Expanding Toshiba distributor Cool Designs Ltd has reported record results following the continued success of its strategic growth plan.

Having doubled in size since 2009, the company has achieved around 40 per cent of the growth in air conditioning sales achieved over the past two years.

CDL began in Sunderland and expanded into the North West, with a base in Warrington following early success. More recently, it has opened branches at East Kilbride in Scotland and Cannock in the Midlands.

Managing director and founder of CDL Darrel Birkett said: 'Having established a successful Blueprint, we are now turning attention to London and the South West. We see huge opportunities as a result of continuing major development projects, which lend themselves to the kind of technology we offer and our technical approach.'

The company has a strong core business in the leisure sector and is now building on this by targeting expansion in commercial offices. This is being helped by a trend in the market away from traditional chilled water solutions to VRF-based heat recovery systems.

Mr Birkett said: 'Toshiba’s developments in the high efficiency heat recovery VRF area have helped drive this, and it gives us a significant edge in the market. The manufacturer’s plans to launch the next generation of VRF later this year, the SMMS-E, are exciting and will open up further opportunities.'

In anticipation of a strong summer, CDL has invested in new warehousing and stock holding at its Warrington site, doubling capacity. It is launching a promotion on wall-mounted split systems to capitalise on current growth in the sector. As part of this initiative, it is putting a particular focus on Toshiba’s new smaller digital inverter units, recently added to the range.

The company’s best-selling air conditioning unit in volume terms is Toshiba’s high-wall RAV-SM806KRT, due to its flexibility and performance for use in comfort cooling applications and server rooms.

People and training are a key part of the growth plan, including the appointment of an additional projects engineer and two external sales engineers. It recently opened a new air conditioning training centre in Glasgow, to serve installers North of the Border.

The company is a strong supporter of local charities in the regions it operates, supporting the All-Star Football Charity, St Luke’s Hospice Cheshire, Cahonas Scotland, the Newcastle United Foundation and the Newcastle Evening Chronicle Sunshine Fund.

CDL is planning a series of charitable events and initiatives over the year, linking its support with continued growth and business success.