In China, the market for gas boilers is growing signif­i­cantly at the moment. One of the largest boiler manu­fac­turers and a pioneer in devel­op­ment is Guang­dong Hause Thermal Energy Equip­ment Co., Ltd.

The company, based in Huangpu, employs 226 people and has a produc­tion capacity of around 300,000 boilers per year. Among them are appli­ances for both resi­den­tial and commer­cial customers. “We are a high-tech company that combines the manu­fac­ture, sale, and instal­la­tion of resi­den­tial and commer­cial heating equip­ment and intel­li­gent control systems under one roof,” is how Xiaofeng Wu, General Manager at Hause, describes the company.

Hause produces about 300,000 boilers annu­ally in 50,000 square meters of manu­fac­turing space. (Photo | Mengxing Chen)

For high-quality prod­ucts, you have to start with the suppliers, says Wu: “After all, with the compo­nents from our suppliers we’re already buying in advanced tech­nolo­gies.” This prof­itable busi­ness rela­tion­ship was abruptly shaken in the spring of 2020. When the pandemic struck and, in addi­tion to the move­ment of people, the move­ment of goods to China became subject to increas­ingly strict rules, Hause faced prob­lems: The Italian manu­fac­turer of a gas blower used in Hause boilers was no longer able to deliver on time.

“Local for local” saves the day

But why go far afield, thought Hause  –  and looked around on the domestic market. That’s where they found ebm-papst. “We wanted a world-renowned manu­fac­turing company, an industry cham­pion,” says Wu. ebm-papst has had a pres­ence in China with a head­quarter in Shanghai since 1996, which is where the inquiry from Hause ended up. “We were invited to a meeting about Hause’s require­ments,” recalls Jie Jiang, Market Manager at ­ebm-papst China. For a long time, ebm-papst has been pursuing the “local for local” idea in China, in other words, producing locally for the Chinese market.

We wanted a world-renowned manu­fac­turing company, an indus­trycham­pion.

Xiaofeng Wu, General Manager Hause

Hause was initially only inter­ested in a gas blower. “During our discus­sions, however, we convinced Hause that a system solu­tion would make more sense,” Jiang recalls. In the mean­time, another supplier had also expe­ri­enced delivery prob­lems  –  and Hause commis­sioned the system solu­tion. “Up to that point, we had relied on different suppliers for the gas blower, the venturi, and the valve. ­ China’s vast terri­tory and complex climate were the reasons for this; in addi­tion, the gas quality varied greatly in some cases. Accord­ingly, we had to design the boilers indi­vid­u­ally. But the system solu­tion from ebm-papst was ulti­mately able to guar­antee us secu­rity of ­supply, premium quality, and an improve­ment in our prod­ucts,” says Xiaofeng Wu, summa­rizing the deci­sion process.

At its Guang­dong head­quar­ters, Hause manu­fac­tures for both resi­den­tial and commer­cial customers.(Photo | Mengxing Chen)

First system solu­tion for ebm-papst in China

“Our aim is to set the agenda in the field of wall-mounted smart boilers,” says General Manager Wu. (Photo | Mengxing Chen)

“We already supplied Hause in the past with indi­vidual compo­nents, such as blowers,” says Key Account Manager Alexander Remmele at the German site of Land­shut, who has already visited Hause in China twice himself. The order for a system solu­tion for domestic boilers sold under the brand name Boroa was a huge delight for him and his ­colleagues. “This is the first time we have supplied a system solu­tion for a ­Chinese customer,” says Remmele.

But first, some initial tests were neces­sary. Hause provided ebm-papst with a sample boiler, on which measure­ments were then taken. Initially, there was some noise gener­a­tion, which Hause did not want, because after all, the boilers would later be installed in private house­holds. Now inter­na­tional collab­o­ra­tion was required on the part of ebm-papst: “There was a close exchange between us and our Chinese colleagues,” Remmele recounts.

For high-quality prod­ucts, Hause already starts with the suppliers. (Photo | Mengxing Chen)

Together, they discov­ered that the installed venturi was respon­sible for the noise, and its design was then opti­mized. “We changed the overlap of the venturi with the diffuser inte­grated in the housing,” says Remmele. Ulti­mately, Hause discarded this first variant again because the company wanted to build a narrower unit by changing the installed heat exchanger. “We provided support in this respect too, and together we found a solu­tion to meet the high modu­la­tion require­ments.”

“Collab­o­ra­tion Plus” now and in the future

Hause was impressed with the solu­tion that had been found and signed a supply contract in March 2022. “By choosing the fully premixed condensing system solu­tion from ebm-papst, we can guar­antee consis­tently high product quality for our boilers,” says Hause General Manager Wu with satis­fac­tion. The system solu­tion can handle a wide range of gas qual­i­ties and always ensures optimum combus­tion. There is now a “Collab­o­ra­tion Plus” with ebm-papst, as Wu puts it. “By strength­ening this, we will not only enjoy greater economic bene­fits, but will surely also advance the industry,” he says with convic­tion.