The Hornby facility, which opened last week, is the largest heating, ventilation and air conditioning warehouse in the South Island.
The company said it had expanded its logistics operations and was developing skilled workers and infrastructure to support the country’s transition towards electric, low-emission buildings.
Climate-damaging refrigerant from old heat pumps have been recycled in the Hornby building to prevent them from going into the landfill.
Daikin New Zealand managing director Ryuta Hayashibara said this was becoming a commercial consideration for building owners and operators.
"As supply caps tighten and emissions pricing is applied, the cost of servicing and replacing refrigerant is becoming a more material part of building operating costs," he said in a statement.
Refrigerants were a key part of high-efficiency heat pump technology to deliver low-emission heating and cooling, so the focus needed to be on managing them properly rather than treating them as disposable, he said.
He said South Island’s colder and more variable climate was driving stronger demand for heat pumps and commercial heating systems which was increasing refrigerant volumes.
Japanese research showed reclaimed refrigerant can reduce its carbon footprint by 72% to 90%, depending on the gas type, compared with producing and importing new refrigerant.
The Hornby facility is fully electric with a 100kW rooftop solar system, electric vehicle and material-handling charging infrastructure.
A heat recovery HVAC system can heat and cool different areas of the building.
The site has the capacity to distribute about 450,000 cubic metres of freight per year and houses the company’s South Island sales team, trade centre, showroom and a training academy.
