BRISTOL, Va. — Bristol Compressors International Inc. (BCI) announced that it has received two new grants, providing funding in excess of $300,000, to support its development of energy-efficient compressor technologies for the air conditioning, heat pump, and refrigeration industries.

GENEDGE Alliance, in cooperation with the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission, has awarded BCI a $225,000 grant for an Innovation Commercialization Project to accelerate high-technology economic growth. New technology being developed at BCI focuses on increasing energy efficiency levels while also raising compressor reliability performance to meet new customer demands in hot climates.

In addition, BCI has received $113,000 from the Virginia Department of Business Assistance (VDBA) through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program. This grant will help offset the costs associated with training employees in lean methodology and process improvements.

“We developed our Benchmark X14™ 14 SEER compressor to meet new federal energy efficiency regulations well ahead of a 2015 mandate, and we have a new single-cylinder compressor that is raising the bar on reliability in very hot tropical conditions,” said Ed Gniewek, CEO of Bristol Compressors. “These are new technologies that we believe will help us gain more market share while at the same time making more environmentally friendly solutions available to our customers.”

“We are retraining employees throughout our organization,” said Rick Nunley, director of human resources at BCI. “These funds assist and help to offset training expenses in our lean manufacturing transformation.

“We very much appreciate GENEDGE Alliance, the Virginia Tobacco Commission, and VDBA for supporting our new technologies and training initiatives.”

For more information, visit www.bristolcompressors.com.

Publication date: 7/8/2013