www . refrigerationandaircon . co . za RACA Journal I March 2024 3
News
HIREF – ITALIAN COOLING ENGINEERING EXCELLENCE EXPANDS AT HOME AND ABROAD
By Stefano Migliore , executive director : HiRef
HiRef South Africa officially opened in September 2023 , headquartered in Rosebank and staffed by local management .
HiRef ’ s step into the African continent started almost 20 years ago in 2005 with the first supply of close control units to South Africa . It was that first visit back in 2005 to this exciting country which created curiosity and a deep interest and dedication to further exploring the business opportunities South Africa could offer .
With the latest developments of the digital world and the promising economic expectations of the African continent the HiRef management decided that it deserves a branch footprint with a local team to better accomplish the needs of this territory . HiRef is a global leader in the IT infrastructure cooling sector , vaunting a large expanse of air-conditioning products and solutions across multiple applications . At its core is its ability to innovate and engineer those innovations into new solutions , often tailor-made to specifically address individual client needs .
HiRef has its roots in the industrial heartland of Italy , near the town of Padova , at the epicentre of the cooling technology district . The company was founded in 2001 by Mauro Mantovan , a young engineer with an innate curiosity and dogged ambition to achieve the milestones required to reach global success and recognition as an innovator and creator .
Driven by an extraordinary environmental consciousness , and a determination to anticipate change instead of waiting for change to happen , Mantovan has steered HiRef to become a conglomerate of manufacturing companies all bred with the same DNA – creativity and analytical approach , innovative ideas , and relentless research to sustain the company ’ s philosophy that innovation and sustainability are two essential elements to remain relevant and inspirational in the cooling sector .
Among Mantovan ’ s passions and beliefs are a dedication to research and development as well as in the power of youth . HiRef supports engineering thesis and bursaries with various Italian and international universities . Over 60 % of the students that participate in the programme continue the development of their career as employees of the company , leading to a young and dynamic workforce which numbers 380 employees with an average age of 38 years .
Supplied by HiReef
Mauro Mantovan on an early visit to South Africa .
To sustain its innovative core and to support the creativity of its young minds , the company has invested heavily into inhouse testing laboratories . These serve to test and experiment new designs and engineering approaches in a laboratory environment , but also to simulate real-world conditions . The facilities can create long term testing conditions that enable the engineers to validate how the designs withstand variable and extreme operating parameters .
This enables HiRef to develop all its designs at its headquarters , growing a trove of patents and innovations which – true to Mantovan ’ s vision – are in anticipation of change both in global and local environmental needs , industry requirements , and most importantly , the individual needs of each client .
And it is in this aspect that HiRef distinguishes itself from all others . It embraces individual client needs beyond its ability
“ The company was founded in 2001 by Mauro Mantovan , a young engineer with an innate curiosity and dogged ambition to achieve the milestones required .”
www . refrigerationandaircon . co . za RACA Journal I March 2024 3