By Sharyn Macnamara, editor African Mining, incorporating Mining Mirror
FRIGAIR, Africa’s leading triannual exhibition for heating, energy, refrigeration, ventilation and air conditioning (HERVAC), hit Gallagher in style this year – bigger and better than ever before. Reflecting current industry sustainability trends, for three days industry innovators, movers and shakers and top HERVAC minds mingled, shared and debated industry challenges and solutions. Event organisers – Specialised Exhibitions, a division of Montgomery Group, in partnership with Interact Media Defined (IMD) Conferences, Exhibitions and Workshops, together with owners of the event, the South African Institute of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning (SAIRAC) pulled out all the stops to deliver a safe event that disseminated relevant, top of the hour tech solutions, insights and regulations to a sector essential to African economies.
© African Mining, incorporating Mining Mirror
A strong differentiator for FRIGAIR this year was the fact that it was co-located with the Facilities Management Expo 2025, Securex South Africa, AOSH EXPO and Firexpo. Gary Corin, MD of Specialised Exhibitions, noted that due to constraints in available skills, many of the decision makers in the South African, and indeed in the African market, are expected to understand a cross section of business requirements. This year the visitors to FRIGAIR and the co-located shows were able to experience a unique and ideal opportunity to see the latest innovations across five interlinked sectors. This gave them the chance to explore new technology firsthand, to watch live demonstrations, and speak directly with the experts behind the solutions for all of these sectors in industry.
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Dale Macnamara, sales director at IMD noted that this year’s 11th edition grew by over a third in size with 150 exhibiting companies versus 90 in 2022. Visitor numbers were up by an astounding 50%, reflecting the industry buy-in for a show of this magnitude. He pointed out that exhibitors had reported an exceptional experience at this year’s event.
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Bearing testament to thismarketing manager of exhibitor FUCHS lubricants South Africa Kayla Van Vught commented“It’s been great to connect face-to-face with so many customers. There has been a real energy at the expo – the conversations are engaging and the tech on display is impressive.
“What makes FRIGAIR 2025 stand out is its laser focus on HVAC&R, creating a highly targeted environment, which we have seen in the leads that we had generated this week. Beyond this, as an exhibitor, it’s always refreshing to be part of a show where innovation and practicality meet. The event build up and the effort put into the back end of the show from the organisers’ side was a notch above some others, and was truly very engaging, helpful and clear.”
Van Vught added,We’re seeing a growing emphasis on energy efficiency and environmentally responsible solutions. Our customers and partners are looking for lubrication products that not only perform under extreme conditions but also align with evolving sustainability goals. This aligns perfectly with our own R&D focus at FUCHS – developing high-performance lubricants that contribute to system efficiency and longevity while supporting a greener future.”
The expo provided an ideal platform for showcasing these technological advancements towards a greener, safer future and networking within the industry. Sanu Chenthamarakshan, global sales director for Oasis Coils and Coatings (OCC) commented on his experience as an exhibitor at the expo, noting that as a supplier of revolutionary technology in components to support the industry’s sustainability endeavours in using new refrigerants, OCC had successfully targeted consulting engineers, contractors, and OEM manufacturers at FRIGAIR 2025 – achieving the company’s objectives.
Chenthamarakshan praised the event’s high standards in safety, cleanliness, and security, deeming them world class. He said, “FRIGAIR is nothing short of a world class show,” and he expressed satisfaction with the quality of attendees, indicating a strong intention to return to future expos.
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Cliff Whittle, director of Airsteam Components Africa, who has exhibited at FRIGAIR for over 20 years now, concurred, highlighting that FRIGAIR 2025 showed a marked and overwhelming attendance on the first day. He said that he believed that this could be attributed to the effective marketing strategies of the organisers, such as widespread marketing collateral supplied to exhibitors to disseminate within the market. The company was showcasing the iZone control system among other automated solutions and pointed out that the visitors were of exceptional quality, being decision makers with buying power.
Kavir Sewlall, Danfoss account manager IDS sub-Saharan Africa, also shared his positive experience, noting that engaging with customers had been great, showcasing Danfoss’ global technologies for local implementation. He said that the investment in the company’s exceptional exhibition stand for FRIGAIR 2025 had been worthwhile, noting “valuable conversations” with customers where “out of the box thinking” had helped to solved industry challenges.
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The overwhelming industry excitement among exhibitors and visitors at the expo was almost tangible in the energy reverberating through hall 5 and 6 for a full three days as conversation collided with the sounds of industry demonstrations and technology working towards a more sustainable future.
