USA: Trane has acquired the New-Jersey-based ice storage company CALMAC.
CALMAC ice storage tanks have previously been employed by Trane for integration in its commercial heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems to take pressure off of the energy grid.
The IceBank ice storage tanks store energy, similar to a battery, and use that energy to cool commercial buildings during times when the cost of energy is high. This can reduce the strain on public utilities, reduces operating costs for building owners and allows for better use of renewable forms of energy.
“With CALMAC, we are well positioned to offer customers even greater choices for reducing energy and operating costs and capitalising on the multi-billion energy services market opportunity,” commented Donny Simmons, Ingersoll Rand’s commercial HVAC business president.
“We made the decision to join Trane because of our long tenure and history with Trane’s people, application expertise and system design,” said CALMAC CEO Mark MacCracken. “All CALMAC team members were given a job with Trane, and I will also continue as president of CALMAC.”
More than 4,000 businesses and institutions in 60 countries are said to be using CALMAC’s thermal energy storage to cool their buildings. These include some prominent US buildings in the US, including the Rockefeller Centre and the Credit Suisse Building in New York City and an Ingersoll Rand North America headquarters building in Davidson, NC.
