In the smallest of spaces

Medium temperature refrigerators full of fresh fish specialities and chilled beverages, freezers with ice cream treats, minced meat and frozen vegetables: the new Maxvalu supermarket in Samutsakhon, Thailand, has everything gourmets could possibly dream of. The operator of the Maxvalu supermarkets, AEON Co. Ltd., ensures exquisite standards across the board, inspired by the high quality standards Japan, the origin country of the Maxvalu supermarkets, applies to its foods. In other words: freshness, quality and maximum customer satisfaction. As of last year, four BITZER ECOSTAR LHV7E/4CE-9.F3Y condensing units of the latest generation, manufactured in Schkeuditz, Germany, are now working to make these standards a reality on a daily basis despite the local climatic conditions. So even during summer time when the maximum ambient temperature is more than +42 °C and relative humidity is over 80 per cent, BITZER ECOSTARs work reliable thanks to their design and high performance EC fans.

Limited space, high demands

Working with its long-standing partner Sanyo SMI, BITZER experts have developed a solution on-site which is specially tailored to the new supermarket. ‘The customer AEON Thailand was looking for maximum energy efficiency,’ says Phawat Korananan, Territory Manager at BITZER Asia. He adds: ‘So it was clear to us that we needed a solution that not only works exceptionally well, but also delivers the best results in both full- and part-load.’ What made things even more difficult for the engineers was the structure itself. The landlord of the building for the planned supermarket was only able to provide limited installation space for the condensing units: a narrow projection a few metres above the ground.

‘Once we’d carefully evaluated and considered all the requirements, we realised there was only one solution that would work: the ECOSTAR condensing units of the latest generation,’ says Korananan. Worachat Seni-Wong Na Ayutthaya, Managing Director of Sanyo SMI adds: ‘On behalf of the customer, it was important to us that the refrigeration system had a wireless connection to be easily monitored.’

Bluetooth enables wireless connection to BEST software

The Bluetooth connection of the ECOSTAR covers up to 30 metres without any issues – a convincing argument considering the exposed installation location. ‘Our outstanding BEST software went even further in winning over the customer for our solution,’ says Korananan. And digitalization of the ECOSTAR offers yet another benefit: ‘Using the BITZER BEST Software, my employees can now generate a status enquiry containing all the system’s operating data,’ says Adisorn Namyen, Project Manager of Dixell Asia , who is a customer of BITZER Asia and sold the required condensing units to Sanyo SMI. ‘As a printout, this is a reliable document about system performance for our customers. Because the condensing units can be wireless connected  via Bluetooth, our customer can now conveniently monitor the condensing units of its supermarket up to 30 meters away from them. ’ The supermarket now satisfies the needs of a discerning clientele daily. And the new BITZER ECOSTAR condensing units do their part – unnoticed by customers and nearly unnoticed by the electricity bill.