The growing computing power associated with artificial intelligence applications and the expansion of cloud services are sharply increasing the demand for cable infrastructure in data centers. Global data center power and capacity are projected to triple by 2029, which places new demands on power and data cables to deliver more power and data in confined spaces while meeting stricter fire safety and sustainability requirements. Avient plans to address these challenges at Wire Düsseldorf 2026, presenting its material solutions for cables used in data center infrastructure.
New requirements for cables in data centers
According to Avient, many current cable solutions were not designed for the loads generated by modern AI applications and high rack density. The increase in power per rack and the growing data transmission rates translate into higher thermal loads and the need for better thermal management, as well as a greater fire risk in environments with a high concentration of cables.
Matt Guise, global marketing director for power and data connectivity cables at Avient, points to the need to move away from previous design approaches: "The data center industry is at an inflection point. Facilities designed three years ago are already capacity-constrained. Operators need cable solutions that can handle 400G and beyond, dissipate heat in higher-density racks, meet stringent fire codes, and support circular economy goals all at the same time."
Meeting these requirements simultaneously calls for carefully selected insulation and jacket materials, as well as functional additives that enhance cable durability, safety, and recyclability.
LSFOH formulations for fire safety
One of the key areas Avient emphasizes is fire safety in high-density cable installations. The company offers ECCOH low smoke and fume non-halogen (LSFOH) formulations, designed to provide high flame-retardant performance with significantly reduced smoke emission, toxicity, and corrosiveness compared with traditional halogenated materials.
According to Avient, these solutions comply with the Construction Products Regulation EN 50575 and international fire safety standards, which is important in view of the increasing packing density of network and server racks and the potential consequences of a fire for data center uptime.
Materials for high-throughput cables
In the data transmission area, Avient focuses on materials that enable insulation miniaturization and high-speed processing, which are required for modern high-throughput cables. The portfolio includes solutions for thin-wall insulation of around 100 µm, intended for category 8 cables, twinax cables, and other high-speed interconnects used to support AI-related workloads.
The company also highlights the use of pre-colored fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP) materials for copper conductor insulation. These materials are intended to ensure stable high-speed data transmission while meeting requirements related to processing and conductor identification within cable bundles.
Solutions supporting recycling and circularity
Another area stressed by Avient is sustainability in the data center sector. The company offers Cesa Nox A4R and Cesa Unify additive solutions, designed to improve the recyclability of plastics and increase the share of recycled content in cable structures.
The use of Cesa Nox A4R antioxidant technology and the Cesa Unify compatibilizer is intended to enable higher levels of recyclates in polymer formulations without significant deterioration of cable performance. This allows operators to pursue circular economy objectives, reducing the consumption of virgin raw materials while maintaining required technical parameters.
Deborah Sondag, marketing director for color and additives for the EMEA region at Avient, highlights the time pressure facing the market: "Infrastructure providers can't wait for the next generation of technology. They need solutions today that won't be obsolete tomorrow, cables that can handle evolving power requirements, support faster data rates as they're deployed, and meet sustainability commitments that are already in place."
Presentation at Wire Düsseldorf 2026
Avient plans to present its material solutions and discuss emerging challenges for cable infrastructure at Wire Düsseldorf 2026. The company will be present in Hall 9 at Booth C77 at the Messe Düsseldorf exhibition center in Germany from 13 to 17 April 2026.
Wire Düsseldorf 2026: Avient solutions for cables in AI-driven data centers
