World News

BULGARIA: Customs officers from the district of Rousse in Bulgaria have stopped an attempt to smuggle 1620kg of refrigerant at the border with Romania.

IRELAND: Johnson Controls has appointed Joakim Weidemanis as CEO, following last year’s announcement that George R Oliver would be stepping down from the role. 

USA: The Samsung Lennox North American joint venture, announced last year, has unveiled its first ductless heat pump offerings – the Samsung mini-split system and Varix VRF.

SPAIN: Panasonic has signed a sponsorship deal with FC Barcelona to become the new Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning provider for the development of the football club’s Camp Nou stadium complex.

GERMANY: Private equity firm Triton Partners is reported to be considering a sale of German heat exchanger products manufacturer Kelvion.

DENMARK: Danfoss has appointed Fabio Klein as divisional president of its Commercial Compressors division of Danfoss Climate Solutions.

SWEDEN: Wholesaler Beijer Ref saw net sales in 2024 rise 10.9% to SEK35,662m (€3.1bn) with EBITA up 11.1% to 3,776m (€328m).

GERMANY: Heat exchanger manufacturer Güntner has promoted Andrea Belloni to the position of executive director of sales Europe and Central Asia.

USA: Materials scientists at UCLA are said to have developed a compact cooling technology that can pump away heat continuously using layers of flexing thin films.

USA/ITALY: Testing, inspection and certification company UL Solutions is to expand its HVAC facilities in Plano, Texas, and Carugate, Italy, to meet demand for heat pump performance and safety evaluations.

USA: The Center for Environmental Energy Engineering (CEEE) has reported the sudden death of internationally recognised HVACR expert Reinhard Radermacher.

USA: The USA’s leading association of independent supermarkets has backed a resolution to nullify the US AIM Act to phase down HFC refrigerants.

USA: The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has warned of non-compliant refrigerant cylinders which could cause significant damage to property, physical injury or death.

SPAIN: An EU-funded project has been established to preserve cultural heritage artefacts and reduce energy demand by up to 50% by improving indoor air quality.  

UK/EUROPE: Heat-related deaths due to climate change are likely to substantially surpass any decrease in cold-related deaths across Europe by the end of the century.

BELGIUM: The European Heat Pump Association (EHPA) claims that EU industry could save up to 146Mt of CO2 a year if heat pump technology was fully rolled out.

BELGIUM: Eurovent has released a new recommendation on the performance tests of very large axial fans in the context of Ecodesign requirements. 

ITALY: Italian cooling tower and condenser manufacturer Decsa has announced the death of its CEO, Nicola Ruiz de Cardenas, after an accident on Mount Etna at the weekend.

UKRAINE: As a candidate for accession to the European Union, Ukraine  is working to adopt the new European F-Gas and ozone depleting substances regulations.

MALAYSIA/TAIWAN: Daikin Malaysia Sdn Bhd, the Daikin subsidiary responsible for business in Southeast Asia and Oceania, has formed a joint venture for large-sized commercial HVAC equipment in Taiwan.

GERMANY: Magnetic cooling company Magnotherm claims a significant advancement in the technology by protecting magnetocaloric alloys from corrosion and mechanical fracture.

DENMARK: Kristian Strand has been named president of Danfoss Climate Solutions. He succeeds Jürgen Fischer who is retiring after 16 years with the company.

JAPAN: Panasonic claims to have verified the sterilisation effect of hypochlorous acid on airborne and attached bacteria in tests with Gunma Paz University.

GERMANY: Daikin says it will introduce an R290 industrial chiller amongst a number of new lower GWP additions at the forthcoming ISH exhibition in Germany.

INDIA/JAPAN: Mayakawa, the Japanese manufacturer of Mycom screw compressors, has formed a joint venture with industrial refrigeration company Frick India. 

UK: The Panasonic PRO Awards 2025, which recognise and highlight the best projects to have implemented Panasonic’s sustainable solutions, is now open for entries.

USA: A man from St Louis, Missouri, has been jailed for operating a Ponzi scheme based on trading in ozone-depleting R22.