What Azane does

Azane Inc. is a Missoula, Montana-based private manufacturer of low-charge ammonia (R717) refrigeration systems for the North American industrial market, operating as a subsidiary of the UK-based Star Refrigeration Group. The company designs and produces air-cooled, packaged ammonia chillers (Azanechiller 2.0), freezers (Azanefreezer 2.0), and packaged refrigeration units (Ethos), targeting industrial facilities in food processing, cold storage, and industrial HVAC applications. Its core engineering differentiator is the low-charge ammonia architecture — systems employing only a few hundred pounds of refrigerant per unit — which eliminates compliance requirements under OSHA Process Safety Management and EPA Risk Management Plan regulations while delivering zero water consumption and sustained long-term efficiency. Additional proprietary features include a Reversed Cycle Defrost method using a four-port ball valve, flooded/overfed operation with simple high-side control, and large internal volume condensers resilient to non-condensable gases.

The company manufactures in an ISO 9000-certified facility and sells through a direct enterprise sales motion with quote-based custom pricing, reflecting the project-based nature of industrial refrigeration capital equipment. Go-to-market emphasizes technical thought leadership — whitepapers on topics like air-cooled advantage, defrost methods, and cold storage energy efficiency — supplemented by ASHRAE Journal articles authored by Star Refrigeration Group technical leadership. The business model is primarily one-time hardware sales of high-value, configured units (e.g., 300TR Azanechiller deployed at a Campbell Soup plant in Ohio), with potential aftermarket service and parts revenue. Customer concentration on enterprise industrial buyers and the niche addressable market for low-charge ammonia in North America define both the opportunity and the constraint on scale.

Name

Azane

Legal name

Azane Inc.

Website

https://azane-inc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Azane Inc. manufactures low-charge ammonia chillers and freezers for North American industrial refrigeration customers, offering air-cooled, packaged R717 systems that bypass traditional high-charge ammonia regulatory requirements while eliminating water consumption. It operates as a subsidiary of UK-based Star Refrigeration Group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Refrigeration Equipment

NAICS

Air-Conditioning and Warm Air Heating Equipment and Commercial and Industrial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing (333415), Ventilation, Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing (33341)

SIC

Air-Cond & Warm Air Heatg Equip & Comm & Indl Refrig Equip (3585), Refrigeration & Service Industry Machinery (3580)

akta.pro primary industry

Commercial & Industrial Refrigeration Systems (IMAHAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Chillers & Cooling Plant Equipment (IMAHAKAE), Compressors, Refrigeration Components & Condensing Units (IMADANAG)

Keywords

• Industrial refrigeration equipment
• Ammonia chillers
• Ammonia freezers
• Packaged refrigeration systems
• Low-charge ammonia

Headquarters

HQ city

Missoula

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Industrial Refrigeration Equipment Sales: Azane manufactures and sells packaged ammonia refrigeration units (Azanechiller, Azanefreezer, Ethos) to industrial customers. Revenue is generated through one-time equipment sales with potential for aftermarket service and parts.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Azane designs, manufactures, and sells packaged air-cooled ammonia refrigeration systems for the North American industrial market. Its product line—Azanechiller 2.0, Azanefreezer 2.0, and Ethos—uses low-charge ammonia (R717) as a natural refrigerant in skid-mounted packages with integral condensers, eliminating water consumption and reducing regulatory burden.

Product overview

Azane offers a portfolio of air-cooled ammonia refrigeration packages for the North American industrial market. The product line centers on three main offerings: Azanechiller 2.0 (ammonia chillers for industrial cooling), Azanefreezer 2.0 (ammonia freezers for cold storage), and Ethos (packaged ammonia refrigeration unit). All products utilize low-charge ammonia (R717) as a natural refrigerant, featuring integral condensers, zero water consumption, and design that allows redeployment between sites. The company positions its solutions around four key benefits: future-proof natural refrigerant technology, risk reduction through low ammonia charge, long-term efficiency maintenance, and lowest total cost of ownership.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Azanechiller 2.0 Air-cooled ammonia chiller delivering industrial cooling (e.g., 300TR capacity at 42°F) using ammonia (R717) as a natural refrigerant, targeted at industrial HVAC and process cooling applications such as food processing plants.
• Azanefreezer 2.0 Air-cooled ammonia freezer package providing low-charge ammonia freezing solutions with improved flexibility, reduced risk, and lower total cost of ownership compared to traditional ammonia systems, targeted at cold storage and industrial freezing operations.
• Ethos

Quantifiable outcome

• Ammonia efficiency advantage: requires almost 8x more heat to boil than typical HFC refrigerants, making it a high-capacity heat carrier
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Star Refrigeration GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAzane is part of the Star Refrigeration Group, a leading industrial refrigeration engineering company. Star Refrigeration Group is the parent/affiliate organization that provides operational support, technical expertise, and shared resources including Star Technical Solutions, Starfrost, Star Learning Solutions, and Star Renewable Energy (Neat Pumps). The Group's GDPR privacy notice indicates shared data processing and corporate governance.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• EVAPCO: EVAPCO is a global manufacturer of heat transfer equipment including adiabatic coolers, evaporative condensers, and industrial refrigeration evaporators. It competes with Azane in air-cooled and heat-rejection solutions for industrial refrigeration customers across food processing and cold storage.
• Star Refrigeration: Star Refrigeration is Azane's UK-based parent and a leading industrial ammonia refrigeration engineering firm. While it serves EMEA rather than North America, its engineered ammonia plants and low-charge expertise share the same technical DNA as Azane's product line.
• Danfoss: Danfoss is a leading supplier of industrial refrigeration components and controls, including valves, sensors, electronic controllers, and variable-speed drives used in ammonia and CO2 systems. Its industrial refrigeration portfolio overlaps directly with the controls and components integrated into Azane's packaged units.
• GEA Group: GEA is one of the largest global suppliers of industrial refrigeration systems and components, with deep food processing exposure (the same vertical Azane targets). It competes directly with Azane in packaged ammonia refrigeration for food, beverage, and cold storage applications.
• Baltimore Aircoil Company: BAC is a global manufacturer of heat transfer and evaporative cooling equipment (cooling towers, adiabatic coolers, condensers) used in HVAC and industrial refrigeration. Its air-cooled and adiabatic condenser products overlap directly with the air-cooled architecture that defines Azane's product advantage.
• Bitzer: Bitzer is a global specialist in refrigeration and air conditioning compressors (scroll, screw, reciprocating), widely used in industrial ammonia and CO2 refrigeration plants. It supplies comparable component-level technology that competes with or complements Azane's packaged systems.
• Mayekawa (Mycom): Mayekawa is a global specialist in industrial ammonia refrigeration systems for food processing, cold storage, and industrial cooling. Its industrial ammonia screw and reciprocating compressor packages directly overlap Azane's industrial ammonia chiller/freezer offerings.

Broad incumbents

• Trane Technologies: Trane Technologies is a major commercial and industrial HVAC/refrigeration provider offering chillers and process cooling. Its Trane and Thermo King brands serve similar industrial and food processing customers as Azane, but from a broad incumbent position rather than a low-charge ammonia niche.
• Johnson Controls: Johnson Controls is a global HVAC and industrial refrigeration incumbent (including the YORK and Sabroe brands) with broad product portfolios serving commercial and industrial customers. It overlaps with Azane in industrial cooling but as a diversified major rather than a low-charge ammonia specialist.
• Emerson Climate Technologies: Emerson's Climate Technologies segment supplies compressors, controls, and refrigeration components used across commercial and industrial refrigeration. Its Copeland compressor and electronic controls portfolios overlap with the components underpinning Azane's packaged ammonia systems, but as a broad incumbent rather than a packaged ammonia specialist.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Azane