Why this matters
Data centres bring together energy, resilience, services, spatial organisation, security and rapid technological change. The design challenge is therefore not only optimisation of a fixed brief, but the ability to reason about future change, uncertainty and lifecycle learning.
Current research direction
MOLD is exploring a design-research framework connecting early-stage architectural requirements, simulation and option comparison, data-driven / generative design, design digital twins, operational evidence, new-build ↔ retrofit learning, and human judgement and verification.
A central hypothesis is that knowledge should move in both directions: new designs should be informed by what existing facilities teach us, while existing facilities should provide evidence that improves the next generation of early-stage design decisions.
What MOLD can test
- Reference / new-build decision models
- Retrofit and rehabilitation scenarios
- Digital-twin lifecycle workflows
- Evaluation criteria for early-stage options
- Prototype decision-support tools
- Industry case-study validation
Academic context
This research direction is being developed alongside Burak Tosun’s prospective PhD discussions with Professor Savas Konur, Aston University. The PhD proposal remains a separate academic document and is not reproduced here.
The current relationship is a research conversation and prospective supervision route; it is not an institutional affiliation or partnership.
Research & industry cases
We are interested in conversations with data-centre operators, developers, designers, digital-twin researchers and universities where real evidence can test the framework.
Status: developing research direction. Industry collaboration or institutional partnership is stated only where formally agreed.