Daikin Industries,  a small presence in the U.S. air-conditioning market, has purchased Goodman Global for $3.7 billion, putting the Japanese firm just ahead of Carrier in the global HVAC business, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.

Daikin is buying Goodman from a private equity firm named Hellman & Friedman, which paid $2.7 billion, plus the assumption of debt, to take the company private in 2007, the newspaper reported.

Demand for heating and cooling from the United States, already the largest market for HVAC sales, continues to grow. Houston-based Goodman, which operates factories in Texas and in Tennessee, will bring Daikin technology, new products and distribution channels that the Japanese powerhouse now lacks. HVAC revenues at Daikin reached $13.2 billion in its last fiscal year.

The Goodman Global deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.