Raypak recently hosted a ribbon cutting for the grand opening of a new state-of-the-art Innovation Learning Center at the company’s headquarters in Oxnard, California. The Center is part of an extensive renovation and expansion of Raypak’s headquarter offices, testing lab and warehouse. This is the fifth center that parent company Rheem has opened across the U.S. and Canada since last year.
The world’s leading manufacturer of pool heaters and commercial boilers, Raypak is celebrating its 70 anniversary in 2018. The company manufactured North America’s first copper fin-tube boiler for space heating and hot water supply in 1948 and has gone on to pioneer many advancements in the industry including the first high turndown modulating atmospheric heating boiler, co-developed with Honeywell, and the introduction of the first hybrid ADB/CHX boiler in 2004. Raypak assembles all boilers, water heaters, and gas pool heaters in the USA, including the new XVers® Commercial Condensing Boilers, which were launched early this year.
Raypak has been operating in Southern California since 1948 and moved to its current Oxnard location in 2000. In 2017, the company began a major expansion and upgrade of their testing lab and warehouse facilities in order to increase speed to market for products, and enhance the building’s energy efficiency. Among the changes being made, the company doubled the number of testing stations, added a chilled water loop for pool heater testing, built a first article dimensional inspection lab to increase inspection capabilities, and increased the capacity of the building’s recirculation system to decrease and recycle water waste.
Additionally, Raypak has opened a new Innovation Learning Center that will serve as a training hub and collaborative space for engineers, manufacturer’s representatives, wholesalers, and plumbers/contractors on the West Coast and worldwide.
Raypak’s facility features an interactive classroom, a live demonstration and instruction lab (where equipment can be broken down and reassembled), and a state-of-the-art product showroom for training and troubleshooting products. The center not only highlights the latest energy efficient Raypak pool heaters, water heaters and boilers, but also includes water heating solutions and HVAC equipment manufactured by Rheem® and its other subsidiaries.
“This is a great time for Raypak as we continue to invest in our business,” said Kevin Ruppelt, vice president and general manager of Raypak. “We have a proud 70 year history and such longevity is a testement to our loyal Raypak team, channel partners, and customers. Given these most recent investments we are positioned to have a bright future for the next 70 years.”