Submer launches Corenix modular data centre unit for AI

Submer Group has launched Corenix, a modular data centre infrastructure company serving hyperscalers, neoclouds and AI operators.

Corenix will design, build, integrate and factory-test modular data centre systems that combine IT, power, cooling and networking before delivery to customer sites for installation and commissioning. Submer Group has appointed former Johnson Controls executive Martin Renkis as Chief Executive Officer.

The launch reflects a broader shift in parts of the data centre market towards modular construction, particularly as operators look for faster ways to add capacity for AI workloads. Under this model, major parts of a facility are assembled and tested in production facilities before being transported to site for deployment.

Its systems are based on NVIDIA reference designs and can be adapted to customer requirements. Corenix will manage both the factory stage and the on-site phase, including connection to site infrastructure, site acceptance testing, commissioning and operational readiness.

Submer Group is positioning the new company as part of its wider AI infrastructure portfolio. Alongside Corenix, the group includes Rubix Data Centres, which develops and operates AI data centre campuses, and Radian Arc, which provides GPU-as-a-Service and AI-as-a-Service.

Submer Group argues that traditional data centre construction methods are struggling to keep up with the power, cooling, networking and service demands of increasingly dense AI computing systems. Corenix has been set up to offer a repeatable deployment model tied to an approved technical architecture and a specified location.

Delivery model

According to Submer Group, Corenix will bring engineering, manufacturing, supply chain coordination and site deployment under a single delivery structure. The aim is to give customers one point of accountability from factory integration to live operation.

Submer Group said the launch builds on its own track record in modular deployment and thermal engineering. It cited a fully modular compute campus with hundreds of megawatts of capacity delivered in nine months from order to completion, as well as more than a decade of experience in liquid cooling engineering.

Renkis joins Corenix after serving as Executive Director of Data Centre Infrastructure Services at Johnson Controls. He also founded Smartvue, an IoT hardware and software business later acquired by Johnson Controls, and Trainersoft, an e-learning software company acquired by OutStart, now part of IBM.

Patrick Smets, Chief Executive Officer of Submer Group, said the market is under pressure to expand data centre capacity more quickly as demand for AI infrastructure rises.

"AI factories are driving unprecedented demand for new data centre capacity, and the market needs a faster, more predictable way to build it," said Patrick Smets, Chief Executive Officer of Submer Group.

"Corenix builds on Submer's history in modular data centre delivery and the engineering, thermal and infrastructure expertise we have developed over years of solving high-density compute challenges. We are bringing that experience into a dedicated business built to deliver AI infrastructure at scale," Smets said.

Customer demand

Renkis said customers want greater certainty over design, testing, accountability and delivery schedules before committing to new infrastructure projects.

"Customers need clarity before they commit: what needs to be built, how it will be tested, who is accountable, and when it will become operational," said Martin Renkis, Chief Executive Officer of Corenix.

"That's the foundation I'm building Corenix on from day one. Corenix puts a dated programme and a go-live date on the table before a contract exists. One team stays accountable from factory integration and testing through on-site commissioning and operational readiness, while retaining the flexibility to support current and future accelerated computing systems," Renkis said.

Submer Group said it has deployed more than 500 MW of liquid-cooled infrastructure and has access to more than 8 GW of powered land across the Americas, EMEA and APAC.