The data center industry has become exceptionally good at solving technical challenges. As developers race to meet demand driven by artificial intelligence, cloud computing and digital transformation, conversations around new projects are often dominated by power availability, cooling capacity, resiliency and speed to market.

Yet modern data center campuses are about more than data halls. Offices, operations centers, security buildings, training facilities, maintenance shops and employee support spaces are becoming increasingly important components of large-scale developments.

TimberQuest, a Graham Group company specializing in prefabricated mass timber systems, is exploring how those approaches could apply to portions of future data center campuses.

According to Aaron Rhodes, vice president of business operations at TimberQuest, many building owners are rethinking what defines a high-performing facility.

“Priorities for building owners have evolved significantly over the past decade,” Rhodes said. “Beyond sustainability, there is a growing focus on flexibility, occupant experience, life cycle value and construction efficiency. Those same priorities can create opportunities for the support buildings that surround modern data center campuses.”

While highly technical data halls have unique requirements, the support buildings surrounding them often share many of the same functional needs found in hospitals, educational facilities, workplaces and other institutional environments. These projects must balance speed, operational continuity, long-term adaptability and occupant needs.

Designing Better Spaces For People

As competition for skilled labor intensifies across the data center sector, attracting and retaining talent has become an increasingly important business objective. Research continues to demonstrate the benefits of biophilic design, an approach that incorporates natural materials, daylight and stronger connections to nature, Rhodes said.

“Exposed mass timber structures create environments that feel fundamentally different from conventional steel and concrete buildings, helping create warmer, healthier and more engaging workplaces,” he said.

For data center operators, this presents an opportunity. While employees may spend limited time within the data hall itself, they often spend much of their day in offices, training centers, operations facilities and security buildings. Mass timber can help create environments that support employee well-being, collaboration and productivity while helping organizations compete for skilled talent.

“Owners are investing heavily in the infrastructure that powers data centers, but they're also thinking about the buildings that support the people operating those facilities,” said Scott Rugen, vice president, advanced technology at Graham.

“Many clients have chosen TimberQuest prefabricated mass timber structures simply because of the speed to market, price point and quality, and later realized what a benefit its biophilic elements have had on the staff in the building,” Rhodes said. “Staff have said they’re never leaving because they love their new offices so much.”

Lower-Carbon Buildings For A Lower-Carbon Campus

Hyperscale operators and enterprise organizations are pursuing ambitious sustainability commitments, including embodied carbon reduction goals across portions of their real estate portfolios.

“While data halls often require highly specialized structural systems, Graham believes support buildings may offer opportunities to evaluate lower-carbon alternatives,” Rhodes said.

Mass timber offers a significant advantage in this area. Unlike steel and concrete, which generate substantial emissions during manufacturing, timber stores carbon captured during tree growth. When sourced from responsibly managed forests, wood products can effectively serve as long-term carbon storage throughout the life of a building.

The TimberQuest system represents a substantial reduction in carbon impact compared to conventional construction. In a May Stok report, a detailed review shows a 74% lower net carbon impact for the TimberQuest system, when accounting for biogenic carbon, compared to a steel structure.

The reduction was driven in part by biogenic carbon stored within the certified Kalesnikoff glulam beams and CTL, or cross-laminated timber, panels used throughout the structure, demonstrating how material selection can significantly influence a building's carbon footprint before it becomes operational, Rhodes said.

Although data halls may still require conventional structural solutions, offices, training centers, administration buildings and other support facilities can be strong candidates for prefabricated mass timber construction. These buildings can help reduce embodied carbon while visibly supporting broader sustainability goals, he said.

Building For Flexibility And Long-Term Value

Data center campuses are constantly evolving. Staffing requirements change. Security needs change. Training programs expand. New technologies require different support spaces.

“TimberQuest systems are designed around flexibility and adaptability, helping owners create buildings that can evolve alongside changing operational requirements,” Rhodes said.

In one mass timber project, spaces were adapted over time with minimal disruption, demonstrating how flexible building systems can evolve alongside changing organizational needs, he said.

Creating large, open spans and efficient structural systems allows support facilities to adapt as operational needs change. For data center campuses, that flexibility can help extend building life, reduce renovation costs and improve long-term value.

Faster Delivery Through Industrialized Construction

“Schedule remains one of the biggest drivers in the data center market,” Rugen said. “Any construction approach that can improve predictability or reduce on-site labor is worth evaluating.”

Prefabricated construction aligns naturally with the industry's growing emphasis on industrialized building methods, Rhodes added.

Major building components are manufactured off-site in controlled environments before being delivered and assembled on location.

On TimberQuest’s Elkhorn Village Campus Renovation project, TimberQuest was able to move so much quicker than typical construction methodologies that it was able to open four months earlier, Rhodes said.

“If you were able to open office facilities for data center workers sooner, the team could begin hiring, training or operations sooner, and time is money,” he said.

By manufacturing major building components off-site, prefabricated construction can reduce schedules, improve quality control and lessen dependence on large on-site labor forces. These benefits can be particularly valuable for data center projects in regions facing workforce constraints.

Prefabricated building systems can help reduce site activity and improve schedule predictability, making them increasingly attractive for complex projects.

The concept aligns closely with broader industrialized construction trends already shaping the data center sector. Prefabricated electrical systems, modular mechanical plants, standardized utility infrastructure and repeatable campus designs are becoming increasingly common.

“Prefabricated mass timber support buildings can complement many of these same strategies by introducing additional schedule certainty, reducing on-site labor requirements and supporting faster campus development,” Rhodes said.

Creating More Value Beyond The Data Hall

While mass timber may not be a solution for highly technical data halls, the support facilities surrounding modern campuses may present opportunities to improve construction efficiency, reduce embodied carbon, enhance workplace experience and provide greater long-term flexibility.

“Growing interest in hybrid systems, including CLT floors and wall panels, suggests opportunities to apply some of these benefits more broadly across future data center campuses,” Rhodes said.

And as major technology companies continue exploring lower-carbon construction strategies across their broader real estate portfolios, opportunities may continue to emerge for hybrid approaches, prefabricated systems and other innovations that support faster, more sustainable campus development, he added.

“Data halls will continue to require solutions that meet demanding technical and operational requirements,” Rhodes said. “Support buildings, however, may create opportunities to apply different approaches where they provide measurable benefits.”

As data center campuses continue to grow, owners will be looking for ways to improve schedule certainty, reduce embodied carbon and create better environments for employees.

“Prefabricated mass timber is one option that may help achieve those objectives in the right applications,” Rhodes said.

This article was produced in collaboration between Graham and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.