Field reference · Edition R01 · October 2026
Data centre commissioning field manual
Procedures, acceptance values, records and drawings for commissioning a hyperscale data-centre campus, from the first design review to the end of the first year of operation.
7 parts · 32 chapters · 267 figures · 384,159 words
Cx calculator / Field manual
How to use this manual
Procedures are numbered steps. Each step names who does it, what is measured or checked, the acceptance value and the record that proves it. Highlighted text marks the values and decisions to remember.
Acceptance values are quoted from the standard named next to them. Where a value depends on the edition, the project specification or the manufacturer, the text says so. The project specification and the OEM instructions govern over this manual.
Figures sit in the section they illustrate; each has a stable link (for example F02-1) and opens at full size from the sheet. Symbols follow EN 60617 (electrical) and ISO 10628 (process).
Worked examples use the MSC-1 example campus (4 × 80 MVA, 20 kV ring, four buildings, 12 halls of 12 MW) or a stated example quantity; they are examples, not project data.
Part ACommissioning foundations
| Ch. | Chapter and scope | Figures |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Commissioning reference library: standards, guides and books, and what each one requiresThis chapter lists the documents that a commissioning manager (CxM) on a hyperscale data-centre campus uses, says what each one requires of commissioning, and shows which chapter of this manual applies it. | 11 |
| 02 | The commissioning process: phases, levels L0 to L5, roles and responsibilitiesThis chapter explains the commissioning process on a hyperscale data-centre campus from the first design review to the end of the first year of operation. | 8 |
| 03 | Commissioning documents: OPR, BOD, Cx plan, specification, checklists, scripts, reports and systems manualThis chapter describes every document of the commissioning process on a hyperscale data-centre campus. | 9 |
Part BProject administration
| Ch. | Chapter and scope | Figures |
|---|---|---|
| 04 | Document control, the common data environment and transmittalsThis chapter explains how project documents are named, versioned, reviewed, issued, stored and replaced on a hyperscale data-centre campus. | 7 |
| 05 | Requests for information (RFI) and technical queriesThis chapter explains what a request for information (RFI) is, starting from the definition. | 8 |
| 06 | Submittals, shop drawings, material approval and method statementsThis chapter explains how the contractor's proposals for products, drawings, calculations and work methods are prepared, submitted, reviewed and approved on a hyperscale data-centre campus. | 6 |
| 07 | Inspection and test plans, inspection requests and hold, witness and review pointsThis chapter explains how a data-centre construction project plans, requests, attends, records and releases inspections and tests. | 8 |
| 08 | Change control: site instructions, variations, change orders, early warnings and claimsThis chapter explains how a change to the agreed work is raised, notified, priced, approved, recorded and closed on a data-centre construction project. | 7 |
| 09 | Quality control: non-conformance reports, corrective actions, punch lists and defect closureThis chapter explains how a data-centre project records work that does not meet its requirements, decides what to do with it, removes the cause, and proves that each defect is closed. | 6 |
| 10 | Permits to work, isolation, switching programmes and energisation administrationThis chapter describes how work is authorised and how equipment is isolated and proved dead on a hyperscale data-centre campus. | 10 |
| 11 | Meetings, minutes, daily and weekly reports, schedules and look-aheadsThis chapter describes the meetings, reports and schedules that a commissioning manager (CxM) runs or takes part in on a hyperscale data-centre campus. | 9 |
| 12 | Handover administration: completion, O&M manuals, as-built records, training, spares, warranties and DLPThis chapter describes how a data-centre building, hall or plant is handed over from the contractor to the owner and its operations team, and how the contract is closed after handover. | 7 |
Part CElectrical commissioning
| Ch. | Chapter and scope | Figures |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Medium-voltage switchgear, transformers and cables: tests and acceptance valuesThis chapter covers the site acceptance tests of the medium-voltage (MV) system of a data-centre campus. | 8 |
| 14 | Low-voltage switchboards, busway, circuit breakers and protection relaysThis chapter covers the site acceptance tests of the low-voltage (LV) distribution of a data-centre campus. | 6 |
| 15 | Generators, fuel systems and synchronising switchgearThis chapter covers the standby diesel generator plant of a data-centre building. | 8 |
| 16 | UPS, batteries, transfer switches and rack power distributionThis chapter covers the part of the electrical system that keeps the information technology (IT) load supplied without a break. | 7 |
| 17 | Earthing, lightning protection and power qualityThis chapter covers three related subjects that a commissioning manager must prove before a data-centre building is handed over. | 6 |
Part DMechanical and fire commissioning
| Ch. | Chapter and scope | Figures |
|---|---|---|
| 18 | Chilled-water and heat-rejection plant: chillers, pumps, dry coolers, towers, water treatment and flushingThis chapter covers the central cooling plant of a data-centre building. | 8 |
| 19 | Air side and liquid cooling: CRAH, fan walls, CDU and technology cooling loops, testing and balancingThis chapter covers the cooling equipment inside a data hall. | 8 |
| 20 | Fire detection, suppression and life-safety interfaces: the cause-and-effect matrixThis chapter covers the fire protection and life-safety systems of a data-centre building and the way they act on the other building systems. | 8 |
Part EControls, monitoring, integration and networks
| Ch. | Chapter and scope | Figures |
|---|---|---|
| 21 | BMS architecture, protocols and the points listThis chapter describes how a building management system (BMS) on a hyperscale data-centre campus is built, which communication protocols it uses, and how the points list is written and checked. | 10 |
| 22 | BMS commissioning procedure: from factory test to sequence acceptanceThis chapter gives the commissioning procedure for the building management system (BMS) of a hyperscale data-centre campus. | 6 |
| 23 | EPMS and Schneider EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert (PME): architecture and devicesThis chapter describes what an electrical power monitoring system (EPMS) is on a hyperscale data-centre campus and how Schneider Electric EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert (PME) is built. | 8 |
| 24 | EPMS and PME commissioning procedure: devices, data, alarms, sequence of events and reportsThis chapter is the step-by-step commissioning procedure for an electrical power monitoring system (EPMS) built on Schneider Electric EcoStruxure Power Monitoring Expert (PME). | 6 |
| 25 | Integration points: master interface list, interface control documents and integration testingThis chapter describes how the interfaces between systems on a hyperscale data-centre campus are listed, specified, handed over and tested. | 10 |
| 26 | OT network, fibre optic and copper cabling: design, testing and acceptanceThis chapter covers the operational technology (OT) network on a data-centre campus and the fibre and copper cabling under it. | 8 |
| 27 | DCIM, CMMS, security and access control, and OT cybersecurityThis chapter covers four systems that sit on top of the electrical, mechanical and controls systems of a data-centre campus. | 7 |
Part FIntegrated testing, issues and data
| Ch. | Chapter and scope | Figures |
|---|---|---|
| 28 | Integrated systems testing (L5): scenarios, scripts, instrumentation and resultsThis chapter covers integrated systems testing (IST), the fifth and last level (L5) of data-centre commissioning. | 7 |
| 29 | Issue library: symptoms, causes, checks and fixes across all systemsThis chapter is a reference list of the issues that commissioning teams find on data-centre projects, from the first energisation to the integrated systems test (IST) and handover. | 8 |
| 30 | Commissioning data: trends, KPIs, dashboards and worked datasetsThis chapter explains how the commissioning manager collects, checks and uses commissioning data on a data-centre campus. | 9 |
Part GPeople, templates and reference
| Ch. | Chapter and scope | Figures |
|---|---|---|
| 32 | Forms and templates with filled examplesThis chapter collects the forms that the commissioning manager (CxM) and the contractors fill on a data-centre campus, each with a field table and a filled example that a site engineer can print, fill and check. | 15 |
| 33 | Glossary, acronyms and quick-reference acceptance valuesThis chapter collects in one place the terms, the acceptance values, the formulas and the worked examples that chapters 01 to 30 and 32 explain in full. | 18 |
| 32 chapters | 267 |
How to cite
Cite the edition and the chapter page. Section numbers (for example 28.3) and figure ids (for example F28-1) are stable within edition R01.
Bagus Dwi Permana (2026). Data Centre Commissioning Field Manual, edition R01. Resistance Zero. https://resistancezero.com/cx-handbook/
Bagus Dwi Permana (2026). "02 The commissioning process: phases, levels L0 to L5, roles and responsibilities". In Data Centre Commissioning Field Manual, edition R01. Resistance Zero. https://resistancezero.com/cx-handbook/02-commissioning-process-levels-roles.html
Educational field reference compiled from public standards, guides, manufacturer documents and published incident reports; sources close each chapter. The project specification, the Engineer of Record and the OEM documents govern; check the current edition of every standard before use. Worked examples use an example campus (MSC-1: 4 buildings, 12 halls of 12 MW), not project data. Independent research; not affiliated with any current or former employer. Privacy · Terms.