• Business Bits

    Feb. 1, 2009
    AHRI Joins Green Building Consortium to Guide Department of Energy The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) and nine HVAC and

    AHRI Joins Green Building Consortium to Guide Department of Energy

    The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) and nine HVAC and building-related organizations have formed a consortium to advice the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on high-performance building issues. The High Performance Commercial Green Building Partnership (HPCGBP) will provide guidance and technical expertise on key sustainability issues to DOE's Building Technologies Program.

    Stephen Yurek, AHRI president, AHRI members will now have an opportunity to bring their HVACR experience to bear on the DOE's energy policies.

    “Our members, who manufacture residential and commercial heating and cooling and commercial refrigeration systems, can provide critical technical guidance to the DOE on developing high-performance buildings that help achieve the nation's energy and environmental goals,” Yurek says.

    In a statement to Contracting Business.com, Yurek adds that industry-government partnerships are the most effective ways to bring about realistic and lasting change, new technologies, and energy-saving solutions.

    “We hope the recognition that our industry's expertise is a critical component to developing sound energy-saving solutions will continue to grow, and that these types of effective relationships will eventually become the recognized standard for developing good energy policy,” Yurek says.

    Additional members of the partnership's steering committee include the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

    Carrier Green HVAC System Installed in Community Center

    Members in the partnership reflect the disciplines necessary to design and build high-performance commercial buildings. These disciplines include: indoor air quality (IAQ) and environmental factors; intelligent buildings and integrated building information systems; utility energy efficiency programs; and HVACR equipment manufacturing. hpcgbp.org

    A Carrier 100-ton air-cooled Puron® chiller system is providing the comfort for the $23 million Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Atlanta, GA. The 53,000 sq.ft. center was dedicated in late October. The center has earned a Leaders in Energy Efficient Design (LEED®) silver certification.

    Johnson Controls ProficienTECH Training Available to York® Liberties Plus Dealers

    Carrier technicians installed seven rooftop-mounted units, five fan coils, and three indoor handlers. LEED certification items include indoor environmental quality; efficient water use; sustainable construction sites; materials and resources; energy-efficiency and atmosphere; and innovation and design process. carrier.com

    Johnson Controls now provides York® Liberties Plus dealers with online access to the entire library of ProficienTECH training materials.

    ProficienTECH online training is a self-paced learning system accessible to registered York Liberties dealers 24/7, enabling them to learn at their own pace and on their own schedule. Each session in the interactive tool is narrated with full audio and user-controlled features. Dealers are able to check their skills as they advance through a course and are required to take an online exam at the conclusion of each program.

    “Now, dealers can access all of the training video previously released as DVDs and the accompanying software for Windows by visiting the Media Center on the Johnson Controls Unitary Products Technical Training site,” explains Scott Nelmark, training services manager for Johnson Controls. “For dealers who use mobile devices, iDevice Central provides the ProficienTECH library in a mobile-friendly format designed for the iPod Classic, Touch, and Nano. Technicians can carry an entire library of video training in their pockets,” Nelmark says.

    Johnson Controls has offered media-based training programs for York air conditioners, 40-in. modulating gas furnaces, heat pumps, 33-in. single-stage gas furnaces and 33-in. modulating gas furnaces. Each training set includes materials to support independent HVAC contractors, distributors,and technicians.

    The Liberties Program provides other cost-effective services designed to help participating dealers manage their businesses. Features include special leasing options, financial programs, professionally designed sales and marketing tools, training programs, and employee benefits

    Taco, Inc. Acquires Innovex Technologies

    In other news, nine York territory managers (TMs) graduated from Johnson Controls' Special Ops Boot Camp held near the company's Unitary Products headquarters in Norman, OK in late 2008. The training provides TMs with the information they need to help dealers plan for and achieve business success. To qualify for the training, TMs must graduate from York's Basic Training Boot Camp with a score of at least 85% and spend the following six months in the field. yorkupg.com; johnsoncontrols.com.

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    Taco, Inc. Acquires Innovex Technologies

    Taco, Inc. has acquired the assets of Innovex Technologies, a Lewiston, ME-based manufacturer of Intelligent Building Systems products (IBS).

    Taco President and CEO, John Hazen White, Jr., says the acquisition is part of Taco's strategy to expand its electronics products offerings, and its focus on system selling. taco.com

    Icor Launches Virtual Training Center for Busy Technicians

    Icor International, Inc., Indianapolis, IN, has launched a Virtual Training Center (VTC) — icorinternational.com/training — to provide refrigerant users with web-based access to Icor training programs.

    Gordon McKinney, vice president, says the VTC was designed to accomodate the busy schedules of HVACR technicians.

    The initial program offered on the- new VTC is, “The Future of R-22 System Service”. The program details the R-22 phaseout challenge and the various compliance strategies that are available for business owners and technicians.

    The program covers critical conversion considerations, such as recording pre- and post- conversion performance data; component compatibility; leak testing; proper vacuum; and more. The program also describes the complete system conversion guidelines for Icor's NU-22B and One Shot refrigerants. icorinternational.com/training

    Arzel Zoning Technology Sets ‘09 Comfort College Schedule

    Arzel® Zoning Technology has announced its Comfort College schedule for the first half of 2009. The seminar is held monthly at Arzel's Cleveland, OH location and several times throughout the year at its location in Pasadena, CA.

    The Cleveland Comfort College dates are: March 12-13; April 9-10; May 7-8; and June 4-5.

    The Pasadena training dates are: February 19-20; April 16-17; and November 19-20. Additional dates will be announced.

    The Arzel Comfort College seminar has graduated more than 700 contractors, distributors and other HVAC professionals. The course provides information on recognizing zoning opportunities, product familiarization, system design, and proper installation techniques. Comfort College is a NATE recognized course with hours of credit available for recertification in air installation and distribution.

    For more information on Comfort College or to reserve a place in an upcoming class, call 800/611-8312 or visit arzelzoning.com.

    Refrigeration Briefs

    The Raley's supermarket chain has joined the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's GreenChill Advanced Refrigeration Partnership.

    Raley's initiatives include printing exclusively on recycled paper, purchasing paper from pulp mills that are certified by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, installing advanced exhaust filtration systems in their diesel truck fleet to reduce air pollutant emissions, and recycling nearly 100,000 tons of waste per year since 1995. In addition, the company has installed solar photovoltaic panels on one of its supermarkets that will generate enough electricity to meet 20% of the facility's demand, and is currently retrofitting each of its stores with energy-efficient “cool roofs” that reduce the stores' air conditioning loads.

    Under the agreement with the EPA, all new and remodeled Raley's stores will be free of ozone-depleting substances, in advance of the Clean Air Act phase-out requirements. Store managers will establish an emissions inventory and meet annual emissions reduction targets. A refrigeration management plan will be established to document technologies, strategies, and practices used to achieve emissions reductions goals. epa.gov/greenchill