TL;DR
Get backup power and energy gear delivered free with Prime
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
- Member-only deals all year
Johnson Controls has announced the Frick HeatPAC, a packaged ammonia heat pump designed for food and beverage processing facilities. It uses heat recovered from ammonia refrigeration systems to supply hot water, with a stated heating capacity of 200 kW to 2,000 kW. The company’s efficiency and cost figures are estimates tied to typical applications or specific model assumptions, not guaranteed results for every plant.
Johnson Controls has announced the Frick HeatPAC, a packaged ammonia heat pump designed to recover waste heat from refrigeration systems at food and beverage plants. The system is intended to supply high-temperature hot water for uses such as pasteurisation, sanitation and space heating, linking facilities’ cooling and heating needs.
HeatPAC has a stated heating capacity range of 200 kW to 2,000 kW and can provide hot water at temperatures from 130°F to 190°F (54°C to 88°C), according to the product information reported by Cooling Post. Johnson Controls describes the product as pre-engineered and factory-assembled, an approach it says can reduce upfront investment and shorten lead times by weeks compared with engineered-to-order industrial heat pumps.
The package is built around a Frick Mark 5 Sabroe reciprocating compressor platform, which the company says is the first Frick product engineered around that platform. Equipment includes a welded plate-and-shell condenser with an integrated desuperheater, two-stage oil separation and a variable-frequency drive with a standard 4:1 turndown. The reported ammonia charge can be as low as 87 pounds (40 kilograms).
Each unit includes a Frick Quantum HD controller with Unity architecture, a 15-inch touchscreen and controls that Johnson Controls says can integrate with a range of plant systems. Its Coolware selection software lets users enter application details to estimate heat requirements, performance and operating costs. Those outputs are estimates based on the parameters entered, rather than a guarantee of a facility’s results.
Turning Refrigeration Heat Into Process Hot Water
Food and beverage facilities may consume energy to remove heat in refrigeration while separately using fuel or electricity to produce hot water. HeatPAC is designed to connect those operations by recovering heat already generated by an ammonia refrigeration system. If a plant can use that recovered heat at the temperature and scale it needs, it may reduce demand for a separate boiler and make better use of existing equipment.
Johnson Controls says HeatPAC can be up to seven times more energy efficient than a natural gas boiler in typical food and beverage applications. That is a company claim, and actual performance will depend on system design, operating conditions and energy prices. The practical value for a buyer will depend on whether the plant has suitable waste heat, a steady hot-water requirement and a workable integration plan that does not interrupt production.
Products Worth Considering
Bose SoundLink Plus Portable Bluetooth Speaker, Wireless Outdoor Speaker, Up to 20 Hours Battery Life, Waterproof and Dustproof, Black
Ring Alarm Pro 14-Piece Home Security Kit with Built-In eero Wi-Fi 6 Router
Dyson Airwrap i.d. Multi-Styler for Straight and Wavy Hair
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
A Packaged Option for Industrial Heat Recovery
The launch targets food and beverage processors that use ammonia refrigeration and need hot water for processes such as pasteurisation and sanitation. The product description presents HeatPAC as a standardised alternative to engineered-to-order systems, with factory assembly and testing intended to simplify installation and procurement. The source does not report customer installations, independent performance testing or sales figures.
Johnson Controls also provided a modelled example of a cheese producer needing 2,000 kW of hot water at 140°F (60°C). In that scenario, the company projects annual energy costs could fall by up to 40% compared with natural gas boilers, based on the energy-price and operating assumptions entered into Coolware. The estimate is specific to the modelled case and should not be read as a general savings forecast.
“HeatPAC can be up to seven times more energy efficient than a natural gas boiler for typical food and beverage applications.”
— Johnson Controls, as reported by Cooling Post
Site Results Depend on Plant Conditions
The available report does not give an announcement date, pricing, delivery schedule, warranty terms or details of confirmed customer installations. It also does not provide independent test results supporting the company’s efficiency claims. The up-to-seven-times efficiency comparison and the projected savings of up to 40% in the cheese-plant example depend on application and modelling assumptions.
It is not clear how HeatPAC’s real-world performance will vary with refrigeration loads, hot-water demand, climate, energy prices or the condition of existing equipment. The report also does not explain installation requirements, the level of plant modification needed, or how the equipment’s low-end ammonia charge applies across different configurations.
Customer Applications Will Test the Estimates
Prospective buyers can use Johnson Controls’ Coolware software to enter application parameters and estimate heat requirements, performance and operating costs. A site-specific assessment would be needed to establish whether available waste heat and hot-water demand match the unit’s capacity and temperature range, and whether the projected economics hold under local energy prices.
The source does not identify a first installation or a date for deliveries. Further information on customer deployments, independently measured performance, pricing and lead times would help show how the packaged design performs outside modelled examples.
Key Questions
What is the Frick HeatPAC?
HeatPAC is a packaged ammonia heat pump from Johnson Controls. It is designed to recover waste heat from ammonia refrigeration systems and provide hot water for food and beverage processing facilities.
What capacity and water temperatures does it offer?
The reported heating capacity is 200 kW to 2,000 kW. Johnson Controls lists hot-water temperatures from 130°F to 190°F (54°C to 88°C).
How much energy or money could a plant save?
Johnson Controls says the system can be up to seven times more energy efficient than a natural gas boiler in typical food and beverage applications. In one modelled cheese-plant example, the company projected annual energy-cost reductions of up to 40%; both figures depend on application and assumptions and are not guaranteed outcomes.
Has the product’s performance been independently confirmed?
The supplied report cites Johnson Controls’ product claims and modelled estimates, but does not include independent test results or confirmed operating data from customer installations.
Source: coolingpost.com
