A German data center firm has announced the release of a new prefabricated timber data center module.

Prior1 this week announced the launch of IT Container Eco Fix. The 6.5 × 3.0 × 3.4 m module comes with enough room to host five racks, a 14kW propane-based indirect free cooling system, and a 15kVA UPS module.

Cross-laminated timber, or CLT, is a fire-resistant prefabricated wood material commonly used as a building material around the world, but has not traditionally been widely used in the data center sector.

The core of the module is spruce-based X-LAM cross-laminated timber from timber engineering firm DERIX Group. The Eco Fix was developed in close collaboration with DERIX, which provided expertise for wood processing alongside assurance of sustainable origin and dismantling concepts.

The module reportedly meets all the requirements of the EN 50600 European standard for data center infrastructure – including F90 fire protection, RC2 burglar protection, and efficiency standards.

All components are pre-installed and tested, with the power and networking work required after arrival. The containerized data center is delivered fully equipped, including air conditioning, power supply, security, and monitoring technology. A 5kW solar sunshade roof is an available extra.

At the end of its life, Prior1 said the container can be completely dismantled and the components returned.

The container is ​​available either as a traditional on-premise customer solution or as an on-site colocation operator model where the infrastructure remains with the customer but is fully operated by Prior1.

A prototype container has been developed as shown at an event in Osnabrück.

Founded in 2008 and based in Sankt Augustin, Prior1 specializes in the planning and construction of server rooms and data centers. As well as the new wooden product, it offers several traditional metal pre-fab and containerized data center modules.

Wood has been cited as a potential structural material for data centers for some time. EcoDataCenter and Boden Type use CLT for their data centers in Sweden, as do some Icelandic data centers. Microsoft recently announced that it is constructing two data centers in Northern Virginia, partially using cross-laminated timber.

Vertiv also offers its own prefabricated wooden data center module. The TimberMod variant of its SmartMod container series uses mass timber instead of steel for structural elements, including the casing.

Some critics have suggested that wood is unsuitable because it is flammable, citing the role of wooden floors and ceilings in the disastrous fire that destroyed OVHcloud’s SBG2 data center in 2001. However, proponents point out that glulam structural components survive fires better than many other materials.

Compu Dynamics launches modular data center unit

In other prefab news this week, Compu Dynamics launched a new unit dedicated to delivering turnkey modular data centers.

Compu Dynamics Modular will offer services around the design, fabrication, and delivery of prefabricated, turnkey data center modules, targeting AI, HPC, and next-generation enterprise workloads.

“At CDM, our vision is to support the seamless, rapid deployment of digital infrastructure tailored to each customer’s unique application needs. We deliver fully tested, modular data center solutions designed for efficiency, reliability, and scalability,” said Ron Mann, vice president of Compu Dynamics Modular. “We are not building containers — we are delivering high-performance, factory-integrated data center solutions that are fully operational from day one.”

Founded back in 1982, Virginia-based data center and facility management Compu Dynamics provides data center design, deployment, and maintenance services, including white space fit-out, modular construction, electrical and mechanical services, and low voltage solutions.

“Compu Dynamics Modular represents the next phase of innovation in our industry,” said Steve Altizer, president and CEO of Compu Dynamics. “CDM is built to meet the modular demands of tomorrow’s compute landscape, where speed-to-market, flexibility, and high-density performance are critical. It reflects our belief that modular is not an afterthought; it’s a strategic advantage.”