Bitzer has opened its new 1,500sq m international training centre in Rottenburg-Ergenzingen, Germany.

The new facility has taken a year to build and is named after Senator h c Peter Schaufler, the company’s long-standing owner who died recently.

Bitzer says that the Schaufler Academy will make a significant impact with its needs-based programme of seminars, giving participants – including planners, system manufacturers, service staff and operators – the necessary skills to deal with the demands of their day-to-day tasks.

Using modern refrigeration systems, the application engineers will provide instruction and training for specialist personnel and service staff from all over the world.

Director of the Schaufler Academy, Volker Stamer, said: “Here we can not only show off the theoretical advantages of our pioneering technology, but also demonstrate modern compressor and electronic components in action. This opens up the possibility of practical training under real system conditions.”

The three-storey, ten metre high new complex has five rooms for theoretical work and three rooms for practical training, allowing several training sessions to take place at the same time. The building was designed to be used for a variety of purposes. For instance, three training rooms can be connected to form a large lecture hall which can accommodate up to 120 people. There is also office space for the instructors and a canteen with seating for 110 people.

The energy concept for the new training centre building is a model of its kind: heating is provided by efficient heat pumps, underground latent storage (ice storage), a solar thermal collector and a combined heat and power system.

Bitzer will also use its new training centre to boost its close and constructive relationship with schools and universities in the region.

At the official opening of the new centre Bitzer’s chief technology officer, Rainer Große-Kracht, said: “Refrigeration and air conditioning technology is once again facing major changes and the challenges that come with them. Thanks to our training, participants will be prepared for the challenges that they will face, and they will be able to practise working with new refrigerants and technology.”

The opening ceremony was attended by guests from academia and politics, as well as society figures.

Dates of individual training courses can be found at: https://www.bitzer.de/gb/en/service/expertise/seminars