Company says increasing land constraints are driving the rise of multistorey data centres and AI factories

MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin, United States, 3 February 2026:

Johnson Controls announced it has launched the YORK YDAM air-cooled magnetic bearing centrifugal chiller as its latest innovation in data centre thermal management. Making the announcement through a Press Release, Johnson Controls said the chiller is built to address space and site constraints in high-density, multistorey data centres and AI factories.

Johnson Controls said the YORK YDAM is built around its YORK YVAM chiller technology. The company said the YORK YVAM platform has been recognised by ABI Research and named to Fortune’s Change the World list for efficiency and zero water consumption. Johnson Controls added that YDAM delivers cooling capacity within a compact footprint, which the company said helps data centres scale while avoiding water consumption.

According to Johnson Controls, increasing land constraints are driving the development of multistorey data centres and AI factories. The company said this trend increases the density of white space by up to ten times and added that operators therefore require higher density thermal management solutions to accommodate reduced roof area.

Johnson Controls said that with up to 3.5MW of cooling, YDAM delivers up to 20% increased capacity density in a more compact footprint than competing solutions. Johnson Controls said the chiller fits on a 53-foot standard flatbed trailer and added that this footprint simplifies shipping and reduces transportation, rigging and lifting costs. The company said it expects shipments to begin in late 2026.

Austin Domenici, Vice President, General Manager, Johnson Controls Global Data Center Solutions, said: “AI and high-performance computing are pushing data centers beyond traditional limits. Vertical sites can unlock new growth opportunities, but they demand thermal management solutions that deliver maximum cooling outputs in minimum space. The impressive capacity and reduced footprint of YDAM could allow operators to cut the number of chillers on site by up to half, accelerating deployments and helping meet skilled onsite labor needs.”

Johnson Controls said YDAM chillers utilise YORK magnetic bearing compressors, which it said allow high chilled-fluid setpoints to support 45 degrees C warm-water cooling of the latest generation of inference and training GPUs. The company said the chillers are capable of operating with wide temperature differences and added that this helps reduce pump size and energy consumption, contributing to CapEx and OpEx savings.

Johnson Controls said YDAM chillers were developed at the Johnson Controls Advanced Development and Engineering Center and added that they are tested against what it described as extreme real-world conditions.