New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) Partners with DataBank to Future-Proof High-Performance Computing

By: George Hamm, Director of Customer Success

CHALLENGE: The Need for Scalable Power and Cooling

NJIT required an HPC solution capable of supporting dense racks at 30kW, with scalability up to 120kW, far exceeding the capabilities of their on-premises infrastructure. Traditional approaches, such as half-empty racks, were not cost-effective and added complexity. NJIT needed a partner who understood the unique demands of higher education and HPC.

DATABANK SOLUTION: DataBank’s Tailored Colocation Infrastructure

DataBank’s colocation facility at EWR2 in New Jersey offered NJIT a future-proof solution. With its ability to deliver up to 85kW per cabinet and reserve power for future growth, our facility met NJIT’s needs for both today and tomorrow. Our expertise in supporting HPC clusters for universities like Georgia Tech and the University of Maryland further assured NJIT of our capabilities.

Through close collaboration, we provided customized designs, installing a liquid to the rear door solution to meet NJIT’s requirements. DataBank managed the entire infrastructure installation for this project, inclusive of the secured cage, secondary water loop, rear-doors, overhead conveyance, and power. This partnership allowed NJIT to deploy its HPC cluster, Wulver, featuring 127 compute nodes, cutting-edge NVIDIA GPUs, and peak performance exceeding 1.5 PFLOPs.

RESULTS: A Gold Standard for Higher-Ed HPC

With DataBank managing power and cooling, NJIT can focus on driving $160 million in annual research activity. By leveraging our scalable infrastructure, NJIT avoided the $60 million cost of building a new facility and accelerated deployment timelines. Today, their HPC environment operates at full capacity, supporting innovative research and positioning NJIT as a leader in technological advancements.

This case reinforces DataBank’s role as a trusted partner in delivering reliable, scalable, and innovative colocation solutions for higher education institutions. Together, we empower institutions like NJIT to achieve their ambitious research and education goals.