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| ABOUT
US: The Gartner Refrigeration Story |
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Founded in 1945 by Herb and George Gartner, Gartner Refrigeration’s goal is to embrace and refine evolving technologies in industrial refrigeration. Gartner Refrigeration works closely with customers throughout each step of their cold storage refrigeration, freezer refrigeration, cold storage facilities, cold storage refrigeration, cold storage warehouse, compressor refrigeration, condenser refrigeration, freezer refrigeration, frozen food storage, ice refrigeration, industrial cooling and process cooling systems application process.
The end of the war brought many opportunities for the young company. Hotel air-conditioning work led to creating compact ice rinks in hotel lobbies and ballrooms for exhibitions by professional figure skater Dorothy Lewis. As the exhibitions grew in popularity, Herb and George developed a portable version of their ice making apparatus and traveled the country creating ice rinks.
The willingness to apply emerging technologies to new applications was to become a Gartner trademark. Whenever a significant advancement in refrigeration occurred, the brothers were among the first to grasp and apply it.
Following incorporation in 1949, Gartner Refrigeration was selected as a representative of the Frick Company, which is now the nation’s leading manufacturer of rotary screw compressors. The early massive horizontal screw compressors gave way to vertical single acting models, followed by multi-cylinder reciprocating units, then rotary vane technology. Gartner was at the forefront of each transition, installing the newer, more efficient systems in a wide range of applications.
In the mid-1960's, Gartner Refrigeration installed the ammonia refrigeration and piping for twin 60,000-ton ammonia storage tanks at Central Farmer's Fertilizer - the first and largest ammonia refrigeration storage facility of its kind in the Upper Midwest. A string of indoor skating and hockey arenas followed, including the facility at the original Minneapolis Auditorium.
Next came up cold storage distribution centers for Red Owl, May Company and National T. The 1970's brought a rebirth in red meat business. By utilizing screw compressor technology to help the red meat industry achieve cost-competitive goals, Gartner Refrigeration laid the groundwork for yet another long-term affiliation.
Gartner Refrigeration's expertise with low maintenance, high performance screw compressors attracted many food companies including FDL Foods, Dubuque Packing, Packerland Packing, Iowa Beef Processors. The highlight was the installation of five 700 hp units in a Dubuque engine room.
In 1982, Gartner Refrigeration moved to an 11,000 square foot St. Louis Park facility, which housed the refrigeration engineering, sales, service and management departments under one roof. The early '80s also saw a resurgence in the turkey industry, as plants began processing and marketing turkey parts in addition to whole birds. Ice cream installations took a leap forward as well, soon to be followed by french fries and other frozen processed foods in need of cold storage facilities.
In the late eighties, Gartner Refrigeration developed its breakthrough Super Chill® technology, a high humidity rapid chill system that evenly cools beef and hog carcasses to prevent shrinkage. Once a bold design idea, today it's an accepted industrial cooling standard.
Another technological milestone occurred at Monarch Foods, where Gartner Refrigeration installed the first off-site computer link to automatically operate an entire industrial refrigeration system.
In the 1990s, responding to unique customer challenges remained the norm. From installing giant 1,500 hp screw compressors at FDL Foods to crunching a cookie cooling tunnel problem at Emerald Industries.
In January of 1997, Gartner Refrigeration moved to a 27,300 square foot Plymouth facility that was large enough to accommodate a new fab shop area and a controlled - environment screw compressor rebuilds shop. Already growth is challenging this new facility's capacity.
Gartner Refrigeration has been fortunate to retain some of the industry's finest refrigeration specialists, backed by a skilled and experienced support staff. All are deeply dedicated to customer service and support.
We're appreciative to Frick Company, for allowing us to modify and help perfect their Frick compressor equipment. By translating customer requirements into equipment recommendations, Gartner Refrigeration serves as a critical link between factory and field. It's a role that maintains our position at the leading edge, and ensures the right technology for each application.
