The YORK® YZ Magnetic Bearing Centrifugal Chiller from Johnson Controls was presented a Bronze Award at the 2019 Edison Awards celebration on April 4 in New York City. The chiller was selected as a winner in the “Environmentally Friendly Solutions” sub-category of the energy and sustainability award category.  

“The entire Global Chiller Products team at Johnson Controls is honored to be selected for this prestigious recognition,” said Laura Wand, vice president and general manager, applied systems, building technologies and solutions at Johnson Controls. “Our long-standing commitment to delivering revolutionary chiller solutions to our customers led to the design and engineering of the industry’s most efficient, environmentally-friendly centrifugal chiller.”

Named after Thomas Alva Edison, the Edison Awards annually honor excellence and innovation in new product and service development, marketing, and human-centered design.

Products go head-to-head in 16 categories including: aerospace innovation, consumer goods, health and wellness, and social innovation. Finalists are selected by members of the Edison Awards Steering Committee, and a panel of over 3,000 leading professionals, including senior executives with diverse marketing, scientific, and business backgrounds, vote on the winners. The panel of judges evaluate all award entries based on concept, value, delivery, and impact.

According to Johnson Controls officials, the YORK YZ Magnetic Bearing Centrifugal Chiller is optimized for ultimate performance around next-generation low-global warming potential (GWP) refrigerant R-1233zd(E) to provide the highest possible efficiency. The YORK YZ chiller provides centrifugal chiller energy efficiencies as low as 0.1 kW/ton in off-design conditions where typical fixed-speed chillers experience performance issues. It has the potential to reduce annual electricity consumption by an average of 35%.