World News
31st December 2013
Ebm-Papst to invest €15m
GERMANY: Fan and motor manufacturers Ebm-Papst is to invest around €15m to double the production capacity of its factory in Mulfingen-Hollenbach. [caption id="attachment_2867" align="alignright" width="300"]…
30th December 2013
Suspected refrigerant leak injures 9
USA: Nine people were taken to hospital last night after a suspected refrigerant leak at a supermarket in New Hampshire. It is reported that the…
24th December 2013
F-gas agreement: Further details revealed
BELGIUM: EFCTC, the organisation representing fluorocarbon interests in Europe, has broken ranks with other stakeholders by revealing further details of the recent F-gas revision agreement.…
24th December 2013
Carrier and Trane back call for change
FRANCE: Air conditioning suppliers Carrier and Trane are amongst 50 major international companies appealing on the newspaper website Les Echos calling for changes to make…
24th December 2013
Ceiling collapse brings down ac equipment
NEW ZEALAND: A young girl was treated for minor injuries today after part of the ceiling collapsed at an Auckland cinema bringing down ducting and…
23rd December 2013
Snow cooling created greater emissions
JAPAN: An experiment to ship snow from the north of Japan to help reduce the air conditioning load in Tokyo has created CO2 emissions three…
22nd December 2013
Bitzer shuffles top managers
GERMANY: Rob de Bruyn is the new md of Bitzer subsidiaries in Asia, Indonesia and Malaysia, replacing Gianni Parlanti who has been appointed director of…
22nd December 2013
Mitsubishi Electric fined $2.2m
AUSTRALIA: Mitsubishi Electric Australia has been fined AUS$2.2m (£1.19m) for engaging in resale price maintenance on its air conditioning units. The Federal Court of Australia…
19th December 2013
R32 unit wins eco prize
JAPAN: The new Mitsubishi Electric range of air conditioners running on the low GWP refrigerant R32, has won the top energy efficiency prize at Tokyo’s…
19th December 2013
Firefighters call R1234yf “dangerous”
GERMANY: Germany’s professional firefighters' association is calling for a clearly visible warning on all cars that are filled with the new air conditioning refrigerant R1234yf.…
18th December 2013
Petra builds factory in Saudi Arabia
[caption id="attachment_2700" align="alignright" width="300"] The Petra Engineering hq in Amman[/caption] SAUDI ARABIA: Jordanian air conditioning manufacturer Petra Engineering has established a factory in King Abdullah…
18th December 2013
Being cool is tops
USA: Refrigerators and air conditioners are in the top 10 most essential appliances according to a new list on the US website HowStuffWorks. On top…
17th December 2013
Green party welcomes new F-gas rules
BRUSSELS: The European green parties have welcomed the outcome of yesterday evening’s agreement on revisions to the F-gas regulations. European Parliament draftsman/rapporteur and Green climate…
16th December 2013
The beginning of the end for HFCs?
BRUSSELS: The parties to the F-gas revisions stepped back from the brink today by agreeing a phase down of HFCs and equipment bans that will…
16th December 2013
Mitsubishi Electric buys rail business
JAPAN: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation has acquired a controlling interest in railcar air conditioning systems manufacturer Klimat-Fer SpA. Today's announcement will see 80% of Klimat-Fer's shares…
16th December 2013
Customs officers suspended in R22 scam
INDIA: Previously a centre for CFC smuggling, India has now become a focus for the illegal imports of HCFCs. Five customs officers, one of them…
13th December 2013
Chinese R134a faces US sanctions
USA: The US International Trade Commission has sided with Mexichem in agreeing that Chinese R134a is allegedly being subsidised and sold at unfair prices. With…
13th December 2013
EC clears Secop takeover of ACC Austria
GERMANY: The Secop Group's takeover of hermetic compressor manufacturer ACC Austria has passed EC regulatory controls and is expected to be completed by the end…
12th December 2013
Copeland approval for R22 retrofit
USA: Refrigerant manufacturer Arkema says that its R22 retrofit blend R427A has been approved by Emerson for use with Copeland Discus compressors. R427A is a…
10th December 2013
Date set for fourth F-gas meeting
BRUSSELS: Next Monday, December 16, is the date that has been set for a fourth trialogue meeting on the F-gas revisions. This fourth meeting between…
10th December 2013
Honeywell to build 1234yf plant at Geismar
USA: Honeywell is to build a new 1234yf plant at its Geismar, Louisiana facility as part of a $300m investment in the new refrigerant. The…
9th December 2013
Fourth F-gas meeting gets go-ahead
BRUSSELS: The Lithuanian presidency has given a mandate for a fourth trialogue meeting in a last-ditch effort to save the F-gas regulation revisions. The news…
8th December 2013
Carbon tax reduces emissions by just 0.1%
[caption id="attachment_2563" align="alignright" width="400"] Opponents protest the imposition of Australia's controversial carbon tax[/caption] AUSTRALIA: The carbon tax introduced in Australia in July 2012, which led…
7th December 2013
R32: larger systems could be next
[caption id="attachment_2560" align="alignright" width="300"] Mitsubishi Electric is one of the leading Japanese manufacturers to have introduced wall-mounted R32 units[/caption] JAPAN: The mildly flammable refrigerant R32,…
6th December 2013
Bitzer marks 100,000th Ecoline
[caption id="attachment_2555" align="alignright" width="300"] The 100,000th new Ecoline reciprocating compressor being presented to Bitzer’s Polish distributor Berling SA (l to r): Frank Fuhlbrück (Bitzer Schkeuditz…
5th December 2013
US to investigate R134a imports
USA: The US Department of Commerce has initiated anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations into imports of R134a from China. The news follows a petition by Mexichem…
5th December 2013
Daikin sets up joint venture in Saudi Arabia
BELGIUM: Daikin Europe has established a joint venture subsidiary In Saudi Arabia. Appropriately named Daikin Air Conditioning Saudi Arabia, the new company pairs Daikin with…