Screw compressors in the 1970s: Although VEB Kuhlautomat had a licence agreement with Svenska Rotor Maskiner AB (SRM), it pursued its own technical concept in order to bypass SRMs patents. The licence fees were close to the cost of the compressor due to the exchange rate from Swedish kronor to GDR marks. Consequently In House ideas were needed. The new developments necessarily led to patents such as liquid injection, gas oscillation protection, Vi adjustment and line generated rotor profile. Furthermore, by using the screw compressors on fishing ships clever technical solutions were found in order to extend the service life and quick replacement of wearing parts. This know-how was a unique selling point and a good sales argument.
Following good initial experiences with screw compressors used on ships, in 1972 the main customer for fishing vessels in the Soviet Union only wanted screw compressors due to their real reputation for reliability, the service cycle was able to be adapted to the 4-year cycle of a ship.
Up until 1975: Up until 1975, VEB Kühlautomat had developed and started production of screw compressors with 770, 1600 and 2240 m3/h swept volumes. The compressor range was matched to the needs of the factory's plant construction unit.
The introduction of screw compressors, their combination of single stage and two stage sets and refrigeration packages led to an enormous increase in the degree of automation of ships refrigeration systems.
Installation time on board was reduced through pre-production in the main Johannisthal works. VEB Kühlautomat thus created the prerequisites for the supply of modern refrigeration systems with increasingly shorter delivery periods.
From 1972 to 1983: From 1972 to 1983, more than 200 super trawler ships were equipped with the necessary refrigeration plant for pre-chilling fish, freezer technology and storage room refrigeration. The freezers were an important product for fishing vessels. The building block for automatic fish freezing was laid in 1972 with the type LBH 31.5 belt freezer. Freezing capacity 30 t/d. By 1993, 1410 belt freezers had been produced.
Since 1970: The last major freezing technology development began in 1970 with the rotational freezer, FGP series, with contact freezing, minimum space requirements and very short freezing times. More than 320 units were installed in the Seiner ship series alone.
1976/1978: In 1978, more than 2000 screw compressors had been manufactured. The largest customers were the shipyards of the GDR, Poland and the Soviet Union and, increasingly, customers for large land-based refrigeration plant. The rapid increase in the number of compressors resulted in the rotor production changeover in 1976 from individual tooth space milling methods to hobbing, a major step for productivity increase.
Screw compressors: Developments during the 1980s, such as the change to the axial bearing (with disc springs), hermetically sealed position transducers, the new rotor pair ratio of 5 to 6 and the adjustable Vi resulted in the high technical standards, which still set our compressors apart today and enabled our successful entry to the free market economy. The screw compressor series for one- and two-stage refrigeration machine units made by Kühlautomat and for Mafa Halle's SKWS liquid refrigeration sets had been extended to six sizes (S3-315, S3-450, S3-900, S3-1250, S3-1800 and S3-2500) and readjusted to the needs of our own plant construction division. By 1989, approximately 8000 screw compressors and almost 6000 screw compressor units had been delivered. Following a good start and investments in large series rotor production, the VS 200 and VS 280 air compressors for Zwickauer Maschinenfabrik became victims of the planned economy. The export of reciprocating compressors to the "non-socialist economic region" stood in the way of 5000 rotors with pre-rolled rotor profiles. Production was cancelled.
Freezing technology: Large numbers of the FGP 25-3 rotating plate freezer with maximum power density, awarded a trade fair certificate in 1984, were produced for the "Seiner" ship series. Two-stage screw compressor units were prerequisite for operation of the FGP contact freezers at evaporation temperatures of -63 C without cryo-adhesion, i.e. without adhesion of the frozen blocks of fish to the surface of the heat exchanger. Apart from focusing on ship refrigeration, the Type FGF 80 freezer was developed for quick freezing of fruit and vegetable products using the fluidised bed method. Cold air, added from below, keeps the frozen material in a suspended condition. The freezing time is short, the freezing capacity, generated by a two-stage screw compressor, is very large. Another development, the transportable FGH 2.5 mini freezer unit - intended for freezing processes for non-industrial uses with individual loading possibilities, complemented this "shore leave".
Conveyor and glazing technology: Conveyor equipment, specifically designed for ships, combine the individual fish processing segments on board a ship. In 1987, 82 conveyor belts, 4 fish elevators and 2 block conveyors for factory trawlers, were introduced to the production range in a separate part of the premises. The product portfolio also included semi-automated loading and removal sections for freezers and equipment for long-term preservation of the frozen food to prevent freezer burns. Products such as glazing apparatus and combined conveyors and glazers were supplied with each freezer.
Consumer goods production: Consumer goods production was both required by the state and a problem child. The employees were on a constant search for suitable exhibits. Garden fences, wallpaper pasting devices, gutter holders and more than 100,000 children's seats for small scooters were intended to remove bottlenecks and exploit purchasing power. In the view of the Berlin heads of the Party, Kühlautomat was a specialist for the production of refrigerators. Therefore, a new consumer goods factory was built in Warschauer Strasse specifically for this purpose. It was one of the last major investments to be made. In 1987, 3000 3-temperature zone fridges had already been sold.
Paternoster cabinets: Kühlautomat's product range also included paternoster cabinets, produced in large numbers. They could be found in all the GDR's ministries where they were used for storing files, although they were also suitable for storing tools and spare parts. Several accompanied us when we moved. The employees of Segelfliegerdamm took another keepsake with them: the 2.50 m high bronze statue "Arbeitergespräche" (workers' discussion) by the Pankow sculptress Senta Baldamus. The right-hand, somewhat gaunt figure is supposed to be a VEB Kühlautomat worker, the one on the left a Soviet deep-sea fisherman, both engrossed in a discussion about work.