Global demand for commercial refrigeration equipment is forecast to rise 4.6 percent per year through 2016 to $32.5 billion, an acceleration from the 2006-2011 pace, according to World Commercial Refrigeration Equipment, a new study from The Freedonia Group Inc.

The global commercial refrigeration equipment market accounted for $29.1 billion in 2012 and is expected to reach $46.6 billion in 2018, according to a new market report published by Transparency Market Research.

Tecumseh Products Co., headquartered in Ann Arbor, Mich., said that it is focusing on increased technical training and support for its network of authorized North American wholesalers with the establishment of Tecumseh University.

The Commercial Series sandwich and mega top prep refrigerators offer quality performance while saving dollars in operation costs. The refrigerators are constructed of stainless steel. They have front-breathing airflow to accommodate tight spaces.

Blue Earth Inc., an energy efficiency and renewable energy services company, announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Castrovilla Inc. d/b/a Blue Earth Energy Management Services™ (BEEMS™), is in the process of implementing an additional $1.1 million in utility-funded refrigeration rebate incentives.

Now that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved the use of three hydrocarbon (HC) refrigerants in some smaller appliance applications, advocates of HCs are continuing to promote use in larger equipment, with commercial ice machines as well as reach-in/walk-in freezers and coolers possibly next in line.

When talk first surfaced a number of years ago about using R-744 (CO2) in commercial refrigeration, there were two challenges — making the refrigerant work as a stand-alone in transcritical applications as well as in cascade systems and developing the components to make such approaches possible. Where does the refrigerant stand currently?