JOA Air Solutions Launches Steam-Producing Heat Pump System for Industrial Drying at Philip Morris International's Bologna facility

BOLOGNA, Italy, Dec. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A state of the art heat recovery system coupled with a pioneering 139 °C steam producing heat pump has been commissioned by Philip Morris International (PMI) at their site in Bologna. The system is provided by Dutch System Integrator JOA Air Solutions using a high-temperature heat pump from German start-up, SPH. The pilot unit has shown capability to reduce the gas consumption for the main dryer by 40-50% in the last months of operation, the system also recovered 20-30% of water from the exhaust.

"This is a breakthrough for the industry," said Martin Tukker, Director of JOA Air Solutions. "A heat pump capable of delivering this volume of steam, and so seamlessly integrated into the drying process, sets a new benchmark in the processing industry."

This energy efficient system directly produces steam for industrial drying processes using a two-stage high-temperature heat pump. That not only recovers energy but also water from the exhaust. The result is a tightly engineered system that would be capable of supplying over half of the heat required for PMI's dryers, entirely from recovered energy.

"This is the type of innovative technology that could support manufacturers from various industries with climate transitions, sustainability goals and lead towards more energy efficiency initiatives," according to Tukker.

The system upgrades residual heat from 36 °C in two stages: First to 80°C, then to 139°C at 3.5 bar absolute pressure. The steam is directly used in drying operations, the most energy-intensive steps in manufacturing. Despite the unusually large temperature lift, the system maintains high efficiency, achieving a coefficient of performance (CoP) up to 2.5.

"At PMI we believe in leveraging innovation to address challenges and seeking solutions through strategic collaboration. This project is a great example of collaboration to deliver on a challenge that not only accelerates our path to Net-Zero, but the industry as a whole," said Arjun Arya, Manager, Environmental Sustainability. "The results clearly show how much potential there is in applying heat pump technology at this scale to thermally reuse the energy in an efficient manner."

The heat pump itself is supplied by German Heat Pump Supplier SPH. They are one of the few capable of reliably operating at high output temperatures. SPH's systems are designed specifically for manufacturers seeking to decarbonize without compromising performance.

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