Company History
Grocery store owner C.V. Hill wanted a better way to refrigerate perishables for his customers. C.V. built a dairy ice box equipped with a new butter slide of his own invention. The slide worked so well that he sold the refrigerator for $75 and then received an order for a second one. This new found business became Hill Refrigeration, established in Trenton, NJ.
1929 - We worked with Clarence Birdseye to design a specialized showcase for his "frosted foods," and the first frozen food merchandiser was born.
1953 - Our customers asked for color on their merchandisers...we responded with "Color Blend," making us the first to offer colors other than white.
1977 - First "uneven" parallel compressor system.
1988 - Phoenix Refrigeration Systems, Inc. was founded by entrepreneur Grant Brown and grew to #1 in US Systems sales by 1994.
1994 - Phoenix Refrigeration Systems, Inc. and Hill Refrigeration, Inc. joined forces as a subsidiary of Dover Diversified. This merger signified the beginning of Hill PHOENIX as we know it today.
1994 - First domestic secondary coolant system for supermarkets.
1995 - Hill PHOENIX acquired Margaux, Inc. to further enhance the systems business.
1995 - We launched the ORIGIN2 line of high-performance refrigerated merchandisers that incorporated our polymer exteriors and our patented radial airflow technology.
1997 - We added Electrical Distribution Centers (EDCs) to complement our line of products and services.
1999 - First open architecture system for total system control (O.A.S.I.S.)
2000 - The turn of the century saw the roll-out of our Degree Master smart load management system. This new product gave us the ability to offer our customers unmatched case monitoring and management capabilities while reducing installation and maintenance costs.
2002 - Unveiled at FMI 2002, the Prestige™ is an innovative Secondary Coolant display case featuring our new Coolgenix™ technology. Prestige™ extends product shelf life by reducing thermal shock and allowing the product to maintain its original moisture content.
2003 - We introduced the industry's first 6 door reach-in freezer case that offers tremendous advantages over typical door cases. The 6 door was designed to trim installation costs by allowing fewer cases within the same store footprint.
2004 - We introduced the industry's first true 5-deck rear load meat case, the O5MR, and it's companion O5M front load meat case. Featured in these models are our revolutionary articulating shelves (patent-pending) that provide superb product integrity and striking display opportunities.