Top retailers to attend ATMOsphere Japan

Retail giants AEON and Walmart are among the largest number of end users expected to attend ATMOsphere Japan in Tokyo on 13 February.

Retail giants AEON and Walmart will join Ajinomoto, Meiji, Nestle, Suntory and other leading end users in this year's ATMOsphere Japan conference on natural refrigerants.

In a sign of rapidly growing interest in natural refrigerants among end users in Japan, this year’s event is expected to have the conference's largest number of end users in attendance to date. The one-day conference is set to be held next Tuesday (13 February) at the Tokyo Conference Center in Shinagawa, Japan.

Representatives from some of the biggest names in consumer goods will be present – including Ajinomoto, AEON, Ito Yokado, Meiji, Suntory, Walmart, and Nestle.

Japanese end users seeking input and exchange

Driving this interest are several challenges end users currently face in Japan regarding HVAC&R technology.

Among them are the phase-down of HFCs worldwide, the need for a technology roadmap for commercial refrigeration, and challenges managing refrigerant leakage rates.

These concerns will be addressed in a first-ever 'Future of the Industry End User Panel Discussion,' co-chaired by Ignacio Gavilán, director of sustainability for the Consumer Goods Forum.

The panel will be preceded by individual presentations from some of Japan’s leading natural refrigerant end users as well as a presentation from representatives of the Consumer Goods Forum, Japan.

A key highlight of CGF Japan’s presentation will be its discussion of the first ever establishment of a “Japan Sustainability Local Group” which aims to increase awareness of the issue of sustainability in refrigeration among its members.

Local cold storage operator Yoshio Ice Manufacturing and Refrigeration Co. Ltd. will detail the decision to use a CO₂ transcritical system for their new cold storage project.

Leading Japanese natural refrigerant end user Lawson will provide the very latest updates on the number of CO₂ installations they have completed, which is the largest in the country.

They will also provide a very detailed and comprehensive summary of their strategy for achieving their HFC phasedown targets related to the Kigali Amendment.

Finally, local retailer NARA COOP will present case study details for two of their store installations using CO₂ transcritical outdoor condensing units.

With ATMO Japan's largest number of end users in attendance, discussion among both panel participants and attendees about the challenges facing Japan’s industry and the solutions offered with natural refrigerants is set to be as relevant as ever.