Biagio Lamanna

Suzhou, China, 13 September 2018: “The research comes as a surprise, as it’s been years since we’ve heard of the use of CFC refrigerants by HVAC manufacturers,” said Biagio Lamanna, Manager, Carel HVACR Knowledge Centre, in response to the recent report by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). The report entitled, ‘Blowing it: Illegal production and use of banned CFC-11 in China’s foam blowing industry’, exposes the illegal production and use of CFCs by select HVAC manufacturers in China, said Julian Newman, Campaigns Director, EIA.

According to Carel, the company recently announced its upcoming new plant in the SND district of Suzhou, China, and said that it had made a precise decision to discourage the use of CFCs.  Further, its range of products is not compatible with the banned substance, Lamanna said. “Our Research and Development department has been focused on new features and solutions that are fully compatible with natural and low-GWP refrigerants. As members of associations that promote the use of natural refrigerants, we are regularly involved in events that support the efficient use of natural refrigerants,” Lamanna added.

Lamanna pointed out that the report meant bad news for the Chinese HVAC market and finding an ideal solution will not be easy. He said, “The findings of the report have been an unexpected development; however, we haven’t been involved with CFC applications for nearly 25 years now, and this means that a lot has been done to prevent the use of CFCs.”