High-quality operations in data centers have become indispensable. Beyond enabling the practical essentials of modern life – our ability to access things like banking services, healthcare records, and everyday digital tools – they also safeguard our personal needs. Our photos, memories, and other private data are increasingly hosted online, making digital reliability as emotionally important as it is functional.

Either way, any disruption to data center operations threatens the conveniences we rely on. Take Sweden, for example: daily life runs through platforms like Bank-ID and Swish, which support everything from paying for groceries or splitting a restaurant bill to accessing medical appointments and authenticating for government services. Even brief outages can take their toll not only on transactions, but on the trust people place in the digital systems that keep life moving.

It’s within this landscape that Kristian Vekas, product manager for industrial power generation at Volvo Penta, operates. A Stockholm native, Vekas captures the innovative spirit of his home country, advancing more efficient diesel solutions alongside emerging technologies such as alternative fuels and battery energy storage – without losing sight of the proven Tier 4 Final solutions customers rely on today.

Power generation at its best

The last few years have seen data center capacity surge to unprecedented levels. Catapulted from the launch pad of platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter (currently X), data center storage infrastructure has had to evolve rapidly to keep pace with the trajectory of the industry.

The recent influx of AI workloads – as an all-consuming propeller of data and processing demand – has further increased the need for electrical energy, not only to run these facilities but also to cool them.

Historically, geographical location – particularly in cold climates – played a significant role in data center efficiency. As distributed Edge sites become more common to bring data closer to end users and reduce latency, the dynamics of the power generation market have shifted. According to Vekas, one of the most effective ways to deliver this power is with genset solutions:

“Traditional data centers were built close to infrastructure where there was often an excess of electricity production – whether nuclear, thermal, or otherwise. As data centers move further away from that infrastructure, the grid simply doesn’t have the capacity to supply them. That’s why we now need to bring electricity production directly to these facilities.”

At their best, power generation systems respond quickly while remaining resilient to fluctuations in data load and frequency (especially common with today’s AI workloads).

This stability is crucial for high-quality electricity delivery to the data center, as technical damage resulting from volatile loads can be eye-wateringly costly. Not to mention, as mission-critical infrastructure, data centers must have consistently reliable power to support their end uses, whether hospital records or other sensitive applications.

“The quality of power generation is critical not only for reliability and uptime, but also for performance – particularly when managing the low-load challenges common in data centers,” says Vekas.

Engineering for the future versus designing for the now

The rapid evolution of digital infrastructure has transformed what it means to design and engineer a data center. Looking back, Vekas recalls the relative simplicity of early data center development:

“If you were building a facility, you used to know your backup power was X megawatts, and you’d need Y genset capacity to cover it. Nowadays, it’s more complex, because you have to look at the data center on a system level and factor in things like weather, climate, and changing grid capacity.”

As these unpredictable variables have grown, data center engineering has evolved into a process of building in redundancy and robustness where different energy sources can be seamlessly switched between. Today, in the event of a grid blackout, data centers rely on backup power sources (the familiar n+1 model) to prevent a catastrophic loss of operations.

Through this systems engineering approach, roles like Vekas’s have expanded beyond the traditional focus of the engine’s mechanical motion, so engineers now work outside of the hardware to design remote monitoring capabilities that predict issues, track asset performance, and ensure equipment behaves exactly as it should – all the time.

“This approach is moving more and more toward an ‘energy-as-a-service’ model, where we’re providing the energy itself rather than just the engine that drives the generator. Previously, customers might ask for a Volvo pump engine for their genset; now they’re asking for the energy.”

Building on this point, Vekas notes that his experience at Volvo Penta shows a clear shift whereby customers increasingly prioritize the ability to deliver global solutions and support rather than focusing solely on engine pricing or design characteristics.

So, as the industry adopts a more holistic view of data centers as complete systems, values and service are becoming as important as the technical solution itself.

From heavy-duty to high-density

Generally, Volvo Group needs no introduction – its engines, found in Volvo Trucks and other commercial vehicles, have a reputation that precedes them. That engineering expertise flows through Volvo Penta, the Group’s dedicated power solutions arm, supported by Sweden’s long history of high-quality mass production.

Beyond iconic Swedish design principles, Volvo Penta’s commercial vehicle engineering heritage brings a unique perspective to data centers.

Originally, Stage V engines (also known as Tier 4 Final in North America) were designed primarily for backup power systems: start when needed, deliver power, then shut down until the next demand.

Over time, however, Volvo Penta refined the design, enhancing its suitability for continuous operation as a primary source of electricity, covering not only standby and emergency needs but also ongoing, mission-critical power requirements.

“The technology itself is designed to be light because it was originally meant to fit in a truck or machine where weight matters. In traditional, heavy-duty engines for data centers, everything is oversized to make it last,” explains Vekas, adding:

“I believe our solution works better in a co-environment, so instead of using one large engine, you use several smaller engines. This approach also improves resiliency, because you automatically build in redundancy – if one engine goes down, the others keep running.”

Vekas draws further insight from his experience handling large block engines, noting that their size and weight required at least two personnel for servicing – a key consideration as skilled labor becomes scarcer and unmanned Edge sites proliferate. He also notes that Volvo Penta’s automotive roots offer supply chain benefits, particularly the ready availability of components and spare parts – an invaluable advantage in today’s supply-constrained economy.

One, two, three steps ahead

While Stage V/Tier 4 Final standards represent best practice for low-emission engines, data centers are not legally required to use certified engines. That said, Vekas explains that Volvo Penta’s proactive approach in meeting the most stringent criteria as they emerge positions the company well for the inevitable tightening of data center regulations.

“From an environmental perspective, we’re emitting fewer pollutants, and from a safety perspective, what we offer is inducement override. In the US, you have to be audited by the EPA to approve inducement, because that means if you run out of AdBlue (diesel exhaust fluid, DEF), the engine will continue to operate and deliver electricity,” he says.

However, Volvo Penta did not need to overexert itself to achieve this additional level of certification. Drawing on the expertise and standards of the Volvo Group, its power-generation products have consistently been ahead of general data center requirements. Vekas adds:

“If you look at the cars and trucks on the road, they are always two or three steps ahead on emissions because road regulations are stricter and getting stricter still. Our truck development colleagues already have this technology, which inherently gives us an advantage in supporting our customers.”

“It’s my job to understand how to translate that technology into something valuable for our power generation and data center customers,” he explains.

In this way, should data center regulations tighten – which is more a question of ‘when’ than ‘if’ – companies like Volvo Penta, already aligned with stricter standards, won’t be left scrambling to redesign their products or their operational footprint.

Where power generation really excels

When it comes to knowledge sharing, it’s a two-way street. While the Volvo Group engineering teams bring expertise in optimizing the use of well-understood fuels, Volvo Penta’s power generation division takes a more pioneering approach to exploring novel energy sources such as natural gas.

“Diesel is unmatched as an energy carrier because you can just fill it up in a bottle and pour it into the fuel tank. With gas, you need the right infrastructure and pipelines in place to pressurize it, and so on. That’s why natural gas is more commonly used in power generation – it’s stationary, and you can run a constant supply through pipes. What might initially seem like a limitation actually becomes an advantage, opening up opportunities for cleaner fuel use and improved efficiency,” Vekas explains.

Working with a trusted manufacturer also means solutions can be tailored to the specific needs of each data center. For example, Volvo’s diesel engines can run on hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO), providing both flexibility and future-proofing.

“Using this renewable diesel can improve operational efficiency by one or two percent, but our role is to help customers determine what’s right for them. We always say it’s about understanding where our customers are on their journey and tailoring a solution to meet their specific needs,” Vekas notes.

By prioritizing continuous knowledge exchange, manufacturers can evolve and refine their products to meet emerging challenges. As Vekas emphasizes, Volvo Penta’s engines are not merely legacy solutions; they are actively updated to address the rapidly growing and evolving demands of the data center industry – a capability that will only become more critical as data center requirements continue to expand.

For more information, please explore Volvo Penta power solutions for data centers.