Krantz Komponenten, a manufacturer of customized HVAC systems and products with an excellent reputation, is involved in the 'inHaus2' research & development project. This is the most innovative building in Europe, currently being erected in Duisburg, Germany. In its new research facility, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft (a renowned German research society) is going to develop and test new products and system solutions for commercial and institutional buildings in close cooperation with a number of businesses.

'inHaus2', which is scheduled to be completed by mid-2008, has an effective area of 3,500 m² and Krantz Komponenten is focusing here on decentralized air conditioning. Decentralized ventilation units convey the outside air and the exhaust air directly through the building facade. In recent years, such units have come into use in Germany, Austria and Switzerland as alternatives to centralized HVAC systems. On the inHaus2 project, room-high ventilation units are to be integrated into elements of the building facade. The unit design was made in consultation with Josef Gartner GmbH, the manufacturer of the facade elements

At the core of the company’s development work is the use of PCM (Phase Change Material) intended to store cold energy at night in connection with free cooling. Krantz Komponenten will also apply the air ionisation system named Leitfähige Luft. The Leitfähige Luft system enables a fully ozone-free ionisation of air. Enriching the indoor air with high concentrations of ions – as are found in nature – improves the thermal comfort in the spaces concerned. According to the company’s press release, the research & development work will take several years: the technical systems will be tested in the course of time and optimized where necessary.