Compressor innovation ACC

COMPRESSOR INNOVATION

ACC is Europe’s largest producer of household refrigeration compressors and domestic electric motors. Philip Yorke takes a closer look at a company that was founded only ten years ago, and has since succeeded in launching a number of innovative, environmentally friendly products and confirmed its position as an industry leader.

Appliances Components Companies (ACC) was founded in 2002 with the objective of becoming a worldleading group of companies manufacturing components for household and industrial appliances. The continuing evolution of the household appliances market has focused ACC’s attention on the domestic refrigeration business in order to strengthen its leadership in the broader European market and to consolidate its position in the appliances industry market worldwide.

ACC operates three major manufacturing facilities which are strategically located in Europe and China. The choice of these locations was driven by the need to combine its technological heritage and its strong R&D potential with a close proximity to its customers worldwide. The European plants are located in Italy and Austria, while the Chinese facility is based in Tianjin. These state-of-the-art plants produce different product platforms in order to satisfy the diverse needs of its global customers and to guarantee optimal quality and performance throughout its product portfolio.

The company is also a major producer of electric motors for oil and gas burners. Production for these products is centred on its Oldenberg facility in Germany. ACC’s growing network of customers includes the world’s most important brands and best-known producers of domestic appliances worldwide.

Setting new standards

Since ACC was founded in 2002, it has been committed to an ongoing programme of investment in R&D and product innovation. The company focuses its strategy for growth on setting new standards in product performance and technological solutions. ACC’s global R&D structure explores and develops new and existing technologies with an eye towards the future requirements of domestic electric appliances and anticipating future market trends and opportunities.

A company spokesman said, “Our extensive R&D network applies the most advanced research methods to support our operations in the development of production technologies, design concepts and the next generation of domestic appliances. Our key strategy is to develop the product and the production process simultaneously, thereby taking full advantage of enhancing synergies among each ACC research facility. Furthermore, by working closely with our own customer’s R&D centres, we can provide them with the optimal solutions for their business, while participating locally in their industrial product and process engineering.”

ACC is fully committed in all its processes and business activities towards promoting the development of safe, energy-efficient and environmentally friendly appliances. The company gives special attention to the development of eco-friendly production lines, respecting the environment. In addition, all ACC plants are ISO 14001 certified and materials used in the company’s products and processes are in full compliance with international legislation in order to minimise their environmental impact.

Award-winning innovation

In 2011, against a field of over 600 submitted projects, ACC won the Austrian National Award for Innovation. ACC’s R&D team was recognised for the development of its latest, small energy-efficient “Delta” compressor. The project was characterised by the systematic research in many fields of knowledge and in close collaboration with ACC customers and suppliers, as well

as local universities, which has resulted in a number of patented innovations being granted. “With the ‘Delta’ compressor the team at Furstenfield has succeeded in setting new standards in the household compressor and refrigerator industry. With approximately 50 per cent less weight, the new ‘Delta’ compressor clearly distinguishes this latest innovation from conventional compressors and therefore is setting a new benchmark in efficiency and the consumption of resources through the use of less material and lower transport costs,” said a company spokesman.

The ‘Delta’ compressor is ACC’s new innovative product designed specifically for domestic refrigeration applications. The company’s new ‘Delta’ range introduces ground-breaking solutions that address the need to provide customers with a concept that offers significant product advantages. This is particularly in terms of energy efficiency, performance and eco-friendliness. This latest offering from ACC is an extremely compact and top-performance product that expresses the company’s consolidated experience and its commitment to protecting the environment.

In another first, ACC has launched the latest addition to its range of Kappa-VSD compressor products. This variable speed driver compressor represents a further technological advance in motor efficiency and is controlled by an all-new generation of inverters. With its two additional models, the HK70 VSD and HKK95 VSD, on the Kappa platform, the company offers the best compressor solution to obtain A+++ energy class on domestic appliances available on the market today. Full-scale serial production of these new compressor models commenced in February 2012 and they have already been widely acclaimed in the industry.

All ACC products pay particular regard to energy efficiency and ozone-friendly operation and the company offers the most compact, quiet and competitive compressors in the industry. ACC is also a leading European producer of electrical motors for a diverse range of industrial applications and these offer the same levels of energy efficiency and low noise levels as the compressor range. n