Company launches ‘Helix’ initiative and $35 million innovation center
to enable industrywide collaboration
Emerson (NYSE: EMR), a leader in thermostats and heating, cooling and
refrigeration technology, is bringing the industry and other partners
together to increase the pace of innovation in areas that are central to
safety, quality of life and sustainability.
The company today announced the launch of its “Helix” initiative,
including the opening of The Helix innovation center, an industry-first,
$35 million hub dedicated to advancing research and education for the
global heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVACR)
industry. The new facility, located on the campus of the University of
Dayton, is the latest step in Emerson’s journey to refine its approach
to innovation.
“Heating and cooling innovations help us to keep food safer and fresher,
to improve our health and comfort, and to realize these gains while also
reducing energy consumption and environmental impact,” said Emerson
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David N. Farr. “With The Helix,
Emerson serves as a catalyst to drive rapid, meaningful industry
advances that address today’s challenges and help us stay a step ahead
of tomorrow’s needs.”
The Helix will focus on advancing ideas from concept to prototype in 90
days or less. To get there, Emerson will collaborate with customers,
HVACR industry partners and competitors as well as experts from other
industries who can bring new perspectives to specific challenges.
The Helix innovation center features full-scale, simulated environments,
including a working commercial kitchen, a two-story residential home and
a grocery store. Teams will use the facility to generate new ideas and
then test them under real-world conditions.
With The Helix innovation center and an evolved approach to innovation,
Emerson and others will look to advance areas like Internet of Things
connectivity and use of big data to better manage heating and cooling;
solve challenges related to efficiency, environmental demands and
regulations; and develop new applications for automation to increase
efficiency and performance of residential and commercial solutions.
The Helix innovation center also features Grind2Energy™, Emerson’s
groundbreaking solution to enable food waste to be converted into
energy. The concept of transforming potato peels and orange rinds into
energy is exactly the kind of outside-the-box thinking that the Helix
initiative is meant to inspire.
As Emerson continues to bring together disparate experts to rethink
transformation within the industry, its Helix footprint will grow as
well. A second facility is planned at the Georgia Institute of
Technology in Atlanta, with additional future sites under consideration.
For more information, visit Emerson.com/TheHelix.
About Emerson
Emerson (NYSE: EMR), based in St. Louis, Missouri (USA), is a global
leader in bringing technology and engineering together to provide
innovative solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and
consumer markets around the world. The company is comprised of five
business segments: Process Management, Industrial Automation, Network
Power, Climate Technologies, and Commercial & Residential Solutions.
Sales in fiscal 2015 were $22.3 billion. For more information, visit Emerson.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160427005259/en/
Copyright Business Wire 2016