This year, the jury of the Highlights competition at the FinnBuild trade fair selected nine candidates to compete for the award for the fair’s most interesting innovation. Enervent Svea eAir E Cooler is included in the group. A ventilation unit designed and manufactured in Finland, which can have integrated compressor cooling, renews the cooling of homes.

After a four-year break, Finnbuild, a meeting place for construction industry operators, will take place at Helsinki Messukeskus in October. In the Highlights competition, the fair’s most interesting product, system and service is searched for. Enervent Svea eAir E Cooler is one of the nine selected.

The change in living requirements has increased interest in various cooling options in recent years. So far, there have only been a few options available for households. In addition to air source heat pumps, the traditional hybrid models that were previously on the market were primarily designed for commercial and office premises or restaurants. The Cooler unit developed by Enervent Zehnder to be integrated into the Svea ventilation unit brings a solution to the situation.

Svea’s Cooler unit meets customer needs

Thanks to the advanced fan technology, Svea corresponds to devices of larger size, but requires relatively little space. Despite its small size, the ventilation unit has both a rotating heat exchanger, an 800 W after heater and energy-efficient direct current fans. Enervent Svea was designed in such a way that a separate module can be placed on top of the ventilation unit. The module can contain a compressor cooling unit or, for example, water-circulating heating and cooling coils.

– Especially in new housing production, there has been a clear need for a unit that can integrate compressor cooling for a long time. Svea can be installed on the wall or ceiling. The Svea Cooler combination does not require larger space, but only increases the height of the device. The structure works like Lego blocks, and the Cooler can be retrofitted to previously purchased Svea devices, summarizes Ronni Laaksonen, who is responsible for sales at Enervent Zehnder.

The advantage of Svea Cooler is that the cooling is achieved without draft. The cooling is evenly distributed in all rooms with an supply air valve. This is a clear improvement compared to, for example, a traditional air source heat pump that only cools the space where the indoor unit is. Svea Cooler also does not need a separate outdoor unit.

Responsibility involved in development work

All of Enervent Zehnder’s product development is done at the company’s offices in Porvoo, Finland. In the same premises, there is also a climate laboratory that performs continuous testing.

– In our operations, we also want to consider the environmental impact of the company and our products. The new generation R32 refrigerant is used in Svea Cooler. It has a lower environmental load and lower climate effects than older refrigerants, Laaksonen confirms.

Deliveries of the Cooler module will begin this fall. The global shortage of raw materials has affected, among other things, deliveries of evaporator coils, which has slowed down the production schedule.

Jury of the Highlights competition:

lkka Salo, CEO, Talteka
Tapio Kivistö, editor-in-chief, Rakennuslehti
Elina Samila, circular economy expert, Green Building Council Finland
Piia Sormunen, Professor of Building Technology Industry, University of Tampere
Antti Aaltonen, Director, construction development, Construction Industry RT

More information:

Ronni Laaksonen, Head of Sales, Enervent Zehnder Oy, +358 400 230 725, ronni.laaksonen(at)enervent.com

Enervent Svea eAir E Cooler can be seen at the Finnbuild fair, stand 6d 48.

Enervent Zehnder has grown from a small entrepreneur-led local company to a respected manufacturer of ventilation systems and part of one of the industry’s leading groups. The leap has been made through a few bounces, but only in a good twenty years. According to Head of Customer Excellence Sonja Häggman, the desire to develop high-quality ventilation technology and a good team spirit have always been at the heart of the company.

At the head office in Porvoo, one naturally shuttles between the offices and the production. Separate personnel passes are not needed because everyone knows each other and guests are noticed, says Sonja Häggman. Her responsibilities include Enervent Zehnder’s marketing and communication, as well as the digitalization and development of the customer experience.

– I came to work for what was then Enervent in 2002. The years have included many products, nice colleagues, many interesting tasks and five different owners. Among other things, we have been part of the technology company Ensto, also a family-owned company. The focus of our operations has remained the same and although my duties have varied, I have always worked in the customer interface.

Like many other new technologies, the developer of the rotating and energy-efficient heat exchanger in Enervent Zehnder’s equipment was an innovative entrepreneur.

– We were once founded by an entrepreneur in the metal industry. Under his leadership, a rotary heat exchanger was adapted specifically for ventilation units in single-family houses. For a long time, we operated like a traditional industrial plant. In recent years, we have invested in ensuring that the entire staff understands the customers’ wishes and common goals in the same way, Sonja says.

A member of Zehnder Group –with a task in the north

The Swiss Zehnder Group bought the business of Enervent Oy in August 2018. The group is one of the largest ventilation companies in Central Europe and is actively growing its business through acquisitions. Enervent Zehnder, operating in Finland, Sweden, and Norway (in Norway under the Exvent brand), represents the expertise of cold climate and ventilation that meets Nordic requirements in the Group.

– The change of owner was well received by us. After the deal was completed, we have been able to continue our operations quite independently, but at the same time we have received the necessary support from the group. Being part of a family business creates a safe working environment for the personnel, and we have been able to offer many interesting new products to customers after the sale.

Those with a keen eye have noticed that the color red has appeared in Enervent Zehnder’s communications.

– During the past summer, we have introduced the “Member of Zehnder Group” badges in our channels. It reminds you that we are part of a larger community. Otherwise, nothing will change – we are still the same familiar manufacturer of high-quality ventilation units suitable for Nordic homes. Zehnder is one of Europe’s largest companies in the field, which invests in both expansion, product development and personnel. It’s easy for us to smile, says Sonja Häggman.

Zehnder Group also has a separate representation in Finland for a few other product groups, such as radiators, towel warmers, ceiling-mounted heating and cooling panels and Clean Air Solutions air purification systems. This fall, the group’s products will be exhibited together for the first time at the Finnbuild fair. Welcome to stand 6d48

Monica Strandell started on 4^th July at Enervent Zehnder as responsible for the company’s finances and HR. Before this, she has worked for a long time in the service of internationally operating airlines.

– In those days, choosing a profession was quite easy. At school, I liked math and geography and I studied at a Swedish-speaking business school. I wanted to combine traveling and work, so the financial administration tasks at the airline were, so to speak, the perfect option. Later, also HR became an area of ​​responsibility. The numbers are important, but the personnel ensures that the goals are achieved.

Monica thanks the good reception at her new employer.

– I have felt welcome in the company from the beginning. Both in Porvoo and in Switzerland, everyone has been friendly and helpful. I started work when the summer holiday season had just started in Finland, and I immediately left for Switzerland to meet Zehnder’s key personnel. It was a great opportunity, because it’s easier to take care of things related to finances and HR when you’ve met the people at the group’s head office in other ways than just through Teams.

According to Monica, the Finnish company is just the right size. It is also possible to see the whole from one’s own tasks. And most importantly, people from different departments quickly get to know each other. He reports to CEO Thomas Söderholm.

Monica did not know Enervent Zehnder and the company’s products before. Instead, she says that building technology has become familiar through a bend a long time ago.

– My father worked in the electrical field and my brother has always been in the HVAC field. They have been united, among other things, by industry humor and of course I have heard professional matters related to the industry in other ways. In other words, ventilation units were not a completely new thing at the start, she says.

In her free time, the sea and the forest are important elements and Monica moves a lot. He also admits to being an avid skier.