CSC’s partnership is based on strong trust

IT Center for Science Ltd (CSC) builds, maintains and develops the IT infrastructure required by universities and research institutes in Greater Helsinki and Kajaani in Finland. In 2023, CSC signed another new framework agreement with Granlund.

“Clearly, our long history of cooperation is proof of the fact that the trust and appreciation are mutual,” says Jukka-Pekka Partanen, Director for Data Center Ecosystems, CSC. Personally, he has been working with Granlund’s experts since 2012.

There has only been one break in the framework agreement partnership between CSC and Granlund, which took place during the four-year period when the LUMI supercomputer data center – implemented as a separate procurement – was under construction.

CSC is one of the leading providers of high-performance computing environments in the world and, over the years, we have learned an incredible amount from them about data centers and the supercomputer infrastructure.

Jari Innanen, Business Director, Data Centers, Granlund

“In fact, during those four years, our cooperation was closer than ever!” says Jari Innanen, Business Director, Data Centers, Granlund.

He finds himself privileged to work with CSC.

“CSC is one of the leading providers of high-performance computing environments in the world and, over the years, we have learned an incredible amount from them about data centers and the supercomputer infrastructure.”

The chief consultant oversees data center design as a whole

Usually, Granlund acts as the chief consultant for CSC’s data center projects and is responsible for everything from MEP to acoustics, structural, architectural and audio visual design. Over 20 years of cooperation has yielded a smooth supercomputer data center design process and procedure.

“The most important thing at the design stage is to produce several different low-cost scenarios to support the customer’s decision-making,” emphasises Innanen.

Obtaining all design and consulting services through one operator is an easy and smooth solution for us.

Jukka-Pekka Partanen, Director for Data Center Ecosystems, CSC

This makes it possible to optimise the data center facilities and technologies from several different stakeholders’ perspective. Granlund is also responsible for the demanding implementation process of the data center project.

What Partanen values most with Granlund is the partner’s expertise and extensive contact networks. Granlund’s project management also manages a data center team consisting of subcontractors.

“Obtaining all design and consulting services through one operator is an easy and smooth solution for us.”

Data centers from the early 2000s to the future

The first joint data center project was implemented in the early 2000s in Keilaniemi, Finland. Granlund’s design and supervision assignment was not exactly typical.

“The data center was designed for the basement of a large office complex, which was demanding from the viewpoint of sufficient energy supply alone,” recalls Innanen.

Granlund also worked alongside CSC in the early 2010s when CSC’s nationwide network of data centers was expanded to the old paper mill properties in Renforsin Ranta, Kajaani. Currently, the Puhti, Mahti and LUMI supercomputers take up approximately 5% of the transformer capacity in the area.

“With an area of hundreds of thousands of square metres, there is also room for future data centers,” says Innanen.

According to Jukka-Pekka Partanen, there are some significant changes coming in the next few years.

“In Kajaani, we have the most heavy-duty supercomputers in Europe and, hopefully, the area’s data center business will only grow. Granlund is strongly involved in all of it.”

Want to know more?

Jari Innanen

Business Director, Data centers

Granlund Oy

+358 50 563 8233

firstname.lastname@granlund.fi