Eaton to power next-gen AI-ready data centres in the tropics through expanded collaboration with NUS-led Sustainable Tropical Data Centre Testbed

Eaton doubles down on industry‑academia collaboration with S$3 million sponsorship across STDCT 1.0 and 2.0

SINGAPORE, May 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Eaton, an intelligent power management company, today announced an expanded collaboration with the Sustainable Tropical Data Centre Testbed (STDCT) – a programme led by the National University of Singapore (NUS), committing about S$3 million across STDCT Phase 1 and Phase 2 to accelerate the validation of AI-driven, high-density data centre power architectures optimized for tropical environments.

Eaton's participation began at the inception of Phase 1 of the testbed in 2022 and has been an active participant since then, contributing installed equipment and engineering expertise to ongoing trials. This year, the company is deepening its commitment with a new sponsorship for Phase 2 of STDCT, advancing its involvement from component supply toward integrated, modular power solutions designed for GPU-powered workloads and next-generation deployments.

Phase 2 will validate Data Centre-Call for Application (DC-CFA) 2.0 at utility scale and gather long-term operational and sustainability performance data for containerized power systems. The programme will operate as a living testbed that connects academic research, industry innovation and commercial deployment, generating operational and sustainability performance data to inform future designs and standards.

"Our early engagement with STDCT has allowed Eaton to help shape how power architectures evolve for AI-scale workloads," said Jimmy Yam, Vice-President and General Manager, Electrical Sector, East Asia, Eaton. "Validating containerized, modular power systems in real tropical operating conditions gives operators real-world references to reduce technical and commercial risk on complex, high-density projects while advancing sustainability outcomes."

"STDCT 2.0 is a living, utility-scale translational platform that bridges academic research, industry validation and real-world deployment," said Professor Lee Poh Seng, Programme Director of STDCT and Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the College of Design and Engineering at NUS. "Continued participation from partners such as Eaton strengthens our ability to test, validate and translate practical solutions for more sustainable, resilient and AI-ready tropical data centre operations."

As part of this programme, Eaton will showcase a 2.5-megawatt (MW) medium voltage solid state transformer (MVSST) container at Data Centre World 2026 to gather market feedback, and the container will then be installed at Jurong Island for live trials and detailed data collection. Outcomes from the trials will be shared with consortium members through technical workshops and reports to inform design choices for hyperscalers, colocation operators and regional players.

The STDCT 2.0 facility will be sited on Jurong Island, Singapore's national hub for low-carbon innovation, providing proximity to energy and industrial partners and reinforcing the testbed's role within Singapore's broader low-carbon innovation ecosystem.

About Eaton

Eaton is an intelligent power management company dedicated to protecting the environment and improving the quality of life for people everywhere. We make products for the data center, utility, industrial, commercial and institutional, machine building, residential, aerospace and mobility markets. We are guided by our commitment to do business right, to operate sustainably and to help our customers manage power ─ today and well into the future. By capitalizing on the global growth trends of electrification and digitalization, we're helping to solve the world's most urgent power management challenges and building a more sustainable society for people today and generations to come.

Founded in 1911, Eaton has continuously evolved to meet the changing and expanding needs of our stakeholders. With revenues of $27.4 billion in 2025, the company serves customers in 180 countries. Eaton entered the Asia-Pacific market during the 1970s and has grown significantly since then. Eaton moved its Asia-Pacific headquarters from Hong Kong to Shanghai in 2004. Today, Eaton has nearly 19,000 employees and 34 manufacturing facilities in the Asia-Pacific region. 

For more information, visit www.eaton.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.

About the Sustainable Tropical Data Centre Testbed (STDCT 2.0)

The Sustainable Tropical Data Centre Testbed (STDCT) is a joint research initiative led by the National University of Singapore (NUS) and hosted by its College of Design and Engineering, in collaboration with leading industry partners.

STDCT 2.0 focuses on developing energy-efficient data centre designs that can operate reliably in tropical climates. The programme serves as a live testbed to evaluate, validate, and deploy sustainable innovations that reduce energy and water consumption while supporting dense, AI-driven operations.

For more information, visit https://cde.nus.edu.sg/stdct/ 

SOURCE Eaton