HVAC News, July 2020

A new high-performance variable frequency drive (VFD) designed for OEMs to optimize the performance and the lower the energy costs of BLDC compressors used in heat pumps and condensing units has been launched by Invertek Drives. The new Optidrive Coolvert is one of the smallest in its class, providing machine builders with opportunities to reduce panel space and lower machine costs. Designed to operate specifically with CO2 refrigerant condensing systems, it can provide end-users with energy sa...

Security dealers now have the opportunity to offer their customers substantial energy savings while earning recurring monthly revenue (RMR) with a new integration developed between the Connect ONE cloud-hosted interface and ecobee WiFi SmartThermostats. Connect ONE Connect ONE, an award-winning service and management platform from Connected Technologies, now provides seamless support and control of popular ecobee, allowing dealers to expand into managed services for energy management and envir...

Viessmann has introduced the new Vitocal 100-A air source heat pump, the most compact and affordable model in its range. Designed for ease of installation in the standard British heating system - and therefore ideal for the replacement of gas and oil boilers - the monobloc unit’s tight dimensions are perfect for homes where space is at a premium. Its A+++ rated energy efficiency will benefit end-users with low running costs. Viessmann UK’s Managing Director, Graham Russell, said: &l...

Growing awareness of the benefits of energy efficiency and increasing performance standards for heating systems are important drivers in the boiler market. Focused on these trends, Weil-McLain, a provider in hydronic heating systems, recently launched EcoRebates rebate tools on its website. The tools automatically highlight rebate and incentive savings available to homeowners and commercial entities based on their location when they research and view qualified energy-efficient boiler equipment....

Ruud is dedicated to providing the best protection and control experience for its users. At times, partners make business changes and system updates, which can affect the users. Though these changes are out of the company’s control, they continue to work on solutions to assist their customers. Google made an announcement regarding Nest. They stated that they were discontinuing support of the Works with Nest program and encouraged users to migrate their Nest accounts to Google accounts. Un...

It is said that the COVID-19 pandemic has been one of the single biggest driving forces behind the digitalization of industries ever seen. And although not new within HVAC infrastructures – especially within the food retail environment where it has been rolled out extensively – remote management and automation of HVAC systems is increasingly being used to support supermarket responses to COVID-19. From air filtration through to dynamic scheduling, digitalization of HVAC within the...

Nobody could deny that the UK's overall construction and maintenance industry is male-dominated. You only need to walk past a building site or watch an episode of Grand Designs to see that there are very few women working in this area. But the problem might be a lot worse than you think. In fact, according to Innovate UK, only 3% of those in manual trades, 5% of those in engineering, 8% of haulage workers, and 12% of people in professional roles within this sector are women. There are many bene...

Thermo King®, a provider in transport temperature control solutions and a brand of Trane Technologies, announced that its new hybrid refrigeration systems for trucks and high-loaders are being delivered to customers across Europe. The new T-Series Hybrid and UT Hybrid refrigeration systems seamlessly switch between diesel and electric mode allowing transporters to operate in inner cities, residential areas and low emission zones with the unit’s diesel engine turned off. Greggs, U...

The current Coronavirus pandemic and the corresponding socioeconomic crisis has dealt a brutal blow to public and residential facilities alike, as businesses and management bodies worldwide are challenged to constantly ensure that their spaces are safe and healthy for occupants. As the entire world has been forced to adapt to what’s been commonly referred to as “the new normal,” one broad-ranging area has come into critical focus as a priority with a heightened sense of fear a...

A. O. Smith Corporation, the manufacturers of residential and commercial water heating equipment and boilers, as well as a manufacturer of water treatment and air purification products, announces the upcoming retirement of Peter Martineau as chief information officer/senior vice president and the hiring of S. Melissa Scheppele as Martineau’s successor. Martineau, who is retiring in late August, and Scheppele, who is joining A. O. Smith on July 13, will work together in the coming weeks to...

Since the inception, Johnson Controls has delivered products, services and solutions to keep the communities - safe, sustainable and healthy. As an “Essential Products, Services and Personnel Provider,” Johnson Controls says it will continue to support the mission during the current crisis and beyond. Committed to Healthcare Healthcare facilities are facing a large influx of patients, staff and visitors as the COVID-19 crisis unfolds. Johnson Controls can help immediately mobilize...

Viessmann welcomes announcement of a new Green Homes Grant by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak. The government will issue vouchers of up to £5,000 per household and up to £10,000 for low income households, to cover two-thirds of the cost of home improvements such as loft, wall and floor insulation, eco-friendly boilers, heat pumps, double or triple-glazed ­windows, low-energy lighting and energy-efficient doors. Fossil-Fuelled boilers “We know the government...

Mitsubishi Electric Trane HVAC US (METUS), the exclusive provider of Zoned Comfort Solutions and a renowned supplier of Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) heating and cooling systems, introduces the next generation Lossnay Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV) units, the RVX. During heating season, this high-performance ERV improves comfort and efficiency by tempering outside air with heat from the exhaust air stream before supplying it to a space, while during cooling season, the exiting cooler air re...

Jacques Technologies and Luxriot have officially announced the High Level Interface (HLI) between their systems. Combining Jacques’ quality audio intercom system with Luxriot’s renowned video management system, Evo, the solution captures and records audio streaming with the associated CCTV. Audio intercom System – Evo VMS Truly encapsulating the capabilities and benefits of third-party integration by efficiently using security resources, the integration between Jacques Techno...

Armstrong Fluid Technology has unveiled two new COMPASS R high efficiency models with ECM Motor Technology for up to 80% energy savings. COMPASS R circulators Featuring an air-cooled ECM motor and advanced Design Envelope variable speed technology, the new COMPASS R20-35 and R40-45 circulators can replace many competing models with bolt-for-bolt connection capability. The new COMPASS R models cover a wide performance range and are energy efficient upgrades for two and three-piece and wet roto...

HVAC systems are the most common home repair, representing 19 percent of service incidents facing homeowners. More than half of homeowners (53%) have faced a home repair emergency of some kind in the past 12 months. Furthermore, about a third of homeowners have US$ 500 or less set aside to pay for emergency home repairs, with some 17 percent having no money at all set aside for emergency home repair work. 10th Edition of the Biannual State of the Home Survey These are among the results of the...

Effective heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems have always been part of maintaining a healthy building environment, and with the impact of COVID-19 and the unique way the virus is spread, it has never been more imperative that HVAC plays a vital role in keeping occupants of buildings safe, especially as people begin to return to the office and other commercial environments. COVID-19 has three known contamination routes. First of all, there is person-to-person transmission, which co...

The disruption caused by coronavirus has put almost every business to the test. Special regulations have had to be rolled out for essential workers across many industries, including those in HVAC industry. Staff within these industries are key in preventing further disruption from adding to the already significant pressure on consumers and businesses in the current climate. While having to adapt to new working environments and an altered economic landscape themselves, it’s now imperative t...

A new cloud-based solution enables HVAC professionals to access VRF systems remotely to diagnose service issues and lessen the time and costs of providing service. CoolAutomation’s Remote HVAC Service Solution enables HVAC service providers to remotely troubleshoot issues by analyzing real-time and historic data trends and analysis. They receive automatic error and anomaly notifications in their office or on their mobile phones. “The remote service solution provides the tools that H...

Newer buildings tend to be designed to be ‘green’, but what about older existing buildings, which still represent the largest share of environmental impact? There is more work to be done in the retrofit sector; and improving environmental performance of older buildings often involves ‘deep retrofits’ that are costly and impact multiple factors inside a building. In the COVID-19 era, there is also growing concern about needs such as circulating outside air, increasing hum...

Hiring and retaining employees in the HVAC market is an ongoing challenge. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that employment of heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers will grow 13 percent between 2018 to 2028, much faster than the average for all occupations. As the economic emerges from the COVID-19-induced slowdown, the industry’s workforce challenges will again be top-of-mind. Now is a great time for HVAC companies to update and expand their re...

Welcome to our Expert Panel Roundtable, a new feature of HVACInformed.com. We will be asking timely questions about the HVAC market and seeking out experts in the field to provide responses. Our goal is to promote a useful exchange of information on a variety of topics and to create a forum for discussion of important issues facing the industry. Launching this new feature in the middle of a global pandemic made choosing our first question quite easy. We asked our Expert Panel Roundtable: What ha...

A. O. Smith announces that it has been named a ‘2020 Top Workplace’ by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel newspaper. The award is based solely on employee feedback gathered from a third-party study conducted earlier this year. Evaluating employee feedback “All of us at A. O. Smith are very excited that our Milwaukee headquarters and technology center have been recognized as a ‘Top Workplace’ in southeast Wisconsin,” said Mark Petrarca, SVP of human resources &am...

As the world works to contain the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19, the team at Trane is adapting to this rapidly evolving situation, implementing safety measures, and taking care of each other, the partners and the customers. They have implemented steps in an effort to protect the Trane team, the customers and the people who work, play and heal in the facilities where they provide services and systems. Trane’s business is largely categorized as ‘critical’ by the U.S. Depart...

Eurovent Middle East has opened up membership to the consultant community in a move to bring the industry in the region closer together and support technical exchange on a range of pressing issues. With his background in mechanical engineering, Dr. Iyad Al-Attar is both an Air Filtration consultant and an environmental enthusiast. He is currently a Visiting Academic Fellow in the School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing at Cranfield University in the United Kingdom. Air Filtration for...

Viessmann is inviting its employees, installers and partners, as well as their families and friends, to walk, run or cycle as many kilometers as they can over the next two weeks as part of the company’s global ‘ViMove for Climate’ campaign. Inspired by the need to protect the environment for future generations around the world, ‘ViMove for Climate’ involves Viessmann donating one young tree for every one kilometer completed on foot or every three kilometers covered...

J2 Innovations, the developer of the easy-to-configure and use software platform for building automation and IoT applications, FIN Framework (FIN), unveiled a strategic partnership with Clivet SpA that will enable the global maker of specialist HVAC systems to develop innovative HVAC plant and building optimization solutions. By leveraging FIN, OEMs can rapidly launch their own software and control products to the market by leveraging FIN’s open platform and wide range of building au...

Many of us are spending more time at home. Given that work and home lives are becoming more intertwined, it makes sense to create a “comfort zone” in the place where people spend the most time. I am speaking about the benefits of zoned HVAC comfort control through duct-free split systems.  Imagine offering your customers the ability to cool their bedroom at night without having to cool the whole house. Maybe they want to cool their home gym to 68 degrees while leaving the playr...

Around the world, advanced building automation systems (BAS) in smart buildings are driving demand for smarter HVAC systems. Modern HVAC systems can improve energy efficiency and mitigate potential health problems associated with indoor air quality and ventilation. In fact, HVAC improvements and building controls are expected to be a big U.S. investment in 2021. But capitalizing on this opportunity will take more than smarter HVAC systems. It’ll require a smarter approach to communication...

Johnson Controls announced the latest addition to its suite of LUX Products: the LUX CS1 Smart Thermostat. When paired with the LUX App, the LUX CS1 provides a variety of easy-to-use features for effortless comfort, control and savings. At $99 MSRP, the Energy-Star certified LUX CS1 is priced well below comparable thermostat models to make the benefits of smart technology even more accessible for homeowners and building operators alike. “The LUX CS1 Smart Thermostat is all about accessibi...