What Smardt OPK does

Smardt OPK, operating legally as Smardt Chiller Group, Inc., is a privately held industrial equipment manufacturer specializing in oil-free centrifugal chillers for commercial and industrial HVAC applications. The company is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada, with a European regional headquarters in Wendlingen am Neckar, Germany, and maintains wholly-owned offices across North America (Canada, United States), Europe (Germany, France), and Asia-Pacific (Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong SAR).

The company's core technology is magnetic bearing (maglev) compression that eliminates oil lubrication entirely, enabling oil-free operation of centrifugal compressors. Its product portfolio spans air-cooled chillers (AeroPure, T-Klasse TA-Class, 30–520 tons), water-cooled chillers (T-Klasse TW-Class, 45–1,600 tons; V-Klasse, 300–3,600 tons), and evaporative-cooled condensers (E-Klasse, 45–530 tons), supplemented by CPECS plant optimization software and SSP custom-engineered units. Smardt sells through direct enterprise field sales, engaging facility managers, building owners, and engineering teams on a custom-quotation basis, with revenue generated from hardware sales plus ongoing service and maintenance contracts. The company is self-described as the pioneer and world market leader in oil-free centrifugal chillers, claiming 20–50% higher energy efficiency and 50%+ maintenance cost reduction versus oil-lubricated alternatives. Named customers span media and entertainment (NFL Films), data centers (SpaceDC), real estate (Macquarie), government, education, and manufacturing, with vertical coverage across healthcare, hospitality, data centers, offices, greenhouses, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, marine, government, and education.

Name

Smardt OPK

Legal name

Smardt Chiller Group, Inc.

Website

https://opk.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Smardt OPK (Smardt Chiller Group, Inc.) is a privately held industrial manufacturer of oil-free centrifugal chillers using magnetic bearing technology, serving commercial and industrial customers across healthcare, data centers, hospitality, manufacturing, marine, and government sectors globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial HVAC Chillers

NAICS

Ventilation, Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing (33341), Pump and Compressor Manufacturing (33391)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Chillers & Cooling Plant Equipment (IMAHAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cooling Systems & Thermal Management (CRAC/CRAH, Chillers, Liquid Cooling) (HDABAKAD), Chillers, Boilers & Central Plant Operations (BPABACAG)

Keywords

• Oil-free centrifugal chillers
• Magnetic bearing technology
• Industrial HVAC equipment
• Commercial cooling systems
• Air-cooled chillers

Headquarters

HQ city

Wendlingen Am Neckar

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Oil-Free Chiller Sales: Sale of oil-free centrifugal and scroll chillers for commercial and industrial HVAC applications. Products include standard, semi-custom, and custom-built units.
2. Service & Maintenance: Global service and support for installed equipment, including parts, maintenance contracts, and technical support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Smardt OPK designs and manufactures oil-free centrifugal chillers for commercial, industrial, and institutional cooling applications, using magnetic bearing technology that eliminates the need for oil lubrication. Its portfolio covers air-cooled, water-cooled, and evaporative-cooled chillers from 30 to 3,600 tons, complemented by CPECS plant optimization software and SSP custom-engineered products, with global installation, service, and maintenance support.

Product overview

Smardt OPK is the pioneer and world leader in manufacturing oil-free centrifugal chillers for building climate control. The company offers the most comprehensive and customizable product range in the industry, including air-cooled chillers (AeroPure, T-Klasse TA-Class), water-cooled chillers (T-Klasse TW-Class, V-Klasse), and evaporative cooled condensers (E-Klasse). All products feature magnetic bearing technology that eliminates the need for oil lubrication, reducing maintenance costs by 50% or more and delivering 20-50% higher energy efficiency than oil-lubricated chillers. The product portfolio spans capacities from 30 to 3,600 tons, serving industries including hospitals, hotels, data centers, offices, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, greenhouses, marine, government, and educational institutions. Complementing the hardware, Smardt offers CPECS plant optimization and SSP custom special products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• AeroPure Air-Cooled Oil-Free Chiller Oil-free air-cooled centrifugal chiller series designed for efficient and sustainable cooling with customizable configurations for commercial and industrial HVAC applications.
• T-Klasse Air-Cooled (TA-Class) Oil-Free Chiller Oil-free air-cooled centrifugal chiller with capacity range of 30-520 tons (105-1,830 kW), using magnetic bearing technology to eliminate lubrication requirements, for commercial and industrial building applications.
• T-Klasse Water-Cooled (TW-Class) Oil-Free Chiller Oil-free water-cooled centrifugal chiller with capacity range of 45-1,600 tons (160-5,625 kW) for commercial and industrial building applications.
• V-Klasse (V-Class) Water-Cooled Oil-Free Chiller Oil-free water-cooled centrifugal chiller with the highest capacity range of 300-3,600 tons (1,055-12,660 kW) for large-scale industrial and commercial cooling applications.
• E-Klasse Evaporative-Cooled Oil-Free Chiller Oil-free evaporative cooled condenser chiller with capacity range of 45-530 tons (160-1,860 kW) providing efficient cooling for various industrial applications.
• SSP (Smardt Special Products) Custom Chillers Custom and specialized oil-free chiller products engineered to meet specific customer requirements and unique application needs, including marine-certified configurations.
• CPECS Plant Optimization System Plant optimization system that maximizes chiller plant efficiency and performance through advanced monitoring and control of Smardt chiller installations.
• Smardt Global Service & Maintenance Global service, parts, maintenance contracts, and technical support for installed Smardt chillers, delivered through the company's regional offices to maximize system uptime and availability.

Quantifiable outcome

• 20-50% higher energy efficiency compared to oil-lubricated chillers
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments10 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Bosch Thermotechnology: Bosch offers commercial heat pumps and chillers across Europe, including high-efficiency industrial cooling products. Overlaps with Smardt in commercial/industrial HVAC, but with broader portfolio (heat pumps, boilers, controls) rather than oil-free centrifugal specialization.

Direct peers

• Trane Technologies: Trane's CenTraVac and oil-free/magnetic-bearing centrifugal chiller lines directly compete with Smardt's T-Class and V-Class products across data centers, healthcare, and commercial buildings. Trane is a larger global incumbent with deeper service networks, but Smardt is more narrowly specialized in oil-free centrifugal architecture.
• Carrier Global: Carrier's AquaEdge 19DV and 23XR oil-free centrifugal chillers compete head-to-head with Smardt's portfolio in commercial and data center applications. Carrier offers broader HVAC portfolio breadth, while Smardt is more focused on the oil-free centrifugal niche.
• Johnson Controls (York): York's YK-Solution and magnetic-bearing centrifugal chillers target the same oil-free/energy-efficient segment Smardt serves, particularly in commercial real estate and large industrial facilities. Comparable on centrifugal architecture, with Johnson Controls having stronger controls integration.
• Multistack: Multistack specializes in modular oil-free magnetic-bearing chillers, competing with Smardt's smaller T-Class range in healthcare, education, and modular data center applications. Like Smardt, Multistack is a niche specialist focused exclusively on oil-free centrifugal architecture.
• Daikin Applied: Daikin's Magnitude series uses Turbocor oil-free magnetic-bearing compressors in centrifugal chillers, directly competing with Smardt's T-Class and V-Class. Daikin's parent (Daikin Industries) is a global HVAC leader with extensive APAC reach — directly relevant given Smardt's APAC expansion.
• Mitsubishi Electric: Mitsubishi Electric offers oil-free centrifugal chillers (e.g., the ETI series) targeting commercial, healthcare, and data center customers, overlapping with Smardt's core verticals. Comparable in efficiency claims and global service footprint, with stronger presence in Japan and Asia-Pacific.

Emerging players

• AAON: AAON is expanding into high-efficiency commercial HVAC and modular equipment with custom-engineered chillers; partial overlap with Smardt in commercial/industrial cooling. AAON is smaller and broader in product mix, while Smardt is more narrowly specialized in oil-free centrifugal.
• Dunham-Bush: Dunham-Bush manufactures centrifugal and screw chillers (including oil-free variants) for commercial HVAC and marine applications. Comparable to Smardt on centrifugal architecture and marine vertical overlap, but with a less oil-free-focused product mix.

Others

• Danfoss Turbocor: Turbocor (acquired by Danfoss) invented the oil-free magnetic-bearing centrifugal compressor used by Smardt and several peers; it operates as a key compressor supplier to chiller OEMs rather than as a direct competitor. Highly relevant ecosystem participant since Smardt's core magnetic-bearing architecture depends on this technology.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries9 records

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 Smardt OPK