau interview: Sustainable Data Centers – is that possible?

How can Data Centers become more sustainable? To get to the bottom of this question, SWR conducted research on sustainable Data Centers. SWR editor Christian Kretschmer spoke with Jürgen Beyer and Uwe Burre, the two managing directors of PFALZKOM. He published the information from his research in an article on Tagesschau.

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Benefiting from diversity in the company in the long term

In August 2024, our Group signed the Diversity Charter for more diversity in the world of work and took part in German Diversity Day. Our co-design group for diversity pursues the clear goal of highlighting the diversity of the workforce in all its dimensions and supporting and promoting its interests.

Work-life balance at PFALZKOM

We consciously promote flexible and mobile working for our employees.
We support our employees individually and in all situations.
We provide our employees with counseling services for challenges relating to work, family, and everyday life.
We have a nursing room for young families.

Digital responsibility: Sustainable use of data

Sustainable handling of digital data is important to us—as part of our digital responsibility. By participating in the Digital Data Cleanup campaign, we want to raise awareness of the impact of the digital world on the climate, environment, and health.

Digital data consumes resources such as water and electricity, and causes immense amounts of CO₂ emissions worldwide. Storing unnecessary or outdated data and overfilled mailboxes not only causes greenhouse gas emissions, but also creates digital ballast for employees. That’s why we’ve cleaned up desktops and drives of files that are no longer needed, dusted off the cloud, and deleted outdated emails.
Together with the Corporate Digital Responsibility Initiative, we want to counteract the uncontrolled growth of data volumes. At the same time, we can reduce digital ballast for mental health – in line with social sustainability.