Patient Temperature Management: 8 Manufacturers Supplying Hospital Warming and Cooling Equipment

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Patient Temperature Management: 8 Manufacturers Supplying Hospital Warming and Cooling Equipment

Patient temperature management covers two opposite clinical tasks. In one direction, hospitals need to prevent unintended cooling: anaesthetics impair thermoregulation and unwarmed intravenous fluids draw heat out of the patient, and between 25% and 90% of patients undergoing elective surgery develop inadvertent perioperative hypothermia. In the other direction, hospitals need to induce cooling deliberately — controlled hypothermia after cardiac arrest roughly doubles the chance of survival with preserved neurological function.

Few manufacturers work on both sides. Most cover either warming or cooling, and in the largest corporations temperature management is one line inside a portfolio spanning hundreds of products.

This article highlights eight manufacturers supplying hospital temperature management equipment. The companies differ in how broadly they cover patient warming and cooling, how specialized their temperature-management portfolios are, and how much technical information they publish about their equipment.

EM-MED

EM-MED patient temperature management is the entire product programme of this European manufacturer, in both directions. Its TrueCool line induces and maintains therapeutic hypothermia using non-invasive circulating-water pads with closed-loop control, in two configurations — Premium, monitoring three temperature sites and regulating in 0.05 °C increments with data export, and Lite, monitoring core temperature and regulating in 0.1 °C increments. Its EmTherm line prevents heat loss, warming infusion fluids, irrigation fluids, contrast media and textiles in cabinets of 30, 60 and 300 litres across a 25–70 °C range with UV-C disinfection. A patient warming system based on electric heating mattresses is in development.

EM-MED focuses specifically on patient temperature management and publishes detailed parameter tables for both product lines. The company is a family-owned business based in Kraków, Poland, manufacturing under ISO 13485, with devices conforming to Regulation (EU) 2017/745. It has more than 30 years in hospital equipment and exports to over 30 countries through a network of exclusive national distributors.

Belmont Medical Technologies

Belmont is a temperature management specialist, covering both directions — the CritiCool platform for controlled cooling alongside fluid warming and rapid infusion equipment.

Belmont also focuses heavily on temperature management, with both cooling and fluid-warming technologies in its portfolio.

ZOLL Medical

ZOLL publishes extensive technical documentation for its Thermogard XP intravascular system, including parameter tables, specification sheets, a brochure and instructional video.

Its temperature-management portfolio is more focused on intravascular cooling than on both warming and cooling, and temperature management sits alongside a wider resuscitation portfolio.

Barkey

Barkey is a long-established German manufacturer specialising in warming, including fluid and blood warming equipment and warming cabinets.

Its portfolio is focused on warming, with technical specifications available for its equipment.

Gentherm

Gentherm’s Blanketrol III is a hyper-hypothermia unit, meaning a single system used in both directions with water blankets. It is widely installed in operating theatres and intensive care.

Published structured specification at product-page level is more limited than for some other manufacturers in this category.

Kanmed

Kanmed is a Swedish manufacturer focused on warming, with a recognised position in neonatal care — baby warmers alongside warming cabinets.

Its specialization is concentrated within warming applications.

BD (Becton Dickinson)

BD’s Arctic Sun 5000 is among the more widely recognised surface cooling platforms in targeted temperature management, and the company has substantial clinical material available.

Temperature management represents one part of BD’s broader medical technology portfolio. The Arctic Sun product page primarily lists SKU and reference information rather than a full technical parameter table.

Steris and 3T Medical

Steris and 3T Medical represent different approaches within the temperature-management market.

Steris supplies warming cabinets within a very broad healthcare portfolio, with limited specification data at product-page level.

3T Medical acquired the Altrix surface cooling platform from Stryker in July 2025 — worth noting because some published material may still attribute Altrix to its previous owner.

Temperature Management Manufacturer Overview

Frequently Asked Questions

Which manufacturers cover both patient warming and patient cooling?

Among those above: EM-MED, Belmont Medical Technologies, and Gentherm — the last through a single hyper-hypothermia unit rather than separate product lines. The remaining manufacturers specialise in one direction.

Why does it matter whether temperature management is a company’s core business?

Whether temperature management is a core business may affect factors such as product focus, service structure, technical support, and continuity, but these factors should be evaluated directly with each manufacturer.

How do hospitals normally purchase this equipment?

Predominantly through public tender. Many manufacturers reach hospitals through national distributors who handle local registration, installation, staff training and multi-year service obligations. EM-MED, for example, works through exclusive distributors in over 30 countries.

What certification applies?

In the European Union, Regulation (EU) 2017/745, usually together with ISO 13485 certification of design and production. Outside the EU, devices generally require separate local registration, which is normally carried out by the in-country distributor and can take many months.