GENERAL AIRSTAGE CENTAURI Ceiling Cassette Heat Pump | 12000 BTU

GENERAL AIRSTAGE CENTAURI 12,000 BTU Ceiling Cassette, Compact Format, for an SME's Closed Office: It Takes Its Place in the Ceiling Grid

For a business, the useful information fits on one line: the GENERAL AIRSTAGE CENTAURI 12,000 BTU and the Fujitsu AIRSTAGE CENTAURI 12,000 BTU carry the same model numbers, namely the ACUH12KUAS cassette and the AOUH12KUAS1 outdoor unit, with the same AHRI certificate 215434546. The manufacturer has stayed the same and has been called GENERAL Inc. since January 1, 2026. ENERGY STAR, cold climate, a warranty of 12 years on the compressor, 12 years on parts and 6 years on labour: none of that changes with the name.

This one-ton Heat Pump targets a situation found in many SMEs: the closed office. The manager's office, the meeting room, the accounting office or the room where client calls are made. With the door shut, these rooms often escape the building's central system. They overheat in the afternoon when the sun hits the window, with computers and screens adding their heat, and they stay cold in the morning in winter.

Most of these offices have a drop ceiling with standard tiles. That is where the compact CENTAURI makes full sense: it slots into the existing grid, in place of a tile, with no demolition and no change to the building's structure. Only the grille remains visible, level with the neighbouring tiles.

GENERAL or Fujitsu AIRSTAGE: the same machine

Fujitsu General Limited changed its corporate name on January 1, 2026 to become GENERAL Inc., following its acquisition by Paloma Rheem Holdings in August 2025. The head office and the R&D centre remain in Kawasaki, Japan, the factories do not change, and the AIRSTAGE range keeps its model numbers as well as its warranty program. The Fujitsu brand is being phased out gradually; until the transition is complete, both names coexist on the same product.

For a purchasing department, that detail matters. A purchase order written under the Fujitsu name and an invoice showing GENERAL refer to the same unit, since the model numbers are identical. We publish both pages so that your accountant, your building manager and you are all talking about the same machine. The table below confirms it, specification by specification.

The page for the Fujitsu version remains available here: Fujitsu AIRSTAGE CENTAURI 12,000 BTU ceiling cassette heat pump.

Set in the grid, carried by the structure. The indoor unit measures 22.44 × 22.44 × 9.65 in. This compact cabinet is designed to fit into a 2 ft × 2 ft suspended-ceiling grid: you remove a tile, and the cassette takes its place. The unit hangs from above on its own threaded rods, so the grid does not carry its weight. All it needs is enough clearance above the tiles for its 9.65 in of height, plus room for the line and the drain, which we check while preparing the quote. The finishing grille and the control method are confirmed there at the same time.

An office that stays focused. The indoor unit runs between 29 and 37 dB(A). At low speed, it disappears behind the keyboard and the building's ventilation; at high speed, it stays discreet enough for a video call. Air leaves over several sides of the grille and returns at the centre, at 359 CFM: it spreads through the room without aiming at the desk chair or the meeting table.

Heating, certified values. NEEP (ashp.neep.org) certifies, by the system's AHRI number, what the cassette delivers in the cold. Here is how to read these figures:

• −8 °C, an ordinary February morning: 10,700 BTU, with a COP of 2.99;
• −15 °C, the dry cold that makes the parking-lot snow crunch: 15,500 BTU, with a COP of 2.02;
• −21 °C, the certified threshold: 14,000 BTU, with a COP of 1.86, and heating guaranteed down to that temperature.

COP compares what comes out with what goes in: at −8 °C, 2.99 units of heat for each unit of electricity consumed. The HSPF2 of 11.5 takes stock of the whole heating season, not just the best day; it is the most telling rating for the winter bill. In summer, the SEER2 of 23.7 and the EER2 of 14.1 measure cooling efficiency, and the dehumidification of 2.5 pints/h keeps the air dry in a closed room where several people meet. Wi-Fi control, available as an option, lets you schedule the system around office hours.

How the installation unfolds. Our HVAC technicians coordinate the work with you and, if needed, with the building manager:

• removal of one tile, securing the cassette to the structure above and levelling it in the grid;
• routing of the 1/4 and 3/8 in refrigerant line, the cable and the drain above the ceiling, to the outside wall or up to the roof, depending on the building;
• drainage by slope or through a condensate pump, depending on the route, specified in the quote;
• connection to a dedicated circuit, with a minimum circuit ampacity (MCA) of 12 A and a maximum overcurrent protection (MOP) of 15 A;
• line vacuum, commissioning and heating and cooling tests by our refrigeration technician.

The outdoor unit, at 31.46 × 11.42 × 24.88 in, is rated at 48.0 dB(A). We find it a spot on the ground, on the roof or against a wall, depending on what the building allows. The system runs on R-32.

Maintenance without closing the office. The filters slide out through the grille; an employee can handle it in a few minutes, without tools. For annual maintenance by a refrigeration technician, the neighbouring tiles give access above the ceiling. No wall to open, no hatch to plan.

The LogisVert grant. The system appears on Hydro-Québec's LogisVert list of October 27, 2026, with a grant of $1,284. For commercial premises, eligibility depends on your situation: we validate it with you at the quote stage before counting on that amount.

The offices it is designed for:

• the executive office or meeting room that does not follow the temperature of the rest of the floor;
• the office exposed to afternoon sun, loaded with screens and computers;
• any closed room under a standard-tile drop ceiling, where you want neither demolition nor a unit on the wall;
• the room whose load matches 12,000 BTU, which we calculate in the quote.

Saint-Laurent Offices: Free Quote for Your Ceiling Cassette

Saint-Laurent is home to many SMEs, set up in office buildings and industrial buildings where a tiled drop ceiling is common. We install this cassette there, as everywhere in Montreal, Laval, Longueuil, on the North Shore and on the South Shore. Reach us at 514 316-2973: the quote is free and takes into account your ceiling, the possible location of the outdoor unit and your building's rules.

Whether it is called GENERAL or Fujitsu, your business receives the same ACUH12KUAS cassette, the same AOUH12KUAS1 unit and the same warranty, with an installation signed AirGreen, an AIRSTAGE Elite Plus installer.