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The Asia Pacific remains the largest market for chillers accounting for 300,000 units as of 2013.

At this time chillers represented 74 per cent of the global market and almost 50 per cent in terms of revenue, according to research firm Technavio.

A comprehensive roundup of the chillers market is included in Technavio’s latest report on the global air conditioning market, which identifies the biggest trends shaping the HVAC market from 2016 to 2020.

“In the Americas, centrifugal, screw, and oil-free centrifugal chillers are likely to benefit significantly from the economic recovery within the next 2-3 years. High capital investment is required to manufacture chillers, resulting in the high price of this product segment,” the report said.

“The vendors in this market are focusing on performance, efficiency, and smooth operation, including noise control.”

Technavio's lead analyst for research on engineering tools, Anju Ajaykumar, said the top three trends include: integration with the Internet of Things (IoT), the emergence of smart technology, a growing preference for interoperability.

Smart technology

Despite the high initial expenditure involved and the need for manual and routine adjustments, the implementation of smart HVAC systems is increasingly becoming a necessary expense for larger buildings, as these systems enhance operational cost savings.

With the advent of smart buildings, smart grid and smart cities, the scope of data has increased more than ever, enabling better measurement using big data and analytics.

Smart grids are capable of communicating with individual buildings, while smart cities can use technology to observe the trends across all buildings in the city.

“There is a perceptible shift in the market toward smart grids, smart metering, and building automation. Smart grids enable intelligent distribution that aids in minimizing power losses, while smart meters provide measurement and reporting of electricity consumption in real time.,” Ajaykumar said.

“As HVAC systems are among the biggest consumers of energy, these smart technologies can accrue good savings by detecting faults in time and enhancing overall performance."

According to Technavio, OEMs in the HVAC market are increasingly employing technologies such as Big Data, advanced analytics, and cloud computing for product differentiation to gain market share. Using these technologies, it is possible to perform trend analysis, pattern recognition, and cause and effect analysis.

“Big Data and advanced analytics help in predicting the future energy needs, and in complying with regulatory and statutory guidelines by furnishing complete proof of energy efficiency and performance,” Ajaykumar said.

Interoperability

Interoperability ensures effective integration and ease-of-use of different components in a particular system or appliance manufactured by various manufacturers.

“Building owners are increasingly requesting interoperability for commercial AC components as it eliminates the need engage with a single service provider for a long time,” Ajaykumar said.

Therefore, he said manufacturers are slowly switching to local operating network (Lonworks) or BACnet (a communication protocol for building automation and network control) to make their systems open and ready for interoperability.

“However, open protocols in terms of interoperability are applied only at the field level and not fully implemented at the management level,” he said.

According to Technavio's estimate, in 2015, 20 per cent of AC controllers worldwide still used proprietary protocols, but the figure is projected to decline slightly to 15 per cent by the end of 2016.

“This indicates that although manufacturers and integrators may seek interoperability and openness in their systems, the installed systems may fall short of customers' expectations in terms of seamless integration they offer,” Ajaykumar explained.

“Therefore, the ability to easily integrate such systems will be a crucial deciding factor in the coming years for building owners in selecting the AC control manufacturer.”

Global research and advisory compaqny, Technavio, develops over 2000 pieces of research every year, covering more than 500 technologies across 80 countries.

Technavio has about 300 analysts globally who specialize in customized consulting and business research assignments.