Dometic cooling units are used in many different rv refrigerator and campers. They provide cooling to keep food and beverages fresh, prevent heat build up in a vehicle and help to lower energy consumption.
Dometic has been in the business of designing and producing RV refrigeration for over a century now and is a market leader, as well as a leading supplier of replacement parts to the industry. The key to success for Dometic is that it offers a wide range of products that all perform as well or better than the best in their class and at a competitive price point.
The challenge that Dometic faces in its market is a fragmented product market with strong competition. There are several small players in each individual product category (refrigerators, windows, doors, kitchen equipment, toilets), and also a few RV OEMs with a dominant position in the market and good bargaining power.
One of Dometic’s main strategic priorities is to strengthen its competitiveness by putting together the right product set and creating the necessary service network to ensure customers can quickly get assistance when they need it. This strategy will require the company to put together a new production line in China which would mainly produce minibars, RV refrigerators and medical cold equipment.
In the non-use scenario, the two factories in Siegen and Jaszbereny that currently use sodium chromate will cease to do so in 2029. In this scenario the impacts on the local business communities in the affected plants and on Dometic’s European supply chain are estimated to be limited to a few hundred million euros per year.
There is a major downside to the non-use scenario: it means that Dometic will no longer be able to use the corrosion inhibitor sodium chromate in its absorption refrigeration products and will have to find an alternative. Over the past decades Dometic has worked hard to research and evaluate alternative corrosion inhibitors, both in-house and with external partners.
Decades of research have resulted in the discovery of one possible alternative – inhibitor 7. This is a chemical compound that protects carbon steel tubing from corrosion. However, there are some technical issues with inhibitor 7, which make it not suitable for all boiler temperatures. Inhibitor 7 is still being tested and will only be able to function properly when these technical problems have been solved.
Another potential issue is that it could cause premature leaks of refrigerant which will have a negative impact on customer satisfaction. If these leaks were not prevented, it would erode the image of Dometic and its brand, reducing sales volumes.
Dometic has done extensive research into alternative corrosion inhibitors and has invested a substantial amount of money in this area, totalling around seven million euros over the last 20 years. This work has been conducted in-house and in partnership with universities and other research facilities.