Rheem®, a leader in the HVAC and water heating industry, announced a major milestone in the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Commercial Building HVAC Technology Challenge, which aims to advance the development of high-performance heat pump commercial solutions for cold climates and expand the adoption of heat pump rooftop equipment more broadly.
As part of the DOE initiative, Rheem completed laboratory validation testing for commercial unitary equipment in the 10–14-ton rooftop heat pump category, meeting and exceeding the DOE’s rigorous cold climate commercial performance and efficiency benchmarks. Performance testing verified by the DOE and the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) confirmed that Rheem’s rooftop unit achieved special recognition because of its exceptional results, including:
- Delivering 110 percent heating capacity at 5 degrees Fahrenheit and 90 percent heating capacity at minus 10 degrees Fahrenheit
- Outperforming DOE efficiency benchmarks with:
- 55 percent higher Integrated Ventilation, Economizing, and Cooling Efficiency metric (IVEC)
- 20 percent higher Integrated Ventilation and Heating Efficiency metric for Cold Climate regions (IVHEc)
- 25 percent higher Coefficient of Performance (COP2) at minus 10 degrees Fahrenheit
“These groundbreaking results, validated by the DOE and NLR, demonstrate Rheem’s leadership in developing advanced heat pump technology that delivers consistent comfort and energy efficiency, even in the most challenging environments,” said Rosa Leal, Director of Commercial Product Strategy and Customer Experience. “Rheem’s work with the DOE underscores our ongoing commitment to innovation, sustainability, and American manufacturing.”
Rheem’s high-performance rooftop heat pump is built on the company’s proven Renaissance™ Commercial HVAC Line platform, which is designed and manufactured in Fort Smith, Arkansas. All current Renaissance Commercial Packaged Units are certified to meet the Build America, Buy America (BABA) and Buy American Act (BAA) requirements, supporting domestic manufacturing and federal procurement standards.
Designed with flexibility and sustainability in mind, Renaissance Commercial Packaged systems feature:
- Rheem PlusOne® SmartShield™ MicroChannel Coil Technology, requiring up to 50 percent less refrigerant than traditional fin-and-tube designs
- A 60 percent lighter coil assembly, significantly reducing rooftop structural load, simplifying installation and routine maintenance ease
- Industry-standard footprints, allowing for seamless drop-in replacement retrofits
Field validation is underway and assesses real-world performance, efficiency, and comfort under extreme winter conditions.
This achievement supports the DOE’s broader goals of grid reliability, energy savings, and cost savings, while reinforcing Rheem’s mission to deliver products engineered for life™—innovative, efficient, and built to perform in any climate.
Source: Rheem
