EDITORIAL LETTER

But before we say that the idea is good or that you had already thought about it - which it very surely is - the truth is that we must stop to think about what the function of an entity of this type should be. The question arises because in many cases these organizations can end up becoming entities without a clearly defined north and in which adaptation to the new times is an almost impossible task.

I believe that Latin America, from Mexico to Argentina, has very solid companies in the distribution sector, representation, but also in installation and consulting. This is quite positive because it gives us to understand that we already have the most important asset: the raw material, which is people, with experience and good reputation.

In the region we have very important initiatives in the local and regional order. FAIAR, in the Ibero-American context, is an example of something that can be consolidated, all hand in hand with the interest that an entity like ASHRAE has been showing in Latin America.

One of the most important functions that such an entity can perform is to become the political voice of this sector. It is nice to see the strength with which the AHRI (Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute) comes out in defense when any of its members may be harmed by any regulation. Such an institution has even gone all the way to the United States Congress itself to lobby to stop some initiative harmful to the industry. The above, however, does not mean leaving aside the training, which has been the flag of the unions in Latin America.

With this we end for the moment dear readers. It was nothing more than an invitation to explore the possibility of having a pan-regional body that would help from another perspective with the improvement in the practices of the CVAC/R sector. I think we are on time.

A cold greeting.

The discussion starts from the environment in which we are moving in the last few days. On the one hand we are close to the entry into force of the regulation that will prohibit the sale of CVAC/R equipment preloaded with virgin R-22. In addition to the above, there are several regulations that are requiring, mainly in California, that manufacturers of cooling and refrigeration equipment must adhere to certain design parameters of their solutions, which will ensure compliance with the state's energy efficiency laws.

On the above topics, all kinds of comments have emerged denouncing that the aforementioned measures will have negative effects, both on the companies that produce solutions that use this type of refrigerants, and for manufacturers that comply with design regulations to adjust to energy efficiency. The issue is that on the refrigerant side there is still no clear definition of the term "date of manufacture" and whether it refers to the date of production of the solution or whether it speaks of the date of installation. In any case, the rule would have different implications. When it comes to designing solutions to suit energy laws, the problem is that not everyone meets the rules and that leaves the "obedient" at a clear disadvantage.

All this discussion that is presented in the United States should serve to ask us about the role of Latin America in this whole imbroglio. On the one hand, at least we are clear about what conjunctural processes are being presented in the face of these two important issues and we can anticipate making the appropriate decisions that favor the industry.

No less important is that the industry must unite and consolidate to avoid the August of those who do not comply with the rules, because it is not at all fair that companies that invest in research and development, for example, should lose competitiveness with those that do not. Again, it's all a matter of costs and prices.

A topic to finish. We have an opportunity for associations to move from being educational actors to becoming political actors, defending the interests of their partners before governments. Education cannot be left aside, but neither can the lobby.

However, the sector is moving. There is an important element to reflect on today and that is the new possibilities that can be explored during the crisis. It is not a secret that when things are going well, contractors usually choose to dedicate themselves to the sectors that offer the most profitability and often leave aside other sectors that do not leave so much profit margin.

And it is these sectors that can "save the ballot" in these days of scarcity. Everyone can start looking at what are those segments that he left abandoned out there and perhaps he could rescue something that generates some income. I recently learned that the large profit margin in the United States is being generated by the renovation sector in view of the low construction presented in recent days. Within this entire sector, there is one niche that is capturing the attention of more and more HVAC/R contractors: air conditioning duct cleaning.

Although many of our countries do not necessarily use centralized systems, there is always an option to emulate these practices, such as the maintenance of split systems (although models with the manteinance free label are already on the market, as they are mechanically closed preventing the entry of dirt and preventing germs from entering and spreading in the conditioned space).

Thus, like these, there may be other segments that can be explored to extract some income from this crisis. You know better than I do what those areas of work can be.

The invitation is therefore to be creative and persistent. It is, without a doubt, a way to be one step ahead.