Page 12 - Climate Control News magazine March 2022

World News
A-gas acquires manufacturing partner
LEFT: The acquisition complements Munters product offering.
Increase in heat pump production
DAIKIN EUROPE HAS invested in a new line of sheet metal presses at its Ostend plant in Belgium. The new presses are used to manufacture the
outside metal casing of Daikin’s heat pumps. Daikin’s deputy general manager of manufac- turing, Steven Van Impe, said the company used to rely on external suppliers for a significant part
of its sheet metal work.
“With the new presses we will be able to man-
ufacture more of our metal casings within the walls of our factory, which increases our produc- tion capacity and quality control. They also sup- port our environmental efforts, because with them, we significantly lower the transport vol- ume of semi-finished sheet metal to our factory,” Van Impe said.
Along with the new presses, a number of new technologies have been introduced to enhance safety on the factory floor.
The large sheet metal plates were difficult for staff to handle manually which is why the new presses are fed by robots.
“We have also fully automated the warehouse for the dies that are used to press the plates. The dies – which can weigh up to five tonnes – are now automatically removed from storage and loaded onto the presses,” he said.
Daikin Europe will be rolling out a massive recruitment campaign in coming months to fill more than 200 new vacancies at the Os- tend plant.
Daikin Europe has increased investment in heat pump production.
MUNTERS HAS ACQUIRED EDPAC, AN IRELAND-BASED MANUFACTURER OF DATA CENTRE COOLING EQUIPMENT AND AIR HANDLING SYSTEMS FOR A PURCHASE PRICE OF $US36.2 MILLION.
THE ACQUISITION IS part of the Munters strategy to strengthen its presence in the data centre cooling market. The company already has a strong presence in North America and is look- ing to increase its presence in Europe.
EDPAC has two manufacturing sites in Ire- land and 150 full time employees. It also has a strong customer base in the Middle East, South America and Asia.
Munters president and CEO, Klas Forsström, said the European data centre market is a priori- tised segment for Munters and the acquisition is a significant step in their growth plans.
“Our competences and experiences from the North American market will provide EDPAC with opportunities for further profitable growth. We foresee synergies by expanding our data cen-
tre offering to Europe and by coordinating tech- nology development and establishing unified processes,” he said.
EDPAC manufactures precision cooling equipment and various air handling systems and is also a manufacturing partner for Munters Oasis systems.
Sales of Munters products represents approxi- mately seven per cent of EDPAC’s total revenues. The acquisition also brings complementary products to Munters current data centre offering.
“We are excited to welcome EDPAC to Munters. EDPAC brings an attractive, differenti- ated customer base and high-quality products,” Forsström said.
“In addition, EDPAC’s operating model is a perfect match with Munters ways of working.”
CLIMATECONTROLNEWS.COM.AU
Panasonic showroom in Tokyo, Japan.
Panasonic investment plan
PANASONIC WILL INVEST $US 867 million in its air conditioning business over the next five years.
The focus will be on indoor air quality technologies in the wake of the corona- virus pandemic.
By 2025 Panasonic expects HVAC sales to increase 40 per cent from fis- cal 2021.
To support this growth Panasonic will establish testing and research facilities in Malaysia and Japan later this year.
There will also be a capacity upgrade at its air conditioning factories in China and Vietnam in 2023.
The first release of its commercial HVAC equipment using IAQ-enhanced technology will be next month in April.
The company expects to shift 1000 units by the end of fiscal 2023.
Panasonic is also planning to upgrade facilities in the Czech Republic where the company manufactures heat pumps for the European market.
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