person holding box with someone checking the temperature in the warehouse

Warehouse of Innovation

Temperature Control

About 30% of the total energy cost of running an average warehouse is just from heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC).

Got a solution?

Although warehouses and other logistics facilities contain more and more digital devices, including robots, they’re still full of human workers! Yet these buildings are often constructed to optimize space and accommodate for the goods, not the humans, stored and moved inside them, keeping these items in peak condition. As such, the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) infrastructure don’t and can’t always prioritize a comfortable working environment for humans. It’s especially difficult for workers during hot summers, freezing winters, and in areas where goods are temperature controlled – think frozen foods, vaccines, and chemicals. Another primary challenge is HVAC energy consumption – a voluminous warehouse takes a vast amount of energy to heat, cool, and ventilate, leaving a substantial carbon footprint and high costs.

With all this in mind and the growing industry need to make work environments more people- and planet-friendly…

We Wonder...

Like already existing seat-warmers for forklifts, what other easily adaptable energy-efficiency solutions utilizing localized heat radiation or ventilation can support a comfortable environment for workers doing various tasks?

Can we find a way to adopt HVAC technologies for mobile temperature control in workplace clothing and personal protective equipment (PPE)?

How can we reduce the need to control temperature and humidity in an entire room, most of which is just air, and instead, just control the environment immediately around a product, box, or full pallet?