Capacity is sold in power, not in GPUs
Data center providers quote and contract in kilowatts and megawatts. If you only know how many GPUs you want, you cannot yet have a useful conversation. Converting your plan into power is one of the most valuable things you can do before you start searching.
The method in four steps
Start with the draw of one server at full load, from the vendor's specification sheet. Multiply by the number of servers. Add networking, storage and management gear, which typically add a meaningful share on top of the compute. Finally, add facility overhead for cooling and power conversion, often expressed as power usage effectiveness (PUE). The result is the total facility power you are asking a provider to supply.
A worked example
These numbers are illustrative, so replace them with your own. Suppose you plan 256 GPUs in 8-GPU servers, and each server draws roughly 10 kW at full load. That is 32 servers, or about 320 kW of server load. Add around 10 to 15 percent for networking and storage, and you are near 360 kW of IT load. With a PUE of about 1.3, the facility needs to supply roughly 470 kW. In practice you would ask for about half a megawatt, plus headroom.
What changes the answer
- Hardware generation. Newer GPU systems usually draw more power per server, so check the specification for the exact model you plan to buy.
- Utilization. Training clusters tend to run near their limit continuously. Inference loads can be spikier.
- Redundancy. Resilient designs can require you to contract more capacity than you will use at any moment.
- Cooling method. More efficient cooling lowers the overhead multiplier.
Plan for growth and for ramps
Providers care about when power arrives as much as how much. Most large deployments ramp in phases, and the capacity you need on day one is rarely the capacity you need in a year. Say so up front. A provider that can give you a smaller first phase with a firm right to expand is often a better fit than one that offers everything on paper and delivers it late.
Say it in their language
When you approach providers, lead with three figures: IT load in kilowatts or megawatts, the rack density that implies, and your phased timeline. It shows you have done the work, and it gets you quotes that mean something.
Have a GPU count and a deadline? Send us your requirements and we will return real options.