United States. The International Institute for Ammonia Refrigeration (IIAR) will hold its annual Natural Refrigeration Conference and Exhibition, version 2023, in Long Beach, California, March 12-15.
This meeting will begin with a Golf Tournament for the benefit of the Natural Refrigerants Foundation (NRF) and the first IIAR Pickleball/Cornhole Tournament, on March 11 and 12 respectively.
Subsequently, the IIAR Committees will meet on Sunday, March 12 from 8 am to 12 pm. Such meetings shall be open to the public. On the other hand, the meeting of the subcommittee for Latin America will be held from 10:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. in Room 101 B of the Long Beach Convention Center.
Overall, the event offers four days of technical knowledge, expansion of professional networks and events sponsored by major companies in the industry.
Ben Dawes, manager of promotion and digital marketing at IIAR, commented that "so far, the number of registered attendees has exceeded that of last year, where we saw almost 1300 registrations in total, so we expect to exceed that number."
Academic programming
The sessions begin Sunday with the Vessel Design, Analysis and Inspection for Industrial Refrigeration Systems program, which will feature four speakers examining aspects of vessel design, inspection, maintenance and repair. This space is designed to give attendees greater awareness and knowledge of the functional life cycle of pressure vessels.
Eric Smith, vice president and technical director of IIAR, commented that "containers are an integral part of every refrigeration system. The way they are designed, how they are used and how they are maintained is fundamental. We have great speakers lined up for this educational program."
There are several workshops on the schedule, including the AIM (American Innovation in Manufacturing Act) workshop. Panelists will talk about various aspects of the AIM Act, covering everything from US EPA requirements; which refrigerants will be phased out to how the financial industry views the sustainability of the refrigeration industry.
The panel will also include a professor who will address how young students view environmental work in the United States of America. "A section of about half an hour will then be offered for questions from the audience," said Gary Schrift, president of IIAR.
"I am excited to form the alliance with NASRC, which shares a common mission with IIAR, which is to advocate for natural refrigerants. NASRC plays a bigger role in commercial refrigeration, and we can certainly learn from each other and help each other achieve our common vision," Schrift concluded.
IIAR is also hosting a panel discussion and workshop entitled "Diversity and Inclusion in Natural Refrigeration" on Tuesday afternoon, which is open to all attendees. In this workshop, an internationally published study on the experience of women and other groups within the industry will be presented that will help attendees identify opportunities arising from those experiences.
"We want both women and men to attend this panel and workshop because everyone needs to know how we can improve diversity in the industry," Schrift said, adding that the workshop will feature the Women in Refrigeration report produced by UNEP.
Other workshops include Efficiency in Large Refrigeration Facilities for Perishable Foods, CO2 System Add-ons: field calculations and measurements, refrigerant leakage hazards in secondary cooling circuits, and next-generation CO2 pumps.
It is important to highlight that during the conference several technical documents and workshops in Spanish will be presented. Among these will be Mechanical Integrity in Refrigeration Evaporators; Safety valves: a review from the bases to the applicable standards and norms; Simple equations for determination of mass flow in cooling systems; Stratum Coca Cola, First Industrial Project in Costa Rica with direct expansion in low temperature, with low amount of ammonia and high efficiency;, How to Conduct a PHA Analysis; and Management of Hydrocarbon Refrigerants.
Other details of the event
Attendees will be able to participate in several techno comérciales, presented during the hours of the EXPO, in the theater located in the Exhibition Hall. The Exhibition Hall will be open on the 12th, 13th and 14th. In addition, networking opportunities will take place throughout the event. There will be several receptions such as that of women in the refrigeration industry, one for beginners, for the president and several coffee breaks.
Finally, another preview is that the welcoming ceremony will be led by this year's keynote speaker, Dr. Janet Lapp, who is a psychologist, author and consultant for workplace transformation.
