We consider a simplified physics model for simulating air and heat transfer in data centers, coupled with the use of real-time sensor measurements for specifying the required input information, mainly in the form of boundary data for the boundary value problems comprising the model. Results from a case study indicate that the model produces numerical approximations to temperature distributions which compare favorably with 3D experimental thermal measurements, even when the amount of input information provided by the real-time sensor data is limited. These initial numerical experiments suggest that the model could be suitable for operational and real-time usage as part of a data center energy management system. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.