- First-ever presentation of the eco Data Center Awards
- Bernhard Huter honoured as Data Center Person of the Year
- Jury presents Lifetime Achievement Award to Peter Knapp
- JH-Computers GmbH and akquinet outsourcing gGmbH receive awards for most innovative data centre projects
Mainz, 6 May 2025 – As part of this year’s Data Center Expert Summit hosted by eco – Association of the Internet Industry, the eco Data Center Awards were presented for the first time last night. Four outstanding individuals and companies were recognised for their commitment and innovative strength, which have played a key role in strengthening and advancing Germany’s position as a data centre hub.
Jury recognises social responsibility and sustainability in the data centre sector
The “Data Center Person of the Year” award was presented by a panel of six experts in recognition of Bernhard Huter’s longstanding commitment. As the founder of the environmental initiative “TheResponse” and initiator of the “Racks4Roots” project – in which companies from the Internet industry plant one tree per rack each year – Huter has redefined sustainability beyond the conventional data centre business model, enabling the sector to engage in direct and effective environmental protection.
“This award is a delightful surprise and a great honour,” said Huter. “At the same time, it shows that the eco Association is also paying attention to SMEs – an important message.” Looking ahead, he added: “For the data centre sector, I would like to see reliable regulatory frameworks that provide planning certainty and also encourage investment in our industry and in Germany as a location.”
Honouring decades of dedication to the data centre industry
Peter Knapp, Executive Vice President of CloudHQ, received the “Lifetime Achievement Award” for his outstanding contribution to strengthening the data centre hub in the Rhine-Main region and his pivotal role in developing Frankfurt as a data hub. Through his visionary leadership – including his work with the association Digital Hub FrankfurtRheinMain e.V. – Knapp has played a decisive role in establishing Hesse as a leading data and digital infrastructure location in Europe.
“The award is a great pleasure, but also a commitment to continue working towards the goals of the data centre sector,” said Knapp. “I hope that digital transformation – and with it the data centre industry – will be recognised as being on par with the automotive, chemical and mechanical engineering industries, as it is the backbone of digital transformation in Germany.”
Audience votes for most innovative data centre projects
The Data Center Award for the most innovative data centre projects was decided by a live audience vote. The award was presented in two categories: JH-Computers GmbH won the prize for “Most Innovative Data Center Project under 3.5 MW” with its project “Data Centre as a Component of Sustainable Heat Supply”. The award for “Most Innovative Data Center Project over 3.5 MW” went to akquinet outsourcing gGmbH for its project “Holistic Sustainability – The Integrated Data Centre”.
The Data Center Award was held for the first time as part of the eco Data Center Expert Summit, coinciding with the 30th anniversary of the eco Association. This specialist conference brings together leading minds from the data centre industry to discuss current and future key topics in the digital infrastructure sector.
In time for the 2025 Data Center Expert Summit, a new episode of the eco podcast Das Ohr am Netz has been released: “Pulse Check on the Data Centre Market – How Are Germany’s Data Centres Doing?”. Listen to the episode here: Listen to the episode here.
