ASHRAE Q2 2021 Newsletter Presidents Address

Hello Everybody,

As you are probably aware ASHRAE Ireland is going from strength to strength, we have never been as relevant and important as we are in these current times.

Never before have our values and mission of reducing damage to the planet whilst improving the health and comfort of buildings been more important.

It is now time to discuss more deeply what ‘quality’ and ‘value’ mean in relation to heating, refrigeration, air conditioning and ventilation systems.

As engineers and designers we must strive to protect the planet, this is our primary objective.

However, we must first acknowledge that it is impossible to build anything that does not damage the environment in some way.  That said, we must do our best to keep the damage to a minimum.  We must be a model and an example for the rest of the world. Most large companies and governments support us in this endeavour.  It is our biggest challenge and our job, it is what the public expect of us as engineers and designers.

As we all know, it takes enormous creativity and skill to design, install, operate, decommission and recycle HVAC+R systems that are the least damaging systems in the world whilst simultaneously being fast and easy to install, competitively priced and outperform existing systems in every way.

As our communities strive for better ethics, equality, diversity and inclusiveness, it is really important that every person involved in the supply chain of HVAC+R products and systems is treated fairly.  Safe and healthy working conditions with reasonable working hours, reasonable holidays, social security systems, healthcare systems and pensions are very important.  Every person in the chain, from the original land owner where the minerals are mined, to the individual working in the production factory, to the person recycling the system should be treated fairly.  It is with this in mind that we can start to evaluate and compare systems and products.

Traditionally, terms like Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), Life Cycle Costs (LCC) and Return on Investment (ROI) have been used to compare systems.  Now we are starting to move away from that single project financial view and consider the global financial and environmental impact.

A new understanding of what ‘quality’ means is slowly emerging, it includes everyone in the chain, our planet, all the species and our descendants  to whom we have a fiduciary responsibility.

In particular we can advise our governments to consider all of these responsibilities.  It would be nice if public contracts included a new definition of ‘quality’ and ‘value for money’ and not just the traditional ‘Most Economically Advantageous Tender’ (MEAT).

In conclusion, it has been my great pleasure to serve as President of ASHRE Ireland 2020-2021.

The number of people engaging with ASHRAE Ireland continues to grow rapidly.  During the past year, more people have availed of technical support and guidance provided by ASHRAE Ireland than ever before.

Everyone is welcome to use the wide body of research from ASHRAE and to attend all of our seminars and presentations. This applies equally to members and non-members alike.  It is in this way that we further our mission “To serve humanity by advancing the arts and sciences of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, refrigeration and their allied fields”

I would like to thank our a fantastic Board of Governors, a really great team of people who give their time and expertise selflessly.

I would like to welcome new members and in particular, new members to our Board and thank them for joining.  

And finally, I would like to congratulate Mr Daniel Coakley as the incoming President of ASHRAE Ireland 2021-2022.  He has really worked very hard over recent years for ASHRAE Ireland as Secretary.  I am looking to his Presidency.

Yours sincerely,

Michael