Understanding Perforated Tiles for Optimal Airflow Management

Perforated floor tiles are vital to maintaining optimal airflow and cooling efficiency in modern data centers. By managing how cold air is distributed through raised floors, they help prevent hotspots, improve energy efficiency, and extend equipment lifespan.

Here are 3 key insights every data center designer and operator should know:

1. Airflow Capacity

Perforated tiles are measured by their airflow capacity in Cubic Feet per Minute (CFM). CFM is the volume of air moving through a given space in one minute. It’s a critical metric for determining the effectiveness of airflow in the data center.

Standard tiles typically support 200–500 CFM,

High-flow tiles can deliver up to 1000 CFM or more, ideal for high-density zones.

2. Server Load / Cooling Requirements

The airflow needed depends directly on the server load.

Rule of Thumb : Data centers require ~150 CFM for every 1 kW of server power load.
Proper airflow distribution aligns with actual equipment demand and prevents hotspots.

3. Calculating Cooling Power

To determine the cooling effectiveness of a tile, use this formula

Watts = 0.316 × CFM × ΔT

Where ΔT is the temperature difference between supply and return air.

For instance, if a perforated tile delivers 200 CFM, and the temperature difference (ΔT) is 18°F :

Watts = 0.316 × 200 × 18 = 1,173W

which is approximately 1.1 kW of cooling delivered by that tile.

This helps assess whether each tile is contributing enough cooling to maintain system stability.

Perforated tiles are more than just floor components—they are critical assets for precision airflow and thermal control. Understanding their performance helps optimize cooling strategies, reduce energy waste, and support high-performance computing.