Experimental tests have shown that piglets are not attracted to light. On the contrary, they prefer to rest in the dark! For this reason it is recommended to switch off the lamps in the creep area at night or, even better, to use heat sources with no light emissions(*).

(*) Larsen M. L. V. and Pedersen L. J.: “Does light attract piglets to the creep area?”. Animal, Volume 9, Issue 6, June 2015, pp. 1032-1037; Parfet K. A., & Gonyou H. W. (1991): “Attraction of newborn piglets to auditory, visual, olfactory and tactile stimuli”. Journal of animal science, 69(1), 125–133.

During gestation, fetuses live at a uterine temperature of 38 to 40 °C. The critical temperature required for newborn piglets to maintain an adequate body temperature is 34 °C(*). It has also been verified that one-day-old piglets appreciate temperatures well above their thermoneutral temperature: giving them the choice between 26 °C, 34 °C o 42 °C, piglets showed a clear preference for the highest temperature, i.e. 8 °C higher than their thermoneutral zone(**).

(*) Berthon D., Herpin P., Le Dividich  J., 1994: “Shivering thermogenesis in the neonatal pig”. J. Therm. Biol. 19, 413-418., 1993;  Lossec  G., Herpin  P., Le Dividich  J., 1998: “Thermoregulatory responses of the newborn pig during experimentally induced hypothermia and rewarming”. Experiem. Physiol. 83, 667-678.

(**) Hrupka B.J., Leibbrandt V.D., Crenshaw T.D., Benevenga  N.J., 2000: “The effect of thermal environment and age on neonatal behaviour”. J. Anim. Sci. 78, 583-591.

At birth, piglets have a water content of 80% or more(*). It is also important to note that water molecules and protein in living bodies have an oscillation equal to the FIR frequency. When FIRs penetrates the deeper layers of the skin, cell vibration increases, bringing it to an optimal level and creating internal heat that is evenly distributed through the circulation and microcirculation of body fluids(**). OMEOTERM® technology, through REAL FIRs, is able to heat the living bodies in depth of up to 3 cm: this action is able to favour the mobilisation of glycogen stored in the muscles, thus promoting thermogenesis. Compared to traditional heating methods, the heat produced is much more uniform, comfortable and enveloping.

(*) Wood  A. J. and Groves T. D. D. : “Body composition studies on the suckling pig: 1. Moisture, chemical fat, total protein, and total ash in relation to age and body weight”. Canadian Journal of Animal Science – 1 April 1965; Huo Y.J., Xu R.J. and Wang T.: “Nutrition And Metabolism Of Neonatal Pigs”. Nottingham University Press. Year: 2007.

(**) Shi-Yau Yu,  Jen-Hwey Chiu, Shiaw-Der Yang, Yu-Chen Hsu, Wing-Yiu Lui, Chew-Wun Wu: “Biological effect of far-infrared therapy on increasing skin microcirculation in rats”. Photodermatol Photoimmunol Photomed 2006; 22: 78 – 86.

The increased availability of water declustered by FIRs promotes homeostatic balance, cellular hydration processes and exchange of substances between blood and tissues. Several studies claim that FIRs strengthen the immune system and improve the blood circulation process of the skin, muscles and connective tissues by providing more oxygen and nutrients. FIR radiation elements are used to warm newborn babies in incubators in paediatric wards and are also widely used in other medical and therapeutic areas(*).

(*) Vatansever Fatma & Hamblin Michael (2012): “Far infrared radiation (FIR): Its biological effects and medical applications”. Photon Lasers Med. 1. 255-266. 10.1515/plm-2012-0034; Lai, Yen-Ting & Chan, Hsiang Lin & Lin, Shu-Huan & Lin, Chih-Ching & Li, Szu-Yuan & Liu, Chih-Kuang & Teng, Hao-Wei & Liu, Wen-Sheng (2017): “Far-Infrared Ray Patches Relieve Pain and Improve Skin Sensitivity in Myofascial Pain Syndrome: A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Study”. Complementary Therapies in Medicine. 35. 10.1016/j.ctim.2017.10.007; Toyokawa H., Matsui Y., Uhara J., Tsuchiya H., Teshima S., Nakanishi H., Kwon AH., Azuma Y., Nagaoka T., Ogawa T., Kamiyama Y.: “Promotive effects of far-infrared ray on full-thickness skin wound healing in rats”. Exp Biol Med (Maywood). 2003 Jun; 228(6):724-9.

In radiant heating, heat transmission is almost instantaneous, as FIRs diffuse at the speed of light. At a rom temperature of about 20 °C, OMEOTERM® heating panels take about 90 seconds to reach their operating temperature, with a remarkable thermal reactivity. In fact, FIRs have the prerogative of not heating the air. This allows a considerable saving of energy and time, because there is no loss of energy efficiency dissipated in the double passage between heating element and air and between heated air and objects and/or living organisms, as it happens in traditional heating. The thermal reactivity of the OMEOTERM® REAL FIRs allows the application of the BIOTEMP SYSTEM technology.

OMEOTERM® technology uses only REAL FIR or IR–C (type C Infrared Rays), which represent only a portion of the solar electromagnetic spectrum. They are the good part of the sun’s infrared radiation and are not harmful at all, even after prolonged exposure. On the contrary, prolonged exposure to IR-A (Short Wave Infrared Rays) or IR-B (Medium Wave Infrared Rays) can cause harmful effects on the eyes and skin.

FIRs represent that portion of the solar electromagnetic spectrum that is farthest from visible light: they do not therefore emit light, but we can experience them sensorially in the form of heat. FIRs emit only thermal radiation, have a wavelength of 4 μm-1000 μm and can transfer energy in the form of heat. In contrast, conventional  so-called “infrared” lamps are normal filaments lamps, which emit heat via the visible light spectrum emitted by an incandescent filament and by heating the filament itself. These two thermal components pass through a red coloured glass bulb with a very small proportion of infrared rays, most of which are IR-A (Short Wave Infrared Rays) inside the visible light spectrum, which are known to have very low thermal efficiency and are harmful to retinal tissue.

OMEOTERM® panels comply with the legal guarantee of 2 years, but their lifespan is much longer: if they are installed properly and used correctly, they can certainly achieve several years of perfect operation, well beyond the end of the guarantee period! The OMEOTERM® panel is certainly has no fear of comparison either with the maximum duration of the lamps, declared by the main manufacturers to be max 5000 h, or with traditional lamp holders (subject to frequent deterioration caused by the high temperatures reached), nor with that of electric mats, which ascertained field situations confirm having frequent problems of power cuts due to breakage of the heating element. The OMEOTERM® panel has been designed and manufactured with construction and quality criteria for continuous use without malfunctions, deterioration and/or programmed obsolescence even in the very long term.

The OMEOTERM® panel is made up of two sides: the heat emission side can uniformly reach 90 °C, well below the 180 °C found on the bulb of the filament lamps. The panel achieves an optimal surface temperature on the front side (the radiant wall) without energy loss on the back side. The non-heating side is insulated with a high performance reflective multilayer insulation made of aluminium and Trocellen, in order to properly redirect the FIRs to the emitting side. This is very important because it reduces the risk of overheating the sow and saves energy.

The temperature of filament lamps, measured with an IR camera, reaches approximately 180 °C (measured on the surface of the bulb), but the output on the ground, on a mat placed on the grid at a distance of about 50-60 cm from the heat source and with a room temperature of about 20 °C, is only 20-22 °C. The OMEOTERM® panel only reaches 90 °C, but, thanks to its efficient thermal technology by REAL FIR radiation, the yield on the ground, at the same room temperature, easily reaches and exceeds 30 °C, with a significantly higher heat footprint area.

Heat spreads by conduction when it is transmitted from one solid body to another, placed at different temperatures and in contact with each other (e.g. heating mats).

Heat spreads by convection when it is propagated in fluids such as water, but also gases such as air (e.g. traditional filament lamps with coloured bulbs, Aniheater-type radiant lamps and thermal radiators).

Heat is propagated by radiation when the transmission of heat occurs through the radiation emitted by the source towards the irradiated body, without the presence of an interposed transmissive medium (air or water): it can also be achieved through the void.

OMEOTERM® REAL FIRs emit heat by radiation, i.e. they do not heat the air, producing heat only when they radiate an object, such as a wall, or a living body.

The affordability of the OMEOTERM® panel is given by:

1. very high energy efficiency guaranteed by the E–Heating technology, the innovative EEE technology that directly converts electrical energy into thermal energy, which means there is no loss of dissipated energy in the double passage between the heating element and the air, and between the air and objects and/or living organisms, as happens in traditional lamp heating;
2. high directionality (it heats directly only the bodies and surfaces it radiates);
3. the OMEOTERM® system does not need additional piping, boilers or electrical systems, but is installed with easy, practical and economical assembly solutions.

The simultaneous use of the OMEOTERM® panels and the BIOTEMP SYSTEM also provides a further economic benefit, as operation is controlled and managed by an electronic control unit that can be programmed as desired, according to the needs and temperatures required by the piglets in relation to their state of growth. In practice, the BIOTEMP SYSTEM makes it possible to use the panels by optimising their Duty Cycle, allowing energy savings of 30 to 50%.

ZERO MAINTENANCE! OMEOTERM® panels do not require any routine maintenance and there is no loss of efficiency over time, as is the case with filaments lamps. The mere presence of dirt on the surface of the glass bulbs can reduce the heating capacity of  lamps by up to 5 °C.

Absolutely yes, the smooth surfaces without recesses allow and encourage easy cleaning.

Yes, the OMEOTERM® system has easy access features, because the panels can be easily supported thanks to the specific Panel Kit (optional), made up of hinged frames that allow them to be tilted vertically at 90°, making access and operation inside the farrowing pen much easier.

OMEOTERM® panels are splash-water resistant, i.e. resistant to indirect medium volume water splashes. Their structure is composed of a double insulated radiant membrane, embedded in a multi-cell polycarbonate compound panel. The edges are made of polycarbonate profiles adhered to the panel, whose support angles are screwed. The junction box from which the power cable departs is solidly fixed to the polycarbonate panel and the contact edge between the box and the panel is covered by a gasket, which, like the cable gland, is also fitted with a seal. All this allows us to assert that the water resistance of the OMEOTERM® panels is not inferior to that of the reflectors with Edison lamp holder that are commonly used.