Drastic changes in climate are increasingly the reasons for driving the growth in the HVAC industry. Rising population, rapid urbanisation, and growing disposable incomes are also increasingly the reasons for the global rise in the demand for HVAC systems. The pace at which smart buildings are propelling real estate markets, its another reason for propelling the air-conditioning market forward. In areas with severe weather variations, HVAC systems are used for both heating and cooling.
Additionally, advantages like easier maintenance, and modern technology in controls should encourage growth in the global HVAC market throughout the course of the projection period.
In an exclusive tete-a-tete with Naohiko Hosokawa, Director & Business Unit Head-Living Environment Division at Mitsubishi Electric India, we got a perspective of managing the all-round activities of the Air conditioning business in India, while delving into the HVAC systems. Mitsubishi Electric is a manufacturer of electrical and electronic equipment and has a footprint in over 40 countries with a turnover of USD 36.7 Billion. Since the onset of its operations in India, Mitsubishi Electric India has grown to become a company offering a wide range of innovative and high-quality products for the Indian market. This includes products and solutions for Factory Automation, Air Conditioners, Power Semiconductor & Devices, and Transportation Systems.Mitsubishi Electric enriches society with technology in the spirit of its “Changes for the Better.”
Question 1. What is the demand trend for HVAC systems in residential, commercial, and industrial buildings?
Ans: The demand for HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) units is growing across sectors, such as commercial, residential, and industrial, due to the rising need for comfort and efficiency in productivity. The growth across the various sectors like real estate, the corporate sector, etc. is gradually increasing, ultimately causing a rapid rise in the demand for HVAC products and solutions. Customised energy-efficient solutions are increasing the demand for advanced HVAC systems in residential, commercial, and industrial buildings.
Question 2: What are the emerging technology trends in HVAC for commercial buildings? What are the latest solutions from Mitsubishi Electric?
Ans: Experienced purchasers and users of commercial air conditioners are aware of the significance of various air conditioning factors, including fresh air, humidity, air quality, and temperature. Such knowledgeable customers are investing in very good HVAC systems and paying for the regular upkeep of the air conditioner units to maintain proper air quality throughout the life of the air conditioner system. COVID- 19 critical situations have increased awareness about indoor air quality, and many people have started to see HVAC as a solution business rather than a product-based market. Individual customisation during design and installation and regular maintenance are required to meet the customer demand for enhanced air quality. Only a solution provider can customise the air conditioner to suit the customer’s requirements.
Mitsubishi Electric is a world leader in air conditioning systems for residential, commercial, and industrial use. As a company, we are moving from standard global products which we used to sell in India, to customised products suitable for India. These new products are designed in Japan keeping the Indian climate, power situation, and weather complexities in mind.
The company offers varying product ranges as per commercial building requirements. The Variable Refrigerant Flow of the VRF is an optimum solution for the industry as it can deliver customised comfort with maximum energy efficiency. Commercial buildings usually have a varying occupancy and diverse HVAC requirements for maximum comfort, which can be handled efficiently by an inverter technology based VRF system. Also, the City Multi-VRF system has a very high part load efficiency, which leads to greater energy savings. One of the added advantages of a City Multi-VRF system is its reliability. The system includes a fault detection feature, which results in less downtime. Thus, a mix of reliability and efficiency make the City Multi-VRF system a very robust offering for commercial buildings. Semi-commercial ACs like cassette or concealed AC are easy to install and have variations in usage and cycle.
Also, Mitsubishi Electric offers the smart and efficient range of Jet Towels which are a prominent product for commercial buildings due to their key feature of hygienic and quick hand drying time, which reduces waste for the industry.
Question 3: Sustainability plays a major role in HVAC systems. How do you look at the sustainability solutions in HVAC systems?
Ans: Mitsubishi Electric offers inverter-based air conditioning products, which are suitable for various applications. Mitsubishi Electric offers concealed units for guest rooms, large capacity units for auditoriums, restaurants, etc. Mitsubishi Electric has a wide range of indoor units that are suitable for any type of interior layout. Inverter-based VRF systems coupled with variable evaporative technology and variable valve design help our products deliver the desired comfort with minimum power consumption.
Mitsubishi Electric air conditioners are designed in Japan and are known for their high reliability. Highly reliable products make our system well accepted globally, as very little down time is required for the units that we offer. All Mitsubishi Electric products and solutions are designed keeping the Environmental Sustainability Vision 2050 in mind, which aims at long-term, sustained efforts to solve global environmental issues. We design our products in such a way that they have a lower carbon footprint during manufacturing as well as for the entire life cycle of the product.
Question 4: What is your market outlook on HVAC systems?
Ans: During the pandemic, the HVAC industry experienced growth as a solution provider by developing additional features like air filtration capabilities for existing air conditioning systems. Many clients opted for various options available in the market to retrofit their existing HVAC systems and to reduce the spread of microorganisms through HVAC systems.
HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) demand is primarily driven by the advent of technologically advanced products, which are energy-efficient and can be remotely accessed. The market is likely to be driven using natural refrigerants like CO2 and by the efforts of governments around the world to promote energy-efficient products.
Nowadays, customers demand proper ventilation during the design stage and are ready to spend for the proper maintenance and smooth working of the ventilation and air conditioning systems. An integrated air conditioning and ventilation solution is widely accepted. A ventilation and air conditioning system that works together saves energy without making the air quality worse.
Authored by – Mr. Naohiko Hosokawa , Director & Business Unit Head- Living Environment Division Mitsubishi Electric India Pvt. Ltd
