Zudek, an Italy-based manufacturer of low-charge ammonia (R717) chillers and heat pumps for commercial and industrial applications, has joined the world’s leading natural refrigerant HVAC&R stakeholders as a gold partner of the NaturalRefrigerants.com marketplace.
The company has worked exclusively with natural refrigerants – predominantly ammonia – since its founding in 1990. According to the company, which is headquartered in Trieste, its first low-charge ammonia chiller was built for a coffee roastery in 1994.
The company’s product lineup today includes the Recumatik water-cooled heat pump, Enermatik water-ammonia absorption chiller, Ecomatik water-cooled chiller and the Airmatik air-cooled chiller, all of which use ammonia refrigerant.
The company’s low-charge ammonia heat pumps and chillers have been installed at ice rinks, food manufacturing facilities and at the airport in Charleroi, Belgium, where an Airmatik air-cooled chiller with 700kW (199TR) of cooling capacity provided comfort cooling for a new air traffic control tower.
Commercial HVAC push
Business Development Manager Jakob Terčon, told NaturalRefrigerants.com during an interview at Chillventa 2024 that Zudek is preparing a version of the low-charge air-cooled Airmatik chiller designed specifically to provide comfort cooling to hotels, data centers and additional commercial applications. Chillventa, one of the world’s largest HVAC&R trade shows, was held in Nuremberg, Germany, from October 8–10.
Although Zudek’s current ammonia chillers can provide comfort cooling, Terčon said the new Airmatik model is designed to be “cheaper” and “more competitive with synthetic refrigerants for HVAC applications.” It features semi-hermetic screw compressors, shell-and-tube evaporators, aluminum microchannels and EC fans. It’ll be able to operate in ambient temperatures up to 50°C (122°F) and will range in capacity from 200kW to 1 MW (57 to 284TR).
Terčon said the new Airmatik chiller is currently in R&D and is expected to hit the market in early 2025.
ATMO Approved
In April, Zudek was reapproved for the ATMO Approved Natural Refrigerants Label, marking the third year in a row the company earned the label. ATMOsphere, publisher of NaturalRefrigerants.com, launched the label in June 2022 as a global gold standard highlighting best-in-class manufacturers of natural refrigerant systems and components around the world.
“We are pleased to be re-approved by ATMO as it means we are moving in the right direction, sharing the same working ethic and disclosing our sustainable philosophy to the world,” said Ivan Zudek, a Partner at Zudek.
“Being a best-in-class natural refrigerant company means everything to us,” Zudek added. “It is what we have been working for since 1990. Natural refrigerants were the past, are the present and will be the only possible future if we want to save our beautiful planet.”
“Natural refrigerants were the past, are the present and will be the only possible future if we want to save our beautiful planet.”
Ivan Zudek, Partner at Zudek
