Rinnai burns hole in US market with innovative heaters

Gas heater maker Rinnai NZ is making headway in the United States, despite the collapse of the house-building market there.

The Auckland company has filled its first container of products for shipment to the US since 2006 after a renewed focus on what appears to be a struggling market.

Export sales manager for Rinnai, St John Vuetilovoni, said the building sector was stagnant to dropping but his company had found a niche in what was still a huge market.

Although gas fire appliance sales lastyear were down 33 per cent across theUS compared with the year before,there were still just over 1 million units sold.

Rinnai's new Impression outdoor fire and Arriva power-vented indoor fire were being promoted as energy efficient and technologically innovative in the US.

The heaters being shipped range in price from US$1500 to $3250 ($2323 to $5034).