Any operator entering the data center space quickly discovers the challenges of managing a chain of contractors, OEMs, and utility consultants. The fragmented nature of a traditional build dilutes accountability and makes it difficult to troubleshoot when a timeline slips.
A turnkey data center solution, like the model we’ve built here at Giga, can solve all those headaches. But what exactly is a turnkey data center, and how does it work?
This post covers what our turnkey data center model actually includes, how the build process works, and why vertical integration delivers speed, accountability, and a site that's ready to run compute on day one.
What does a turnkey data center include?
Many vendors will say they offer a turnkey solution, but oftentimes what they’re truly offering is coordination. They still offer only one piece of the puzzle and will outsource the rest of the project to other vendors and partners.
Giga's model is different.
We own utility origination, site permitting and development, infrastructure manufacturing, on-site construction, commissioning, and operations. Here's what that looks like in practice:
- MW sourcing: Our site origination team works directly with utilities to identify and secure available power. We have existing utility relationships and a portfolio of pre-permitted, powered land ready for deployment.
- Site rezoning and permitting: We navigate county approvals, noise ordinances, and environmental reviews to streamline the process without cutting corners.
- Pad-ready site prep: Our prep process includes grading, drainage, water and sewer access, substation build-out, or interconnection.
- In-house manufacturing: We build all your infrastructure (transformers, switchboards, and modular data center pods) in our own factories, giving us full control over your equipment lead times.
- On-site MEP construction: Construction is led by our in-house team. Plus, our pre-engineered pods reduce on-site MEP work by up to 90%, shifting most of the build to our factories and leaving only electrical and cooling hookups to be done on-site.
- Commissioning: We also manage commissioning before handing the site over to operators. We can also manage ongoing operations, depending on what the project calls for.
AI hyperscalers and GPU cloud providers aren't waiting on GPUs. The hardware exists. The bottleneck is power, and more specifically, the speed at which infrastructure can be sourced, built, and energized to run it.
The fragmented model of a traditional build often results in delays, leaving your compute capacity idle for months at a time. We built Giga’s turnkey model because, as operators, we were sick of dealing with that broken system ourselves. We didn’t want to work around it, so we replaced it.
The sections that follow break down exactly what we build, how fast we build it, and what single-partner accountability means in practice.
How Giga Energy builds turnkey data centers
Our pre-engineered assembly method is the key to how we build turnkey data sites. Our approach builds the system in a pod-based setup, allowing us to build the modules in our factories, ship them pre-tested, and make only two on-site connections (power and cooling).
Here's what the full AI data center system is made of:
Because every module is shipped, built, and tested in our factories, on-site work is limited to those final power and cooling connections.
Where a 40 MW traditional data center build typically requires 400–500 electricians on-site, our model can run the same project with roughly 30–40 electricians on-site because the labor-intensive work has already been done at the factory.
Giga Energy’s timelines from greenfield to GPU-ready
Our full-stack model delivers a commissioned AI data center in as fast as 9 months. The reason it's possible comes down to how we sequence the work.
Traditional builds run in series, where you need to wait for permits before you can begin design or wait on OEM lead times before you can build. With this approach, every phase of the project results in gaps and potential delays.
Our model runs in parallel. Because we own our land portfolio, our supply chain, and our construction team, we can run manufacturing, site development, and permitting concurrently, eliminating gaps and speeding up the process.
With our complete vertical integration, we can eliminate delays in equipment and materials. We also reduce field labor issues by building our modules to be plug-and-play, dramatically reducing on-site electrician hours. And finally, our existing portfolio of pre-permitted, powered sites eliminates long permit waits.
One partner from spec to site
Another challenge of the fragmented data center construction model is accountability. When a project stalls, every vendor points to the next one in line. The result is that no one owns the outcome, and everything comes back on you, the operator.
Giga's model is built around the premise that one team owns everything.
When you work with Giga, engineering, procurement, manufacturing, construction, and commissioning are all internal. If there is a delay or challenge at any point in the process, you have one number to call. This setup simplifies the build process and ensures that our partners never get the run-around when an issue arises.
Who our turnkey solution is for
Our turnkey data center solution is best suited for three categories of operators:
- AI hyperscalers and GPU cloud providers: If you have GPUs in inventory and no site ready to run them, our turnkey model is ideal for speeding up your time to power.
- Site brokers and real estate teams: If your job is connecting hyperscalers to reliable site operators and developers, Giga is a partner you can trust to build and operate sites and stand behind the outcome.
- Operators who need hosted capacity: In addition to building sites for handover, we can build and operate the data center ourselves, offering GPU or compute rack space directly through our colocation services. That means you can deploy compute without taking on the site development burden.
If you fall into any of these categories, get in touch with our team today to see how we can help get your compute online.
See what Giga's turnkey data center solution can do for you
The old model of data center construction was built for a different era. It doesn’t move at the speed or agility AI infrastructure demands. Giga’s turnkey data center model does.
With our solution, you have one accountable partner from MW origination through site commissioning. You can make decisions faster, avoid delays and bottlenecks, and get your site online quicker.
If you're scoping a new site build or evaluating whether Giga fits your project requirements, the best next step is a direct conversation with our sites team.
Get in touch with our sites team and start building with us.
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