Eric Fan

Eric Fan began his journey in the building industries, but over the course of his career he has embraced the opportunity to revolutionise Asia-Pacific's data centre landscape. 

Eric worked as an engineer before becoming a senior leader and executive at global names like Honeywell, Dow Chemical and Saint-Gobain – companies where material science and building automation laid the groundwork for what would become his defining career move.

Four years ago, Eric pivoted into data centres, joining Chindata as Chief Operating Officer under Bain Capital's portfolio. 

Two years later, he took the helm of Bridge Data Centres (BDC), the firm's APAC platform headquartered in Singapore. 

It's a role that has seen him guide the company through explosive growth across Malaysia, Thailand and beyond, while positioning BDC as a trailblazer in one of the world's most dynamic digital infrastructure markets.

The pioneer mindset

What sets Eric apart is his willingness to be first – even when that means doing the heavy lifting. 

BDC was the first data centre operator to develop hyperscaler-customised campuses in Malaysia and the first to establish a presence in Johor, which is now the region's largest data centre hub. 

"We were the first guys – you've got to do all the groundwork, all the infrastructure," Eric recalls. That pioneering spirit has become BDC's competitive edge.

Under his leadership, the company’s capacity has grown five to sixfold in just three years, evolving from an enterprise-focused operation with less than 100MW capacity to a hyperscale powerhouse. 

Eric’s engineering background informs his approach: he champions vertical integration, with in-house capabilities spanning site selection, design, supply chain management and construction. 

"If you do this in-house, then you are much quicker," he explains. 

It's an end-to-end model that allows BDC to outpace competitors in an industry where speed is everything.

Technology and sustainability as core values

Eric is quick to acknowledge the industry's environmental responsibility. BDC has set a net-zero target for 2040, but his focus is on action, not just commitments. 

The company has deployed more than 50% solar energy usage at one of its Malaysian campuses and pioneered municipal wastewater recycling projects to address water scarcity – a growing constraint for the sector.

BDC’s PUE sits below 1.2 in the subtropical climate challenge, compared to a regional average of 1.5. 

Eric attributes this to aggressive adoption of liquid cooling technologies, including direct-to-chip and immersion cooling at scale. 

"Cooling takes the largest chunk of the so-called waste energy," he notes, framing innovation as both an operational and ethical imperative.

Eyes on expansion

For Eric, the next 12-18 months promise even more momentum. BDC is exploring opportunities in Japan and Australia, with ambitions to become a pan-APAC – or even global – player. 

"You would most likely see Bridge Data Centre growing outside of APAC," he says, forecasting more than a doubling of capacity in core markets alone.

Eric’s philosophy is elegant: transform electricity into computing power, efficiently and sustainably. 

It's a guiding principle shaped by his engineering roots and sharpened by the realities of AI demand. 

As several industry commentators observe, the bottleneck for data centre operators is not GPU supply – it's infrastructure. 

Eric is determined to ensure Bridge solves that problem faster, greener and at scale. For a CEO who thrives on being first, the timing could not be better.

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