The development of flexible strategies for data centre builds is among the many trends being driven by the rise in AI. In the race to get ahead, modular approaches are set to play a central part, rapidly speeding up time to market and scalability.
Indeed, the market for modular data centres is set to grow from just over US$30 billion globally in 2024 to US$85 billion by 2030, according to a study published by Research and Markets.
“Prefabricated modular data centres have become very important because of the rising demand for capacity driven by AI,” says Moses Zhang, director of brand and commercial at Asia-based data centre provider EPG. “They are much easier and faster to deliver, commission and control on a larger scale than traditional data centres.”
Wider view
Recognising the direction of the market, EPG entered the prefabricated modular data centre space in 2021, having originally launched as a company 20 years ago in Shanghai, China. While such facilities have been around for some time, EPG is seeking to adopt a different strategy from many other players in its part of the world by taking a wider approach.
For a start, the company has the design and production capacity for what it identifies as a modular data centre’s four main modules – the generator, IT, power and cooling modules. That means EPG is capable of sourcing, designing and putting together all the major configurations it believes are needed for a modular data centre, while other providers might have fewer of these elements.
To complement this, EPG is expanding internationally, meeting today’s demand by partners and customers to move quickly to new countries.
The company has, for instance, been scaling fast in Malaysia to help it establish more of a presence in Southeast Asia. After opening its first data centre manufacturing plant there in 2023, it began building the second one early last year, with plans to make it an intelligent manufacturing base for the region. EPG is also in the preparation phase for a third factory in Malaysia.
Scaling up
In addition, the company has established its global headquarters in Singapore, underscoring its ambition to compete and grow internationally. EPG is also expanding or planning expansions across East Asia, Europe and the Middle East, in activities set to transform the scale of its operations over the coming years.
Furthermore, EPG has partnerships with and experience in integrating products for international mainstream brands from its two decades in the industry, giving it the know-how and connections to help in this area. “We’re growing our supply-chain resources and recognition on an international scale,” says Zhang.
To support its growth, EPG recently completed a nine-figure US-dollar Series B financing round co-led by international investment firms Forebright and Silicon Peak, plus participation by four others. The proceeds will be used to expand production capacity, strengthen working capital and accelerate global market expansion, enhancing EPG’s ability to deliver data centre projects at scale, particularly high-power-density AI data centres.
In 2025, EPG also completed its Series A and A+ funding rounds, raising tens of millions of US dollars.
Green growth
EPG has, meanwhile, committed to expanding in a green way by looking into the best ways to embrace and incorporate renewable energy sources that are also reliable and powerful into its data centre modules to achieve cleaner power.
This has included exploring possibilities in the field of microgrids and distributed energy to improve energy efficiency and grid resilience, as well as the integration of sources including wind, solar and hydrogen energy.
Furthermore, EPG has gained recognition for its liquid-cooling system for modular data centres, which helps reduce water usage for cooling while enabling high computing power and low-latency processing.
At the same time, EPG is aiming to make its factories smarter to create products faster, including the recent introduction of new automated welding capabilities that boost reliability and delivery times for high-density AI data centre infrastructure.
Zhang believes these steps will help to boost the company’s traction as it expands internationally. “We are set on ensuring that the way we handle our design, and the quality of our products and services continues being up to global standards as we grow,” he says.
