This summer, the continent has been subjected to a relentless sun. Waves of heat have driven the mercury higher than any seemingly plausible city-scapades, fires are raging across forests and fields, and everyday homeowners are now seeking solutions to beat the heat that extend beyond open windows and fans. In that transition, Chinese air-conditioner manufacturers have stumbled upon a tale.

Brands including Midea Gree Haier, Hisense and TCL, which have been well established in Asia and elsewhere, but are still comparatively novel to many Europeans, have been posting themselves displays of growth. The official customs statistics of China record a 4 billion US dollar worth of air-conditioners exported to the European Union market during the first half of 2014, with a year on year growth rate of 43%, reaching the record level. In certain periods, exports to France, Netherlands and Belgium increased more than twice while some registered high similar volume increase rates.

Spain and Germany also maintained an encouraging double-digit number increase. Given the currents products have been without a doubt the most popular have been in the design to European realities. Many of the old buildings and the old quarters of many countries are considered “listed” buildings meaning that the external appearance cannot be altered and because of this traditional split-system set ups are not possible; Mideas’ PortoSplit range of portable units which eliminates the need for any drilling and can be assembled very quickly have been a great success.

The company reports that sales of these models in countries like France Spain Germany and The United Kingdom increased by over 70% in the first half of the year. Fabrics factories in China have been running longer shifts to try and keep up with demand and several models have temporarily run out in certain parts of Western Europe. The same is true for other brands.

Gree in the three countries also saw increases of more than 40 percent in volumes. Haier, with close to 30 percent overall growth in the European market, is dominant across the range of Western and Eastern countries. Hisense and TCL posted single digit or better gains in most of these main countries, in particular in portable and mobile appliances. For long time air conditioning was not common in most part of Europe. Cold summers, high energy bills and less friendly building designs kept penetration low (often far below 20%) in western European homes. Bit by bit this cultural-defict is getting weaker as highest temperatures become more common and we have far worse heat levels.

Consumers who have endured fans and walks to best solutions are now more than ready to seek comfortable indoor sanctuary, and Chinese producers has responded quickly. Varying the range is active in increasing visibility. One way this is being done is through sponsorships and strategic retail shop steering, some of which are football focused, and the brands are seeking to reposition adding new names to the marketplace which would not necessarily have been recognized beyond home specialist retailers.

The companies are still driven towards designing and developing product for local requirements, for example quieter operation, more competitive whole house energy efficiency labels, and more apt design to match smaller living spaces or rental accommodations where install is limited. But, the surge is not all positive. Supply chains have been overwhelmed, shipping times are still a issue and some European decision makers are still arguing about the general implications of based on imported devices.