As the data center industry draws in a new generation of high density, rapidly evolving AI-ready facilities, the urgency to deliver sustainable, scalable, and reliable power infrastructure has never been greater. Operators must be agile enough to meet demand while at the same time navigating increasingly complex emissions regulations and climate accountability.

Committed to lowering the embodied carbon emissions in its products, Cummins is helping customers advance their Scope 3 emissions goals.This commitment is backed up by bold pledges, such as Destination Zero – an actionable roadmap guiding Cummins toward net-zero emissions by 2050.

Patricia Nzioka, marketing and strategy director of data centers at Cummins, shares how the company is delivering low-carbon on-site solutions, and supporting customers in achieving sustainability goals, all while addressing wider industry challenges.

The road to decarbonization

Beyond broad, global sustainability targets, Cummins has set ambitious goals internally for the way in which the company operates and delivers – and the results speak for themselves:

“In 2023 alone, we completed 586 carbon reduction projects, and in the last five years, we’ve reduced our Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 31 percent,” says Nzioka. “Commitments such as Destination Zero aren't about regulation or market pressure, they’re embedded within our DNA, driving everything from product innovations to key investments and collaborations.”

To support data center operators in scaling sustainably, crucially, Cummins tailors its approach to each facility’s unique goals. “Each operator is at a different point in their journey,” explains Nzioka. “So, we meet them where they are and offer options that help them meet or exceed their goals.”

The first step for decarbonization is to baseline targets and supply transparent emissions data throughout the entire product life cycle – from supply chain to end use. Cummins achieves this by leveraging tools such as life cycle assessments (LCAs) and environmental product declarations (EPDs).

LCAs involve assessing a product’s embodied carbon – including materials, manufacturing, logistics, usage, and end-of-life. It evaluates the full life cycle. EPDs, verified by third parties, ensure that the entire industry is aligned and consistent across these measurements. Together, these tools establish clear baselines and support proper emissions tracking against identifiable targets.

Next, it’s about defining the right roadmap and selecting the best low-and-zero-carbon power solutions for the job. The most effective strategies align with sustainability targets, while addressing other key operational challenges and business goals.

“We also support our customers’ decarbonization efforts through our own operations,” adds Nzioka. “Reducing embodied carbon within our product life cycles helps them lower their Scope 3 emissions – and we’ve made significant progress there.”

With Scope 3 emissions notoriously difficult to track, and therefore improve – despite accounting for up to 80 percent of a facility’s carbon footprint – choosing a sustainability-focused partner is crucial for building the data centers of the future. Operators and solutions providers must align on decarbonization goals to deliver sustainable growth, effectively and efficiently.

Sustainability meets AI workloads

The rapid adoption of AI has pushed power densities and workloads to new extremes. While this rising demand seems at odds with sustainability goals, the two must go hand in hand to meet the needs of both today, tomorrow and beyond.

Nzioka sees this challenge as twofold: “Sustainability doesn’t exist in a vacuum. We must address energy availability, scale, speed, supply chain constraints, costs, regulations, and geopolitics in conjunction with one another.”

And she’s right, sustainability goals can’t be met in isolation. A realistic roadmap must consider each of these interconnected challenges and look to solve them collaboratively. As a result of AI, especially generative AI, demands are not just reshaping how much power data centers need but also how and where it’s generated and used.

“The second complexity is that sustainability is multidimensional,” continues Nzioka. “It’s not just about reducing carbon. It’s also about energy conservation. How do we use less? How do we generate clean power? How do we ensure surrounding communities have access to energy?”

This shift means going beyond carbon metrics to considering overall energy stewardship. The industry must tackle this real-world tension head-on in order to keep pace.

A suite of technology solutions

As with most challenges, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Multiple technologies and approaches must be considered – while collaboration across the supply chain is essential for deploying the right solutions at the right time.

“Cummins has been at the forefront of many new technologies, including fuel cells,” says Nzioka. “We’ve piloted with Microsoft and others, developed fast start natural gas solutions for hyperscale customers, and remain open to co-developing next-gen solutions.”

Natural gas is a robust option for filling gaps in grid availability – whether for peaking, prime power, or areas without access to power. Earlier this year, Cummins launched battery energy storage systems, offering short-duration power, ideal for grid-constrained data centers and supporting decarbonization efforts.

A key focus for the company has been ensuring that its engines and generators can run off of hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), a renewable diesel fuel. By innovating and offering a range of sustainable power solutions, Cummins is able to meet a whole host of requirements holistically, and offer itself up as a truly sustainable partner.

“We’ve also implemented solutions that reduce what we call the auxiliary load,” adds Nzioka. “That’s the load present when our generators aren’t running, connected to the grid. By reducing this, we help cut Scope 2 emissions.”

The value of LCAs and EPDs

Having touched upon LCAs and EPDs as the first step to achieving decarbonization – in the face of so many challenges, and opportunities, they’re also essential tools for guiding effective decision-making. Nzioka explains:

“This process enables us to identify carbon reduction opportunities. It reveals the biggest contributors and the low hanging fruit that we’re able to tackle right away, so we can measure and track progress.”

These tools also guide customer procurement decisions. Instead of focusing solely on fuel consumption, operators can compare the full carbon impact of the different available technologies and choose accordingly.

Owning and operating much of its distribution channel, Cummins also has greater control over service and delivery: “That enables us to act more broadly on decarbonization,” says Nzioka. “From the factory to service branches, we ensure our full solution supports customer goals and sustainable operations.”

Dispelling sustainability myths

When it comes to scaling sustainability, there are a range of misconceptions – including the idea that sustainable power compromises reliability and is significantly more expensive. Cummins is working to shift this mindset:

“We’re proving otherwise with real-world deployments,” explains Nzioka. “Sustainability and reliability can coexist. Take HVO for example, it significantly reduces carbon versus diesel, with no performance loss – and in some cases we’ve even charted improved service reliability. Minimal fuel efficiency trade-offs are well within the expected margin of error.”

Another myth is that low-carbon technologies aren’t mature enough for large-scale use. But effective, long-term implementation takes time, and the roadmap to net-zero spans decades.

“Sustainability is a journey, not a switch that you can flick on,” says Nzioka. “Some technologies may not be fully deployable yet, such as hydrogen due to infrastructure limits, but bridge solutions like HVO, battery storage, and natural gas are mature and scalable today.”

This focus on the long term is key. Cummins is already developing completely zero-carbon solutions, preparing for deployment when the ecosystems are ready. As Nzioka puts it: "It's a journey, not a sprint. So buckle up, and let’s go.”

Collaboration and co-innovation

Given the fast-moving, complex challenges data centers are facing today and preparing for down the line, collaboration is essential – especially for sustainability. Partnerships and knowledge-sharing are the best ways to innovate effectively at scale.

“Key partnerships shape and tailor our decarbonization efforts,” says Nzioka. “We spend time understanding our customers’ applications. That ensures we deliver the right solutions.”

Collaboration with customers, suppliers and other stakeholders brings diverse perspectives and real-world experience. Joint developments, like pilot projects, accelerate technology validation and innovation, by putting it to the test within actual operating environments, as Nzioka attests:

“We wouldn’t have developed HVO compatibility without working with fuel providers,” she notes. “They helped us understand the fuel, and we worked with them to adapt our products.”

The road ahead

As demand surges and challenges grow, innovation in sustainable, reliable power infrastructure is more critical than ever. Looking ahead, Cummins is dedicated to the task at hand and confident in the path ahead:

“Our Destination Zero roadmap is guiding our work and investments clearly," explains Nzioka. “We’re fueled for the future by the progress we’ve made so far, because we know that our goals are achievable.”

Scaling sustainably and retrofitting existing operations is no small task. But the most effective approach is one that breaks the challenge into manageable steps, rather than seeking a one-size-fits-all, quick-fix solution.

“Nothing is linear anymore. All challenges are intensifying. Sustainable data centers will require low-carbon generation, renewable energy integration, and reconsideration of where power is generated and delivered,” says Nzioka. “Transmission constraints mean we must think about generating power closer to the load.”

The future of sustainable data center operations is complex, but companies like Cummins are well-equipped to forge ahead. With ongoing innovation and investment in reliable, low-carbon solutions, the company is helping power the next generation of digital infrastructure. Success lies in addressing sustainability alongside other key priorities, utilizing collaboration across the supply chain.

For more information please visit https://www.cummins.com/generators/data-centers/sustainability