ATMOsphere, publisher of NaturalRefrigerants.com, has launched the voting process for the ATMO 2025 Innovation of the Year for North America.
Voting will take place online through June 10 and in-person on June 11 in Atlanta at the ATMOsphere (ATMO) America Summit 2025 on natural refrigerant-based HVAC&R, organized by ATMOsphere.
The winner will be announced at the conference during the ATMO Awards/North America ceremony beginning at 5:15 pm EDT on June 11. Other ATMO awards will include Best-in-Sector/Retail End User and Person of the Year.
The Innovation of the Year award is given to the company that has produced a natural refrigerant-based product that has had, or is expected to have, a significant impact on the market. The shortlist of candidates for the Innovation of the Year award consists of Hillphoenix’s ChargeSecure system, Bitzer’s Fender Software, Danfoss’s BOCK HGX56 CO₂ T Compressor and OLAB’s FastPro/ProShield valves.
Vote for one of these products– described in more detail below – here. Shortlisted companies may vote for their own products and/or employees, but only one vote per shortlisted company will be counted for each category.
This 14th annual edition of ATMO America will be held Wednesday, June 11, and Thursday, June 12, at the Omni Atlanta Hotel at Centennial Park in Atlanta, Georgia. Attending will be key industry experts, including manufacturers, policymakers, end users and contractors to learn about the latest developments in natural refrigerant-based systems.
You can now register for the event here. End users can register for free, and contractors/installers of HVAC&R systems are eligible to receive one free ticket per organization, with a 50% discount on additional tickets. The full program can be viewed here.
Innovation of the Year Candidates
Hillphoenix: ChargeSecure
Last year Hillphoenix released the ChargeSecure system to help address CO2 (R744) charge preservation in transcritical CO2 refrigeration. Powered by an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) battery backup or emergency power, this device prevents pressure buildup by maintaining a CO2 circuit from the flash gas receiver to a compressor and the gas cooler. The benefit for end users is their CO2 system can maintain its charge during a power outage or service event, including the normal restart of the system.
ChargeSecure is a small-footprint system designed to be seamlessly integrated into a Hillphoenix transcritical CO2 refrigeration system of any size, either new or retrofit. It is a 100%-natural solution because it uses CO2 from the rack. ChargeSecure provides future-focused protection against costly recharging.
Bitzer: Fender Software
This is a software system designed to help end users, technicians and engineers create “digital twins” of their system. The software helps size, select and better understand complicated system architectures.
The Fender software:
- Selects and configure Bitzer products, including compressors, ammonia (R717) compressor packs (ACPs), heat exchangers, motors and more.
- Stores component data such as part numbers and refrigerant charges.
- Analyzes refrigerant properties and mass flow at any system point.
- Moves, rotates, and groups components to visualize any setup.
- Assesses vessels and pipe diameters, fluid velocities and parasitic losses through sizing tools
- Saves designs for reference, collaboration and comparison.
Danfoss: BOCK HGX56 CO₂ T Compressor
This is a semi-hermetic transcritical CO₂ compressor with a six-cylinder capacity, designed for commercial and industrial refrigeration applications such as cold storage, ice sports facilities and heat pumps. It provides up to 135kW cooling and 360kW heating. Its design simplifies installation and reduces maintenance needs.
In addition, the expansion to six-cylinder capacity allows for a wider spread and faster uptake of large CO2 heat pumps and industrial refrigeration systems, along with lower system complexity and investment costs. Additional benefits of the increased capacity include greater efficiency and reliability, as well as low noise and vibration, a compact and lightweight design and a minimal oil carry-over rate. The six-cylinder design offers greater capacities while reducing the number of compressors.
OLAB: FastPro and ProShield Valves
The FastPro (patent pending) changeover valves address the issues associated with traditional changeover valves and pressure-release valves (PRVs). FastPro features a 360° rotating mechanism for high-pressure CO2 systems, simplifying installation in confined spaces and allowing valve replacement without compromising safety. All potential leak points are sealed with double PFAS-free EPDM O-rings.
ProShield safety valves (patent pending), certified for subcritical and transcritical applications, connect exclusively to FastPro and meet multiple international standards. Together, they improve safety, prevent leaks, and reduce installation time.
