How Emerson Became Vertiv: Brand History, Trends, and Real-World Cases in Industrial Cooling

From a Modest Start to an Industrial Giant: The History of Emerson

Emerson Electric Manufacturing Co. was founded in 1890 in St. Louis, Missouri, by brothers Charles and Alexander Meston, with financial backing from entrepreneur John Wesley Emerson — whose name became the foundation of the brand.

The company began as a manufacturer of electric motors and became the first in the United States to launch serial production of electrically powered fans.

Throughout the 20th century, Emerson evolved from a small motor manufacturer into a diversified industrial corporation with a global footprint. The company expanded through strategic acquisitions, strengthening its presence in key industries such as:

• Industrial automation
• Energy and power
• Electronics
• And most notably for us — HVAC and cooling systems

In the early 2000s, Emerson entered the Fortune 500 and became a recognized global B2B player and trusted industrial partner worldwide. This period marked the beginning of the company’s most active phase in industrial cooling and climate control — acquiring specialized brands and launching new technological divisions.

How Emerson Became a Key Player in the Cooling Industry

Emerson’s entry into the cooling and climate control market was a natural step in the company’s industrial expansion throughout the 20th century.
The pivotal moment came with the acquisition of Copeland, one of the world’s leading compressor manufacturers. This move firmly established Emerson in the HVAC segment and laid the groundwork for its own specialized cooling division.

This led to the creation of Emerson Climate Technologies — a comprehensive engineering unit that combined:

• Compressor innovations (Copeland Scroll, Copeland Digital, and more)
• Climate control and monitoring systems
• Energy-efficient and CO₂-compatible technologies
• Industry-specific solutions for manufacturing, agriculture, telecommunications, data centers, and food production

Under the Emerson Climate Technologies brand, the company developed chillers, heat exchangers, compressors, electronic expansion valves, controllers, remote monitoring systems, and automation tools — enabling the design of scalable, reliable, and sustainable cooling systems.

This period also saw the launch of R&D platforms across Europe and Asia, a focus on low-GWP refrigerants, and strong alignment with global sustainability standards in HVAC.

Liebert → Emerson → Vertiv: The Path of Precision Cooling

The story of Emerson in industrial cooling would not be complete without Liebert and Hiross — two pioneering brands that laid the foundation for modern precision climate control.

Liebert Corporation was founded in 1965 by Ralph Liebert. Starting from a garage, the company grew by the 1980s into a recognized leader in cooling systems and UPS units for computer rooms, data centers, and telecom infrastructure.
Liebert was the first to realize that traditional HVAC systems were not suited for IT equipment. This insight led to the birth of an entirely new category — precision cooling solutions.

In the early 2000s, Emerson acquired two strategically important companies:

• Liebert (USA) — engineering for data centers, server rooms, and the telecom sector
• Hiross (Italy) — a European expert in liquid cooling and precision chillers

Merging these companies under the Emerson Network Power brand strengthened Emerson’s position in the global HVAC market.
Engineering centers from Liebert and Hiross became the flagships for developing:

• High-precision air conditioning systems
• Chillers with free cooling and inverter compressors
• Industry-specific solutions for telecom, manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals

In 2016, Emerson made a strategic decision to sell its Network Power division to investment firm Platinum Equity. Thus, Vertiv was born — an independent brand that inherited the engineering legacy of Liebert and continued producing industrial chillers, CRAC units, and liquid cooling systems.

Emerson’s core technologies remained at the heart of Vertiv:

• Copeland compressors
• Advanced control protocols
• Liebert’s precision control logic

Today, the Vertiv brand develops leading-edge cooling solutions for data centers, industrial sites, and high-density equipment environments — while Emerson focuses on automation, energy, and digital transformation.

Vertiv Today: Carrying Emerson’s Engineering Legacy

Today, Vertiv stands as one of the global leaders in precision cooling, engineering infrastructure, and digital solutions for mission-critical facilities.
The company is still headquartered in Columbus, Ohio — the very city where Liebert’s journey began.

Facts and figures:

• Over 20,000 employees worldwide
• Offices and operations in 130+ countries
• $47+ billion in market capitalization
• Listed in the Fortune 500

Vertiv’s main focus areas include:

• Data centers: cooling, power, monitoring, redundancy
• Industrial cooling: chillers, free cooling systems, liquid cooling
• IT & telecom: modular rack, cabinet, and room solutions
• Energy & sustainability: UPS, generators, eco-efficient systems
• Intelligent management: Vertiv Intelligence™, Liebert iCOM™, Trellis, Environet

Current Cooling Product Lines by Vertiv

Vertiv continues to expand its product portfolio, rooted in the engineering foundation built under Emerson:

• Liebert® DSE — a water-free DX system with integrated free cooling
• Liebert® CRV / PEX / PCW — designed for high-density equipment rooms
• Liebert® EFC — evaporative free cooling economizers
• Liebert® XD / HPC / HPM — modular systems for scalable data center infrastructure
• Vertiv™ VRC-S — all-in-one cabinet cooling solutions for small server and telecom rooms
• Vertiv™ Geist — telecom-grade monitoring and temperature sensing solutions

All solutions are integrated into the Vertiv™ Intelligence Platform, which includes software, remote monitoring, and automation features.

In 2024, Vertiv also acquired BiXin Energy’s centrifugal chiller technologies, and in 2023, introduced CoolTera — a liquid cooling platform for AI and HPC centers.

Emerson in Industrial Cooling: The Engineering Product Line

All this equipment is supplied, supported, and modernized — including as part of EVROPROM‘s projects.

EVROPROM Case Studies: How Emerson and Vertiv Perform in Real-World Projects

EVROPROM is one of the largest secondary-market chiller suppliers in Europe.
We don’t just sell equipment — we renovate, adapt, and integrate it into your project, region, and production process.
Here are several examples of how Emerson solutions are used across various industries:

Ukraine — “Dinbo” Mushroom Farm

Emerson SLS 0540 with free cooling (482 kW)

• Precision cooling for incubation and fruiting cycles
• Controller reconfiguration and conversion from cascade to standalone operation
• Stable performance under high humidity and 24/7 demand

Poland — MRÓZ Zakrzewski Sp.J

Emerson SRH0047, 38 kW

• Compact chiller for localized food processing
• Quick installation and economical solution for food production
• Energy-efficient operation at partial loads

Sweden — Inclined Labs AB

🧪 Sector: R&D and high-precision lab instrumentation
Emerson FQ4086, 780 kW

• Critical cooling of lab complex
• Operates under variable outdoor temperature conditions
• Reliable system performance in tight-space environments

Ukraine — Bohodukhiv Dairy Plant (ТОВ “Богодухівський молзавод”)

Emerson SLS 1080, 1080 kW

• Cooling for dairy production lines
• Integrated with existing pasteurization systems
• Modernized to support seasonal loads and energy optimization

Kazakhstan — LLP “KOMPLEKT-SYSTEM-SERVICE”

🧩 Sector: Engineering and industrial system installation
Emerson SQS 054, 501 kW

• Customized configuration for complex piping and unstable power supply
• Enhanced protection and climate-specific adaptation
• On-site personnel training for monitoring and maintenance

Each project is an engineering solution, tailored to specific conditions, climate, and production demands.
If you’re looking for reliability within a smart budget — Emerson and Vertiv prove their performance in the field, year after year.

From a Garage to Global Trust

The story of Emerson is a story of engineering ambition, technological evolution, and deep industrial insight.
From a modest late-19th-century startup to a key player in the global HVAC industry — from Copeland compressors to Liebert precision solutions, from Ralph Liebert’s garage to centralized cooling systems delivering megawatts of chilled water.

By transferring the Network Power division to Vertiv, Emerson did not lose influence — on the contrary, it gave its technologies a second wind, placing them in the hands of a company fully focused on digital infrastructure and precision cooling.

At EVROPROM, we continue this journey.

We know the brands — we work with their inner logic, unique features, and engineering potential.
Emerson, Vertiv, Liebert, Hiross — dozens of models in stock, proven by case studies and adapted to agriculture, pharma, mechanical engineering, logistics, and laboratory environments.

👉 Visit our catalog to choose a reliable solution.
Or simply contact us — we’ll help you select a chiller that will work for you for years to come.

📩 info@evroprom.com
🌐 www.evroprom.com
📞 +48 799 355 595 | +48 511 705 715

Author:
Tatyana Kokhan, Marketing Specialist
Date: July 26, 2025