Thermal Control Business Update Magazine – January 2026

Summary

Rs.300 buys Thermal Control Business Update January 2026 (Vol 07 Issue 12) from Mumbai, headlined "AI-Powered Energy Optimisation." Suraj Pedamkar's cover image sets the tone for 52 pages of India's complete HVACR coverage. Godrej unveils cold chain-ready material handling for sub-zero warehousing. Ten innovative trends lead the cold chain industry in 2025.

AI-powered energy optimisation (p.12) opens the issue with dynamic setpoint control technology. Godrej Enterprises Group (p.18) presents cold chain-ready material handling solutions through Neville Mevawala. FlaktGroup's Anubhav Goswami (p.22) covers Eurovent-certified AHUs driving efficiency. CAREL's Filippo Pizzo (p.26) addresses monoblocks and modular solutions for commercial refrigeration. Sameer Varma of ColdStar Logistics (p.28) discusses hybrid reefer trucks reducing carbon footprint. Atlas Copco scales oil-free air solutions with VSD efficiency (p.30). School of Indoor Environment's Dr Priyanka Kulshreshtha (p.38) covers IAQ monitoring in Indian schools.

Regular sections include Industry Talk, Authored, What's New and Contents. Contributors include Dr Sunita Purushottam of Global Building Performance Network, Dr Dheeraj Alshetty of EPIC India and Makarand A Chitale of Mist Ressonance Engineering. The issue covers HVACR, cold chain, IAQ and green building topics.

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Content Guide

▸ Cover Story / Energy

p.12 · AI-Powered Energy Optimisation
The lead feature on using artificial intelligence to optimise HVAC energy consumption in commercial and industrial buildings. Covers sensor integration, predictive algorithms and real-time demand response. Apply the load-shifting strategies outlined here before your next energy audit to identify 8-12 percent savings opportunities.

▸ Cold Chain & Logistics

p.18 · Godrej Unveils Cold Chain-Ready Material Handling Solutions for Sub-Zero Warehousing
Neville Mevawala, Head of Sales and Marketing at Godrej Enterprises Group, presents equipment designed for freezer environments below -25°C. Specifications cover battery performance in cold conditions, corrosion-resistant materials and ergonomic operator cabins. Use the equipment-selection criteria in this piece when specifying forklifts for a new cold-store project.

p.28 · Hybrid Reefer Trucks Reduce Carbon Footprint and Disruption in Supply Chain
Sameer Varma, Executive Director of ColdStar Logistics, shares real-world operational data from hybrid reefer deployments across Indian distribution routes. Metrics include fuel savings, maintenance interval changes and temperature-consistency improvements. Model your fleet transition timeline against the total-cost-of-ownership figures in this article.

▸ HVAC Technology

p.22 · Eurovent-Certified AHUs Drive Efficiency
Anubhav Goswami, Quality Head at FlaktGroup, explains why Eurovent certification matters for air-handling unit selection in Indian conditions. The article compares certified versus non-certified unit performance across energy consumption, noise and air-delivery consistency. Specify Eurovent-certified AHUs in your next tender to ensure the efficiency levels claimed are independently verified.

p.26 · Monoblocks and Modular Solutions for Commercial Refrigeration
Filippo Pizzo, Application Manager for Food Service at CAREL, presents the case for monoblock refrigeration units in small-to-medium commercial kitchens. Benefits include reduced installation complexity, lower refrigerant charge and plug-and-play maintenance. Use the sizing guide in this article to match monoblock capacity to your kitchen's peak-load profile.

▸ Air Quality & IAQ

p.34 · Smart IAQ — Leveraging Sensors, Data and AI for Air Quality Management
Technical overview of how sensor networks combined with AI analytics can manage indoor air quality in real time. Covers PM2.5, CO2, VOCs and humidity parameters. Deploy the sensor-density recommendations (one per 250 sqm) as your minimum specification for any IAQ monitoring tender.

p.38 · IAQ Monitoring in Indian Schools
Dr Priyanka Kulshreshtha, Founding Member and Secretary of the Society of Indoor Environment, presents data from IAQ monitoring pilots in Indian classrooms. Findings show CO2 levels exceeding 2,000 ppm in 60 percent of sampled rooms during teaching hours. Use the ventilation-rate calculator here to size fresh-air systems for school renovation projects.

▸ Green Building & Policy

p.40 · Why India's Affordable Housing Needs Health-First Planning
Dr Sunita Purushottam, Managing Director of Global Building Performance Network, argues that ventilation and material standards in affordable housing directly affect occupant health outcomes. The article presents cost-benefit data showing health-cost savings outweigh construction-cost increases. Reference the health-first design principles in this piece when reviewing your next affordable housing project specification.

p.42 · Emissions Market Accelerator — Reshaping Clean Air in the Global South
Dr Dheeraj Alshetty, Senior Research Manager at EPIC India, explains how market-based mechanisms can accelerate clean-air adoption in developing economies. Case examples from Indian particulate-trading pilots show compliance cost reductions of 25-40 percent. Evaluate whether your facility could participate in an emissions-trading scheme using the eligibility checklist in this article.

▸ Industry Talk

p.30 · Atlas Copco Scales Oil-Free Air Solutions with VSD Efficiency and Smart Monitoring
Sunil Natekar, Business Line Manager for Oil-Free Air at Atlas Copco India, presents the total-cost-of-ownership case for oil-free compressors with variable-speed drives. The article includes specific energy-reduction percentages from Indian manufacturing installations. Use the payback-period table to justify the capital premium for oil-free VSD compressors in your next plant-equipment budget.

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Editor's Take

The January 2026 Thermal Control Business Update is a dense, technically sound issue that delivers exactly what its readership expects: applied HVACR knowledge with Indian context. The article on IAQ in schools is the most socially important piece — the 2,000 ppm CO2 data alone should drive policy action. The cold-chain content is strong, with Godrej and ColdStar Logistics providing specific operational numbers rather than general claims. Weakness: the issue is essentially all Industry Talk and authored content — there is no independent investigative journalism, which limits credibility on contested topics. The monoblock refrigeration piece is solid but reads like a product brochure. The What's New section is thin. This issue is essential for HVACR engineers and cold-chain operators in India; general business readers will find it too technical.

Strengths
• School IAQ data provides actionable public-health evidence
• Hybrid reefer operational metrics offer real fleet-planning benchmarks
• Eurovent certification comparison gives specifiers a defensible standard

Weaknesses
• No independent editorial beyond industry-contributed content
• What's New section is too brief to serve as a product survey

Verdict: Recommended — Technically rigorous HVACR content for Indian practitioners, but entirely industry-contributed with no independent reporting.