Editorial - ACR Latinoamérica

Heating: the other leg of the table

We have been talking for more than two years, followed, about what is energy efficiency, the green trend and all these issues that relate to sustainability and respect for the environment. In these fields, the air conditioning and refrigeration segment acquires a fundamental role in terms of the controversy over the use of certain refrigerants, but also the energy consumption charged to such equipment.

The moment of truth

2010 arrived. I hope all of you, dear readers, have had a happy holiday and I wish you all the best for this year. This letter, however, is not a simple congratulation and is more a reflection on what will happen this year, now that the deadlines for substitution and disposal of ozone-depleting refrigerants begin.

An industry that breathes optimism

These days the American HVAC/R industry breathes optimism. We recently received a report that, according to a survey conducted by International Exposition Co., the firm that organizes and operates the AHR Expo show, 72% of the more than 1,000 HVAC/R manufacturers surveyed expect an improvement in industry numbers for the first quarter of 2010, at which point a reactivation in customer orders is estimated.

The alliances that serve

At the beginning of May, an event was announced that may have gone unnoticed by most people and that was the signing of a document of understanding between the IIAR (International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration) and the GCCA (Global Alliance for the Cold Chain, for its acronym in English).

Latino HVAC/R Association Are we ready?

Almost all the industrial sectors that I have been able to know have a Latin American association. I am surprised, in a way, that ours being one of the oldest segments of engineering we do not have a fully identified association in the region that protects and defends the interests of professionals related to the CVAC / R.

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.