AoFrio marks 40 years with 3.7 million coolers linked

AoFrio has marked its 40th year in business and now connects more than 3.7 million commercial coolers worldwide.

The Auckland-headquartered company says global brands including Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Heineken use its technology to manage cooler fleets. Over four decades, it has shifted from manufacturing motors to supplying refrigeration monitoring systems, software and data tools.

The business was founded in 1986 by engineer Peter Clark as Clark Automotive Development on Auckland's North Shore. Early growth centred on a patented motor design that used less energy than the shaded-pole technology long standard in the sector.

By 2010, under the name Wellington Drive Technologies, it had established itself in energy-efficient motor manufacturing and built an international customer base. Its ECR refrigeration motors were widely adopted in food and beverage retail, helping it expand in Latin America.

Shift to IoT

A major change came in 2016, when the company moved beyond motors and launched SCS Connect, a connected fleet management system for cold-drink equipment. Internet-connected refrigeration is now its largest business segment, and it says it holds more than 70% of the connected cooler market in Latin America.

The company changed its name to AoFrio in 2022. It says the name combines Ao, the Māori word for world, and Frio, the Spanish word for cold, reflecting a stronger focus on refrigeration and a move into software and data.

Since the rebrand, the business has introduced its AoFrio iQ platform as well as cellular and artificial intelligence-based products. It is also moving into adjacent markets, including food retail applications, building on its position in Latin America.

Chief Executive Officer Greg Balla linked the anniversary to the company's longer-term strategy and its efforts to adapt to customer demand.

"Forty years in commercial refrigeration has given us deep domain expertise, and that's what lets us move into our next chapter with confidence. We've got there through a culture that values constant change and improvement, and a clear strategy built around what our customers need from us next. My ambition is to continue building AoFrio into a great Kiwi tech company," Balla said.

Long tenure

The company also highlighted the experience of long-serving staff as part of that evolution. Peter Barnes joined in 2003 as an Electronics Engineer and has since held roles including Chief Engineer and Global Quality Manager before becoming Product Director for Motors.

His account reflects how the business changed from a specialist manufacturer into a broader technology supplier serving international customers.

"When I joined, I was offered a three-month contract. I didn't expect it to turn into 23 years. What's kept me here is the variety and change, and I've had the chance to work across different roles and be part of a global business. In the early days the motors we built brought something completely new to an industry that hadn't seen much disruption, and we're still focused on bringing in new technology and innovation to solve industry problems, especially in the newer parts of our business," Barnes said.

AoFrio remains listed on the New Zealand stock exchange and continues to operate at the intersection of refrigeration hardware and connected monitoring systems. Its market position now rests less on motor sales alone and more on software and device connectivity across large fleets of commercial coolers.

More than 3.7 million connected units now use its technology, with Latin America remaining a central part of its international business.