New Air-Con Technology Could Save Millions

New air-conditioning technology developed by Cavotec could save Dubai US$57m a year, the company claims.

The system use electricity instead of fuel to cool aircrafts on the ground.

It will also be more environmentally friendly and reduce noise and air pollution at airports.

The estimates are based on the 130,000 planes landing at Dubai Airport terminals every year which, while on the ground, have to be cooled at a cost of US$400 per hour using traditional kerosene-powered APUs, or auxiliary power units.

The system, which uses pre-compressed air, will be launched at the Airport Show in Dubai in early June.

Cavotec says the systems has been specifically designed to handle the extreme heat in the Middle East and will be the only technology capable of cooling the new Airbus A380.

The system cools planes through reversed compression and uses 400kW of electricity per hour compared with APUs, which use 600l of fuel per hour, equal to 6,000kW/h of power.

By Elizabeth Clifford-Marsh