Artificial intelligence is changing more than the scale of data centres. It is also reshaping the technologies operators are choosing to reduce energy consumption, extend infrastructure lifecycles and prepare facilities for increasingly demanding workloads.
That shift is reflected in the latest recognition for Legrand’s Keor FLEX modular uninterruptible power supply (UPS), which has been named “Data Centre Sustainability Innovation of the Year” at the DCS Awards 2026. The award follows an earlier success at the Data Centre World Awards, where the system was recognised for innovation in the reuse and recycling of products, energy or data centre infrastructure.
While the awards recognise a single product, they also highlight a wider trend emerging across the data centre industry. As AI workloads drive higher power densities and greater electricity demand, sustainability is becoming inseparable from infrastructure design. Operators are increasingly seeking technologies that improve efficiency while supporting the flexibility required by rapidly evolving computing environments.
The DCS Awards placed particular emphasis on environmental performance, recognising technologies capable of delivering measurable improvements in energy efficiency and sustainability within data centres.
AI changes the sustainability equation
The growth of AI has intensified longstanding challenges around power consumption and operational efficiency.
Training and running advanced AI models requires substantial computing capacity, increasing pressure on every element of the electrical infrastructure supporting modern facilities. Components that were once viewed primarily through the lens of resilience are now also being evaluated for their contribution to energy efficiency, lifecycle performance and resource consumption.
Legrand’s Keor FLEX has been designed around that changing environment. The modular UPS platform is scalable from 100kW to 1.2MW per frame and up to 4.8MW in parallel, allowing operators to expand capacity as demand grows rather than replacing entire systems.
The company says the system delivers efficiency of up to 98.6 per cent in double-conversion mode and more than 99 per cent in ECO mode. Its hot-swappable modular architecture also enables maintenance and targeted module replacement without downtime, while supporting a longer operational life than conventional monolithic UPS systems.
The emphasis on modularity reflects a broader movement within digital infrastructure towards designs that can adapt as AI requirements continue to evolve.
From resilience to circularity
One of the more notable aspects of the announcement is the growing importance of lifecycle engineering.
Historically, UPS systems have been selected primarily for resilience and availability. Increasingly, however, operators are also assessing how infrastructure contributes to wider environmental objectives, including material reuse and waste reduction.
Legrand says Keor FLEX has been engineered as an upgradeable platform supporting circular economy principles through modular reuse and reduced material consumption. According to the company, the system is 85 per cent certified recyclable in accordance with IEC/TR 62635 and supports multiple battery technologies, including lithium-ion, valve-regulated lead acid and nickel-zinc, enabling battery reuse during future upgrades.
The system also incorporates silicon carbide technology and an internal busbar architecture designed to reduce thermal stress, minimise failure points and extend component lifespan.
Such developments reflect an industry that is increasingly seeking to balance operational resilience with long-term sustainability as data centre capacity continues to expand.
Preparing for an AI powered grid
The announcement also underlines the increasingly close relationship between AI infrastructure and electricity networks.
As AI workloads become larger and more dynamic, power systems are expected to play a more active role in balancing demand across the grid. Legrand says Keor FLEX is smart-grid ready and supports peak shaving, load balancing and Fast Frequency Response, capabilities intended to contribute to grid resilience and renewable energy integration.
That reflects a broader evolution in data centre design. Infrastructure is no longer being developed solely to consume electricity reliably but also to interact more intelligently with increasingly complex energy systems.
The latest awards recognise technical innovation within a specific product category, but they also point towards a wider transformation. The rapid expansion of AI is forcing the industry to reconsider how critical infrastructure is designed, maintained and upgraded over time.
As demand for AI computing continues to grow, sustainability is becoming less about individual efficiency gains and more about creating infrastructure capable of supporting greater capacity with lower environmental impact. In that context, modularity, lifecycle management and energy efficiency are emerging as strategic considerations rather than operational enhancements.
