A solar-powered cold room is only as reliable as the technician who looks after it. To build those skills, SophiA is launching SOCRATES, the SophiA Online College for Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Thermal Energy Systems. Its first course starts on Tuesday 20 October 2026. Over the past years, SophiA has shown that off-grid, solar-powered cooling…
Around 50 guests from academia, industry, education and the public gathered at the OST campus in Rapperswil on 26 June 2026 to celebrate World Refrigeration Day and explore how sustainable cooling technologies contribute to climate action, resilient healthcare and the energy transition. The event highlighted the impact of the European research project SophiA Project, which…
Why refrigerant choice matters — and what it means for cold chain in underserved communities A May 2026 white paper by Hanon Systems (a Hankook Company) sheds new light on a growing environmental and public health concern: the refrigerant R1234yf, now standard in vehicle air conditioning across Europe, degrades almost completely into trifluoroacetic acid (TFA)…
Access to reliable healthcare remains a challenge in many rural parts of Africa, where limited electricity and clean water compromise medical services. The Horizon 2020 SophiA project has spent the past years tackling this issue head-on, providing solar-powered solutions designed specifically for remote healthcare facilities. Transforming rural healthcare with solar energy Across sub-Saharan Africa, roughly…
On 16 September 2025, prior to travelling to Gambia for the ESEF 2025 mission, the Director General of the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR), Yosr Allouche, made a strategic stop in Dakar, Senegal. The visit aimed to engage with key Senegalese stakeholders who have shown strong interest in the outcomes and future collaboration opportunities of…
The SophiA project has entered an exciting new phase in Cameroon with the official inauguration of its sites, marking an important step in strengthening sustainable medical refrigeration in the country. Launch ceremonies have already taken place at the PVMEDPORT sites of Ekekam (9 September 2025) and Nomayos (11 September 2025), with the Edea site inauguration…
Following the conclusion of the two-day SophiA final meeting, participants enjoyed an enriching excursion on Friday to BITZER Headquarters and the SCHAUFLER Academy. The visit provided an exceptional opportunity to deepen their practical knowledge of refrigeration technology and safety practices. The day began with a warm welcome at BITZER Headquarters, where Volker Stamer presented an…
The final consortium meeting of the SophiA Project took place in Karlsruhe, Germany, on 17–18 September 2025. Partners, researchers, and stakeholders gathered to reflect on the project’s achievements and to discuss future perspectives for advancing sustainable healthcare solutions across Africa. Day 1 – Vision, Technology, and Policy The meeting opened with Professor Michael Kauffeld (HKA), who…
During a SophiA Training the Trainers session in Karlsruhe, participants from Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Malawi and Uganda shared the latest updates on national efforts to phase-out HCFC R22. The EU-funded “Sustainable Off-grid solutions for Pharmacies and Hospitals in Africa” (SophiA) project concluded on a final event on September 15-19, 2025, in Karlsruhe, Germany. The…
After participating in the project meeting (10-11 June) of the AGRI-COOL sister project in Vicenza, the IIR team travelled to Milan to take part in the 22nd European Conference, organised by Centro Studi Galileo on 12–13 June 2025 in Milan, Italy. This internationally renowned event brought together leading experts, researchers and industry professionals to explore…
