Munters marks its 60th anniversary this year as a worldwide leader in energy-efficient solutions for optimizing the air. The company has grown from its head office in Kista, Sweden, to become a global company with 2,600 employees in more than 30 countries, including U.S. locations in Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, Texas and Virginia, and SEK of 4 billion ($500 million).

Creating the perfect climate for customers is a vision fostered at Munters from its inception. When Carl Munters founded the company in 1955, he brought with him years of experience working on pioneering solutions for how air can be best cooled, dehumidified and optimized for people and industry. Today, Munters offers innovative air treatment technologies and solutions for customers that solve many climate challenges.

“Sixty years is a major accomplishment for us and we attribute this longevity to our dedicated and hardworking employees, our loyal customers and our advanced solutions and technologies,” said Karin Sjöström, R&D Manager, Munters. “During the year, we will have a proper anniversary celebration with all employees to mark this momentous occasion.”

60 Years of Innovation

Innovation is the hallmark of Munters, both historically and today. Carl Munters was an innovator even during his days as a student and sold his first patent to Swedish truck manufacturer Scania-Vabis just after graduation.

Together with renowned Swedish engineer Baltzar von Platen, Munters invented the first refrigerator for home use with no moving parts. This dramatically improved the ability to refrigerate food in the home.

“Carl Munters' spirit lives on in the company in a combination of innovation and engineering excellence,” said Sjöström. “Many of his almost 1,000 patents are still used in our products.”

Climate Impact Both Locally and Globally

There are numerous industries and applications that can benefit from Munters technology. Munters' solutions to adapt the climate must suit many different needs, and the value to customers often results in more efficient operations and reduced energy consumption.

“A large and growing part of trade and industry is dependent on the ability to control the climate,” said Sjöström. “With today's technology, it's practically possible to create any environment needed. The challenge instead lies in doing this in an efficient and precise manner. This requires us to continually develop new technology to achieve the perfect environment for a particular area of application.”

It's a win-win situation, not only for the local climate in everything from a supermarket to an aircraft cockpit, but also for the climate in general, according to Sjöström. For example, when a data center is properly cooled it will increase capacity while reducing power consumption by up to 75 percent compared to traditional climate solutions. This is an important achievement because data center power consumption accounts for several percent of the total carbon dioxide emissions worldwide.

“Air conditioning also accounts for a very large share of power consumption in warmer countries,” explained Sjöström. “It is often possible to make it far more efficient, and Carl Munters was working with innovations in this area even back in his day.”

Another example is the world's food production, which needs to both increase and become more efficient in the future as the population grows. “The challenge is that many of today's cooling solutions consume far too much energy and are not as optimized for food production as they could be,” said Sjöström.

Proper air treatment also is critical in pharmaceutical production, where too much moisture during production could, at worst, render the medicine unusable.

As Munters celebrates its 60th anniversary, the company’s technology will continue to be used to create energy-efficient climate solutions to meet customer’s needs and ultimately help reduce the world's future energy consumption.

For more information, visit www.munters.com.