Hussmann’s Mobile Showroom Offers CO₂/R290 Introductory Training

This year, U.S.-based Hussmann, a subsidiary of Panasonic, turned its mobile showroom for natural refrigerant products into a training facility, with Technical Trainer John Bento providing introductory instruction on CO₂ (R744) and propane (R290) equipment.

Every year since 2020, Hussmann has toured a semi-trailer through the U.S. and Canada between August and November, allowing clients to see the latest sustainable natural refrigeration products. However, in 2024, the company brought Bento on tour with the truck to provide technical training.

“As part of our stewardship initiative, our mobile lab is going from location to location with a primary focus this year of teaching technicians,” Michael Lehtinen, Senior Product Leader of CO₂ Solutions, told NaturalRefrigerants.com in a tour of the lab at the 2024 Food Industry Association (FMI) Energy and Store Development Conference.

The lab contains new equipment that meets future regulations, with the panels removed for Bento to illustrate components and help techs better understand the particulars of each system. The touring lab contains a CO₂ condensing unit, a transcritical CO₂ rack with scroll technology, and a drop-in R290 monobloc for walk-in coolers.

Flexible training

“Because different customers have different needs, the mobile training becomes a choose-your-own-adventure,” Bento told NaturalRefrigerants.com. “A convenience store chain will focus on propane or a smaller CO₂ unit. A grocery retailer might have options for propane but most likely will need the CO₂ rack.”

Bento’s credentials include working as the Education Manager for RETA’s (Refrigerating Engineers and Technical Association) industrial refrigeration national certification program from 2018‒219. He recently became a certified proctor for flammable refrigerant certification through RSES (Refrigeration Services Engineer Society).

Hussmann also partners with the North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council to increase the number of qualified natural refrigeration technicians available in the market, with Bento providing training at trade schools and unions.

According to Lehtinen, Bento has traveled extensively for Hussmann over the past two years to provide contractors with on-site training for CO₂ and propane systems. “This year, we decided to put the showroom and the training together, opening the door to John’s primary role to take training to the next level and allow contractors and end users to book him for a full up-to-6-hour on-site training session,” Lehtinen said.

“The success of the on-site training module far exceeds the desire to pull technicians out of the field and send them to an off-site training facility,” Lehtinen explained. “With the on-site, they learn components on their equipment rather than something we have in the lab with all the options available.”

Bento noted that the training offered contains a show and tell of components, with some systems containing over 20,000 parts.

“We are developing modules to use next year to provide a virtual rack learning experience where we can simulate failures,” Lehtinen said, adding that the introductory training is available at no cost to anyone interested in maintaining CO₂ or propane systems even if they don’t use Hussmann products. “There are no barriers to brand,” he remarked.

At the beginning of each year, Hussmann reaches out to contractors, channel partners and end users to determine interest in the mobile facility and then charts a driving route around the country. According to Bento, the company builds flexibility into the schedule to accommodate additional requests, with 23 stops originally planned this year.

“The success of the on-site training module far exceeds the desire to pull technicians out of the field.”

Michael Lehtinen, Senior Product Leader of CO₂ Solutions at Hussmann

New products

As part of its showroom of new products this year, the Hussmann mobile unit features a CO₂ condensing unit, a transcritical CO₂ rack and a propane monobloc.

CO₂ condensing unit: In collaboration with its parent company, Hussmann is commercializing Panasonic’s CO₂ condensing unit under the Hussmann brand in North America. “Instead of reinventing it, the only changes we’ve made to the unit are those required for compliance with local voltages and frequencies,” Lehtinen said, adding that Panasonic has 25,000 units already installed globally.

• The 4HP unit in the mobile lab contains a two-stage variable speed compressor with an operating window from 11,000‒22,000BTU (3.2‒6.4kW/0.9‒1.8TR).
• The set point temperature ranges from −40 to 23°F (−40 to −5°C), with operation rated for ambient temperatures up to 113°F (45°C).
• According to Lehtinen, Hussman also has a 2HP and a 20HP CO₂ condensing unit in its portfolio, with a 10HP version coming soon. The 20HP unit provides a cooling capacity of up to 100,000BTU (29.2kW/8.3TR).

CO₂ transcritical rack: Working with U.S. compressor manufacturer Copeland, Hussman is introducing a new CO₂ transcritical rack using scroll technology to the marketplace. “The collaboration allowed improvements in the design of the compressor and rack for exceptional operation,” Lehtinen remarked.

• The rack, made exclusively from an iron copper alloy, offers a cooling capacity range from 90,000‒400,000BTU (26.4‒117.1kW/7.5‒33.3TR).
• The design increases operational efficiency by sub-cooling the vapor injected into the compressor using a heat exchanger with the roughly 36°F (2.2°C) CO₂ gas return from the cooler.
• “With the rack intended to be a transition product for retrofits, it gives retailers a low-risk way for technicians to become familiar with CO₂ technology by adding a line of cases or a walk-in cooler,” Lehtinen said. “It cuts the refrigeration transition in one store into three or four smaller projects.”
• The two companies will release the new compressor and rack to the region in the first quarter of 2025.

Propane monobloc: Hussman has released a new drop-in box R290 solution for walk-in coolers and freezers that meets the allowable propane charge limits set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

• The monobloc comes in air- or water-cooled versions, with models containing two to four circuits with 150g of propane per circuit. All models come in a 37 × 35 × 25in (940 × 889 × 635mm) box, with a 9in (229mm) drop-in depth.
• The medium-temperature set point for the unit ranges from 28 to 50°F (−2.2 to 10°C), and the low-temperature from −15 to 5°F (−26.1 to −15°C).
• According to Ron Grabowski, Senior Product and Portfolio Leader at Hussmann, the unit blows cold air to a distance of 13ft (4m) from two opposite sides. “In a new installation, the unit dropped the temperature inside an empty cooler from 64 to 36°F (17.8 to 2.2°C) in nine and a half minutes,” Grabowski told NaturalRefrigerants.com.
• The unit uses variable-speed compressors, EC fan motors and an electric drain pan for high-gas defrost.

Quotable: “This year, our mobile unit is not about boosting sales,” Lehtinen said. “With the regulations forcing a change in the industry, our purpose is to help retailers be comfortable making equipment decisions and then be successful.”