Prairie Builds
About Us
How We Operate
The manufacturing rep model in data center infrastructure has traditionally split along a clean line: one set of firms sells facility-side equipment — chillers, condensers, power distribution — while engineering teams handle compute specification independently. That model worked when racks drew 30 kilowatts of air-cooled compute and the cooling conversation started and ended at the facility wall.
At 100 kilowatts and above, that line disappears. The cooling architecture is now driven by what's inside the rack — which GPU generation, which server OEM, what workload, what density. The facility-side equipment has to be sized and aligned to those decisions, not the other way around.
Prairie Builds operates across both sides of that conversation. We work with MEP firms and general contractors on the cooling loop, chiller sizing, and facility integration. And we work with data center operators, neoclouds, and GPU-as-a-service providers on the compute stack, deployment path, and infrastructure timeline. One firm, both audiences, one coherent design conversation.
Our value is not by selling a product into a vacuum, but by connecting the engineering decisions on the facility side with the compute decisions on the IT side, so the infrastructure is aligned from the start.
Our role
Prairie Builds is not the OEM, the thermal engineer, or the MEP. Our role is to identify opportunities early, understand where our products are relevant, educate stakeholders, and bring the right manufacturer technical resources into the conversation.
Prairie Builds opens the door, frames the opportunity, and moves the deal.
The Team
Cade Keenan — Managing Partner
Cade co-founded Prairie Builds to help build a more connected, informed approach to infrastructure partnerships and market development. He focuses on relationship-building, opportunity development, and helping translate complex market movement into clear next steps for customers and partners. His work is centered on creating momentum in markets where timing, trust, and strong execution matter.
Tim Cook — Managing Partner
Tim co-founded Prairie Builds to help connect infrastructure demand, market intelligence, and commercial execution across AI and next-generation data center markets. He focuses on research, strategy, and building the systems that help Prairie Builds identify opportunities early and turn market signals into actionable business development.
Prairie Builds is a DBA of KC Strategies LLC, an Illinois limited liability company.