The giant clock on top of the Parker Hannifin Corp. — Sporlan Division’s ZoomLock^® Roadshow truck counted down during the 2019 AHR Expo, keeping track of the time left until the next live demo. Every 40 minutes, Sporlan would bring attendees up to physically make the connection themselves.

Refrigerant regulations are another reason why change is coming, as HCFCs will be phased out by 2020, and given their high global warming potential (GWP), HFCs will likely be phased down in the near future as well. At some point, supermarkets will need to start considering low GWP alternatives such as HFO blends, as well as so-called “future-proof” refrigerants such as ammonia, CO2, or propane.

Amazon is set to usher in the next generation of “smart” convenience stores with the launch of its Amazon Go concept, replacing traditional checkouts with smart technology. The store concept works by automatically logging purchases to the user’s Amazon account when a product is removed from the shelf.