Hardened Data Center Construction in Wichita Falls, Texas

North Texas weather tests a building's envelope and its cooling system, and in Wichita Falls we build data halls with that testing in mind: tornado-resistant structure, roofs that shed hail, generators that start in extreme heat and cooling systems that do not depend on a single water source. We construct generator and fuel yards, shells, equipment pads and the supporting site work for owners who want a hardened facility on the plains west of the Dallas metro. Everything starts with the weather, since weather is what the building will face most often.

The record is on paper. An F4 tornado struck the city on April 10, 1979, killing 42 people, injuring about 1,800 and causing roughly $400 million in damage. From 2010 to 2013 the city lived through a persistent drought and recorded 100 days of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher in 2011, and an 1886 flood destroyed the original waterfall on the river through town. Those events cover the main hazards a designer has to keep in mind: wind, heat, drought and flood.

We do not design for the average year, because an average year is the one that never tests anything. For a hall that needs to run 24 hours a day, we design for the year that the records describe, and we show the owner what each level of protection costs so the decision can be made with figures in hand.

Protection from tornadoes is a structural and a planning problem. Walls and roofs that resist high wind loads and flying debris are the first element: reinforced tilt-wall or precast panels, mechanically fastened roof decks and carefully detailed connections at the parapet. Louvers, doors and rooftop equipment are the weak points, and we design them with impact-rated products or protected enclosures where the owner calls for it.

The second element is continuity. A building can survive a storm and still go dark if the utility feed or the fuel supply fails, so we place generators and fuel tanks where debris is least likely to hit them and design the yard with the same attention to structure as the hall. Our work on structural steel and roof framing covers the details of keeping roofs on in high wind.

A hundred days at or above 100 degrees puts real strain on cooling equipment. Condensers and dry coolers lose capacity as the outside air gets hotter, and a plant sized for an average design day can run short in a heat wave. We size equipment for extremes, add capacity where the owner can pay for it and provide for adiabatic assist or similar means when water use is acceptable.

Drought raises the question of where water comes from. In a city that has had to ration, an evaporative cooling tower is a choice the owner will want to justify. Our chiller and cooling plant pads can accommodate air-cooled plants, closed-loop systems or hybrid designs, and we price them so the owner can weigh electricity against water risk. Texas voters also approved a large state water fund in 2025, which may eventually affect supply projects, but we do not plan around funding that has not been spent.

A large Air Force training base is the city's top employer with 7,222 employees, followed by the school district at 2,378, a regional health care system at 2,100 and a state university at 1,276. The base and the health system are natural customers for secured and clinical compute, and the university and schools need resilient systems for operations and records.

Wichita Falls is the western terminus of Interstate 44, and US Highways 287, 277, 281 and 82 serve the city. Wichita Falls Municipal Airport has two daily regional flights to Dallas/Fort Worth. For a builder, the roads provide good access for deliveries, and the flights give visiting engineers a short trip. See also how our team approaches neighboring work in Denton and Sherman, which sit on other North Texas corridors.

On a typical project we grade and drain the site, install underground utilities and build foundations, then erect the structure and finish the interior. The generator yard and fuel system are built to the owner's run-time requirement, with tanks that are protected against impact and with containment sized to the storage volume. We pay particular attention to the slab elevation and to drainage, since a flash flood can arrive during the same storm that brings hail.

Security is the last layer. Fence lines, vehicle barriers, cameras and a controlled entrance are built to the owner's standard and match the approach in our work on security perimeter and access control.

Defense contractors, health systems, public agencies and regional companies are the most common. The first two follow the pattern we describe under government and defense operators, where requirements for physical security and documentation are set by the customer. The rest want a local facility that survives the weather, and the hardening features we have described are relevant to them as well.

For any owner, we give a plain account of what a feature costs and what it protects against. A tornado shelter for operators, for example, is a modest cost against the safety of the people who keep a hall running, and we recommend it on any project with a staffed control room.

Tell us the use, the level of hardening you want and the parcel. We will return a design direction, a cost range for each protection level and a schedule.

Can a data hall be built to withstand a major tornado?

A building can be designed to resist very high winds and debris, but absolute protection is not realistic. We design to the standard the owner selects, protect critical equipment, place generators carefully and provide a shelter for staff. The cost rises with the level of protection.

How do you size cooling for a 100 degree summer?

We use design temperatures that reflect extremes rather than averages, add capacity margin and consider assist systems. Dry coolers and condensers lose output in extreme heat, so we confirm performance at the highest expected temperature.

Is water a concern for cooling in the area?

It can be. The region has experienced extended drought, and water restrictions have affected users in the past. We review supply options and recommend air-cooled or closed-loop systems when reliability is the priority.

Which highways serve a site here?

US 287, 277, 281 and 82 serve the city, and Interstate 44 ends here. Deliveries typically arrive on US 287 or US 82. We survey the final route for clearance and turn radii.

What about flooding?

Flash floods and river rises are part of the region's history. We use current floodplain mapping, raise the slab and equipment above the mapped level, and design drainage to move water away from the building.