Liquid cooling
Liquid-Cooling Manifold Suppliers: Rack Options and Quote Requirements
A rack manifold distributes coolant to the equipment in the rack. The quote has to say whether you are buying that assembly, a set of fittings, or a whole cooling system.
On this page
In the pages below, a rack manifold is the hardware that takes supply and return coolant and distributes it to the servers or cold plates in a rack. CoolIT, Eaton, JetCool, and Motivair describe that kind of product. Oetiker's page describes connectors and clamps for manifold connections, which is a different scope. The guide stops at published offerings. It does not size a loop.
What a rack manifold does
CoolIT describes the manifold as the piece between the technology cooling system and the liquid-cooled servers in the rack. Its job, on that page, is to distribute coolant and to let one server be serviced while others stay connected. Eaton describes a stainless-steel spine with parallel ports and quick disconnects so servers can be added or removed. Motivair describes the in-rack manifold as the common connection between its Dynamic Cold Plates and the supply and return piping or a coolant distribution unit. Those are the roles the pages claim. They are not a shared dimensional standard.
Supplier offerings and system scope
The selection is the set of pages that describe rack manifolds or the connections on them. Alphabetical order is not a preference. Purchase terms that the page does not state are marked that way.
| Supplier | What the page offers | Material or rack notes that are published | Purchase scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| CoolIT | Standard and custom rack manifolds, with hand-mate or blind-mate quick disconnects. | Treated stainless steel. EIA heights named as 42U, 48U, and 52U. ORV3 named as 44OU. Top or bottom feed. Leak test on every unit, as stated. UL certification is claimed, with the certificate left in a specification download. | Described as a CoolIT product you specify with them. A standalone catalog checkout is not published. They also describe a wider liquid-cooling portfolio. |
| Eaton | Rack manifolds Eaton says it designs and manufactures. | Stainless-steel spine, parallel ports, quick disconnects, air and pressure relief. No rack height or model number on the article. | Not published. The page invites the reader to contact Eaton. |
| JetCool | Configurable in-rack manifolds and UQD or UQDB couplings, from Coreworks. | Stainless steel. Port quantity is configurable. UQD and UQDB sizes 02 through 08 are listed. | Described inside a portfolio that also includes cold plates and coolant distribution units. A separate manifold-only price is not published. |
| Motivair | In-rack manifolds for Motivair Dynamic Cold Plates. | 304 stainless steel. Heights named as 42U, 48U, 50U, and custom. Top or bottom. Made in the USA, as stated. Address in Lancaster, New York. | Tied, on this page, to Motivair cold plates. Use with other cold plates is not stated. A public price is not published. |
| Oetiker | Quick connect disconnects and ear clamps for manifold hose connections. | Dry-break language for the QCDC connector. Stainless steel named for StepLess ear clamps 117 and 167. A manifold body is not specified. | Connection hardware, not a rack manifold assembly, on the page reviewed. |
Compare the interfaces and installation requirements
Connections and service access
CoolIT offers hand-mate and blind-mate quick disconnects, single- or dual-sided layouts, and color coding of red for hot and blue for cold. It also says FD83 connectors are a common technology-cooling-system connection in its deployments, which is a CoolIT statement about practice, not a requirement that your site use that series. JetCool offers UQD and UQDB sizes and a separate TSZC20 series for manifold-to-pipeline connections, described as a 20 mm connection. Motivair's manifold page does not name the coupling series. The quick-disconnect guide is the place to pin down UQD and UQDB before you copy a series name into a manifold request.
Materials and fluid compatibility
CoolIT says the manifolds are treated stainless steel and that propylene glycol at 25 percent is the formulation they are validated for. Other chemistries, that page says, should be validated with CoolIT. Motivair specifies 304 stainless steel and does not name a coolant on the manifold page. Eaton specifies a stainless-steel spine and does not name the alloy or the fluid. OCP's coupling specification, discussed in the quick-disconnect guide, is written for non-combustible single-phase water and glycol. A manifold built for one of those fluids still needs the supplier's own compatibility statement.
Mounting and routing
CoolIT describes mounting like a rack power strip, in horizontal or vertical orientations, with front or rear placement and top or bottom feed. Motivair describes a universal top and bottom design in the heights listed above. Eaton mentions mounting holes and handles and does not publish a hole pattern. None of these pages are a facility piping design. They tell you which installation facts belong in the request: rack format, feed direction, which face of the rack is accessible, and how the hose assemblies reach the ports.
What belongs in a manifold RFQ?
Send the envelope or the rack format, the mounting, the ports, the interface family, the approved fluid, the operating conditions the design already states, the quantity, and the leak, pressure, cleanliness, and document requirements. CoolIT's page says compatibility with a coolant distribution unit and cold plate depends on connector type, port size, flow, and pressure. Put those items in the request if you have them. Leave them blank if you do not, and do not invent a flow to fill the form.
Questions before selecting a supplier
Can I buy the manifold separately?
CoolIT, Eaton, JetCool, and Motivair each present manifolds as a product, and none of the pages publish a self-serve catalog price. JetCool describes manifolds inside a wider cooling portfolio. Motivair describes them with its own cold plates. Ask for a quotation scope that says manifold assembly only, or manifold plus couplings, or a full cooling package. Oetiker's page should not be read as a manifold body.
Are connections included?
CoolIT includes quick disconnects in the manifold description and still offers a choice of hand-mate or blind-mate. JetCool treats manifold configuration and quick-disconnect type as separate steps. Motivair does not say the couplings are included. Ask for a list of fitted connectors, the interface code, and any hose barb or port thread that is part of the assembly.
What testing is documented?
CoolIT says every manifold, including the quick disconnects, is leak tested before it ships, under static and dynamic conditions. The page does not reproduce the test pressure. Motivair and Eaton do not publish a leak-test method on the pages reviewed. Ask for the test, the fluid, the pressure, and the record that will ship with the unit.
Sources
Scope statements come from the five pages below. No rack was measured for this guide, and no flow number was added.