Demand for car refrigerators soars, secop bd nano car compressors' pre-installation volume exceeds one million units

On September 17th, SECOP held a grand ceremony at its Tianjin factory to mark the milestone of the BD Nano automotive compressor reaching one million units produced. This event not only signifies SECOP's achievement of large-scale breakthroughs in the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) sector for vehicle-mounted DC compressors but also confirms the continuously rising demand in the car refrigerator market driven by multiple factors, thereby ushering core suppliers into a new phase of development.

Image source: SciCOOL (same below)

The demand for car refrigerators is booming, presenting opportunities for key suppliers.

In recent years, China's car refrigerator market has shown a positive development trend characterized by a "surge in demand and category upgrade." The "China Car Refrigerator Industry Annual Research Report" indicates that in 2024, both the production and sales of car refrigerators in China surpassed 4.5 million units, setting a new historical high. Compared to 2020, the scale has doubled.

This explosive growth is not accidental, but the result of multiple factors including the upgrading of the new energy vehicle industry, the transformation of consumer concepts, and the expansion of market demand.

The continuous increase in the penetration rate of new energy vehicles has laid a solid foundation for the popularization of car refrigerators. In the era of traditional fuel vehicles, car refrigerators never became mainstream due to limitations such as insufficient power supply stability and limited installation space. However, the three-electric system of new energy vehicles has achieved significant improvements in power supply stability and adaptability. It not only provides a continuous and stable DC power source for car refrigerators but also optimizes the chassis structure to reserve more installation space, significantly reducing the installation threshold for car refrigerators.

At the same time, in order to create product differentiation and competitiveness, new energy vehicle companies have been incorporating car refrigerators as standard or optional configurations for mid-to-high-end models, effectively boosting the pre-installation rate. According to relevant data, in 2024, the sales of embedded car refrigerators in China's new energy passenger vehicles are estimated to be around 875,300 units, a year-on-year increase of more than threefold.

The upgrade in consumer mindset is concurrently driving car refrigerators from a "niche demand" to a "standard feature." As users' needs for travel quality become increasingly diverse, the frequency of long-distance driving, camping picnics, and business trips has significantly increased, leading to a growing demand for in-car refrigeration and freezing functions. Especially with the camping craze, car refrigerators capable of freezing meat and seafood have become essential equipment for outdoor enthusiasts.

The demand expansion in the B-end market has further opened up growth opportunities for car refrigerators. In addition to the passenger car market, the demand for vehicle refrigeration equipment is also continuously increasing in specialized vehicles such as ride-hailing cars, RVs, and cold chain logistics vehicles. For example, in the ride-hailing sector, some platforms have equipped high-end ride-hailing cars with car refrigerators to enhance service quality and provide passengers with cold drink services. In the RV market, car refrigerators have become a standard configuration, with increasing requirements for capacity and cooling efficiency.

Under the overlapping of multiple demands, the rapid growth of the car refrigerator market has brought unprecedented development opportunities for core component suppliers. As a key player in the mobile refrigeration field, BD Nano automotive compressors under Secop have surpassed one million units in pre-installed quantity, which is a strong testament to this opportunity.

Of course, the reason why Cisco is able to firmly grasp this opportunity lies in its long-term technological accumulation and continuous investment in the field of direct current compressors.

According to Gasgoo, Secop is one of the pioneers of modern compressor technology, formerly known as Danfoss Compressors, with a history dating back to the early 1950s. Secop has long been focused on commercial refrigeration compressors and has over 45 years of experience in the field of DC battery-driven compressors.

Entering the 21st century, with the emergence of mobile cooling demand, SICCOP keenly captured the potential of the vehicle-mounted market, becoming one of the earliest companies in the industry to deeply cultivate the vehicle-mounted OEM market. For many years thereafter, SICCOP has never ceased its investments in the field of vehicle-mounted DC compressors, continuously iterating its products and setting up a research laboratory and production base in Tianjin, China. This "decades-long unwavering commitment" to technology has laid a solid foundation for SICCOP's rapid breakthroughs during the market's explosive growth period.

With continuous technological upgrades, BD Nano leads the pre-installation market with innovative strength.

The rapid growth of the car refrigerator market is driven by the iterative upgrade of technology routes. Currently, the car refrigerator industry primarily features two technological paths: thermoelectric and compressor-based. Thermoelectric car refrigerators, with their low cost and small size advantages, are widely used in the entry-level market. However, they have drawbacks such as low cooling efficiency and inability to achieve deep freezing. On the other hand, compressor-based car refrigerators boast high cooling efficiency, the capability for freezing, and long service life. These advantages have led to their increasing penetration in the original equipment market of mid-to-high-end new energy vehicles, making them one of the mainstream directions in the development of car refrigerators.

Taking the BD Nano car compressor launched by CiscoPu as an example, as an upgraded version of the previous generation BD Micro product, it achieves a smaller size, stronger functionality, quieter operation, and higher efficiency.

In terms of spatial adaptability, the BD Nano is highly compact. The product weighs only 1.5 kg and is just 9.3 cm in height. This lightweight and miniaturized design can perfectly integrate with the internal structure of a car refrigerator, maximizing the savings on installation space and providing the potential for expanding the storage space inside the refrigerator.

In terms of energy efficiency, its high energy consumption ratio becomes a core competitive advantage. According to official data, its efficiency (COP) can reach 1.53 W/W, meaning that for every 1W of electricity consumed, it can produce 1.53W of cooling capacity. This advantage not only provides users with stronger cooling capabilities but also effectively reduces vehicle energy consumption, aligning with the energy-saving needs of new energy vehicles.

In terms of user experience, by optimizing acoustic comfort, the operating noise of the BD Nano is extremely low, reportedly 6dB/A lower than the previous generation under the same cooling capacity, effectively enhancing driving tranquility and stability during transportation. At the same time, it is equipped with a new generation electronic control unit (ECU) that, in conjunction with the refrigerator's main controller gateway, supports multiple electronic interfaces such as CAN and LIN. This allows for seamless integration with the vehicle's central control system, enabling users to precisely adjust the temperature and set cooling modes via the in-car screen or mobile app, greatly improving operational convenience.

Based on such excellent product performance, BD Nano quickly gained traction. At this offline ceremony, Liu Shujing, General Manager of Secop Compressors (Tianjin) Co., Ltd., stated that BD Nano has successfully exceeded one million units in original equipment volume within just two years of its market launch. This achievement not only far surpasses the company's previous expectations but also directly demonstrates its strong competitiveness in the automotive compressor field.

General Manager of Sikepu Compressor (Tianjin) Co., Ltd., Liu Shujing

The future market is vast, and Cisco is strategically positioning itself to capture new heights in the industry.

Looking ahead, with the continuous upgrading of consumer demand, ongoing breakthroughs in technological innovation, and the increasing improvement of the industry chain, the car refrigerator market is expected to usher in a longer cycle of growth dividends. Of course, products that have strong scene adaptability, a high degree of intelligence, and energy-saving and environmental protection advantages will be more favored by the market. Enterprises that can seize these trends and continuously enhance their product competitiveness will also occupy a more advantageous position in market competition.

Faced with a broad market outlook, Scicorp has formulated a clear strategic plan aimed at further consolidating its industry-leading position.

At the unveiling ceremony, Dr. Jan Ehlers, CEO of Skope Group, publicly shared the company's strategic layout and development ideas. He stated that as early as 2019, the company had proactively identified mobile refrigeration as a core business segment, investing significant human, material, and financial resources in product research and development, production capacity building, quality commitment fulfillment, and customer support services in this field. Moving forward, Skope will continue to firmly adhere to this strategic path, focusing on mobile refrigeration, light commercial refrigeration, and medical refrigeration as core business segments for the coming years, driving sustained growth in the company's overall performance.

Dr. Jan Ehlers, CEO of Cisco Group

Dr. Jan Ehlers emphasized at the product level that the BD Nano product, which was recently launched, is an outstanding product and has already received high recognition in the market. However, as market demand continues to change rapidly and evolve continuously, consumers' requirements for performance, functionality, and power consumption of car refrigerators are constantly increasing. Secop will maintain its innovative vitality and continue to launch higher quality products.

According to him, several projects in the preparation stage are being advanced by Scicop, aiming to provide more innovative solutions based on BD Nano.

Specifically, the future product development direction will focus on the following dimensions: firstly, customizing exclusive solutions for specific application scenarios, especially solutions specifically aimed at electric vehicle (EV) applications; secondly, enhancing the integrated design of electronic devices to provide more cost-effective and functionally integrated solutions; thirdly, continuously optimizing in-car refrigerator solutions for fuel-powered passenger cars and trucks, while further expanding the application of BD Nano products in the RV sector.

Dr. Jan Ehlers revealed that ScioCup is planning a new generation of products, aiming to further reduce size, lower noise, and improve performance. In the meantime, to meet the rapidly growing market demand and ensure stable product supply, ScioCup has begun planning a second production line for BD Nano products, which is expected to be officially operational in the second half of 2026.

He stated, "Cisco Systems will further expand its production, research and development, and service capabilities in China, which is crucial for the company to maintain its established development roadmap and achieve its ambitious goals in the mobile cooling sector. Throughout this process, we will consistently focus on providing high-quality products, strictly control quality, optimize services, and develop efficient and reliable solutions through close collaboration with local customers to achieve mutual benefits and win-win outcomes."

Conclusion:

From a technological breakthrough of a single compressor to the large-scale leap of producing millions of units, Sicop has achieved outstanding results through its dedicated focus on core technologies for vehicle refrigeration. With the continuous upgrading of the new energy vehicle industry, the ongoing release of consumer demand, and the deepening of technological innovation, the vehicle refrigerator market is set to embrace even broader development opportunities. Core suppliers, represented by Sicop, are strengthening their global market position through the dual advantages of "capacity + technology," while simultaneously driving the coordinated development of the upstream and downstream industrial chains and advancing the vehicle refrigerator industry to a new stage of development.