Peter Huber Obituary

Peter Huber was born on 16 February 1941 in Offenburg. After training as a machinist, he first worked in the family electrical business. In 1965, at the age of 24, Peter Huber took part in one of the first refrigeration courses at the "Karlsruhe Institute of Technology". The refrigeration course became a key experience for him, it was clear he would not pursue a career in electrical engineering, would align himself professionally in the field of refrigeration. In 1967 Peter Huber became a master in refrigeration technology and one year later he founded the company Peter Huber Kältemaschinenbau. Over time, he became an expert in the field of refrigeration and thermodynamics. Numerous innovations including the Rotostat in 1986, for which he was awarded the Innovation Prize of the State of Baden-Württemberg.

Peter Huber worked in his own way (self-taught, perfectionist, assertive, visionary) with refrigeration technology. His innovations have set standards worldwide, and the trade press has dubbed him "The Refrigeration Pope". The technology he developed today is used worldwide in research, in temperature-dependent material tests and in environmental simulations. Initially, the company was primarily an OEM supplier, for example for Linde. Peter Huber wanted to make his company independent and set the course with their own circulator series. One of the first new developments was the smallest refrigerated circulator in the world, the Ministat. Another significant milestone was the market launch of the Unistat Tango in 1989. Peter Huber revolutionised the field of temperature control technology with the Unistats. The Unistat Tango, the first hydraulically sealed process circulator had a minimal mass and achieved significantly higher cooling and heating rates the conventional circulators. This new generation of devices worked effectively, efficiently and was able to react faster, more reliably and more reproducibly for the application.

In 2016, the company was converted into an AG and Peter Huber took over the chairmanship of the Supervisory Board. By that time, Peter Huber had already withdrawn from day-to-day operations and the course for the future had long been set. Today, four of his five children run the family business as board members.

In April 2018, Peter Huber and his family, numerous friends and guests as well as the entire workforce celebrated the 50th anniversary of the company in the Oberrheinhalle in Offenburg.

Until recently, Peter Huber was actively involved in the future planning of the company – including the construction of the Tango factory. The production area at the Offenburg headquarters will be doubled this year and the administration will be increased. Around ten million euros will be invested. The construction work to continue the life’s work of Peter Huber has already begun.