  We present the design, construction and characterization of Bitter-type
electromagnets which can generate high magnetic fields under continuous
operation with efficient heat removal for cold atom experiments. The
electromagnets are constructed from a stack of alternating layers consisting of
copper arcs and insulating polyester spacers. Efficient cooling of the copper
is achieved via parallel rectangular water cooling channels between copper
layers with low resistance to flow; a high ratio of the water-cooled surface
area to the volume of copper ensures a short length scale ~1 mm to extract
dissipated heat. High copper fraction per layer ensures high magnetic field
generated per unit energy dissipated. The ensemble is highly scalable and
compressed to create a watertight seal without epoxy. From our measurements, a
peak field of 770 G is generated 14 mm away from a single electromagnet with a
current of 400 A and a total power dissipation of 1.6 kW. With cooling water
flowing at 3.8 l/min, the coil temperature only increases by 7 degrees Celsius
under continuous operation.
