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Message From President Jim Meats, PE ...

Regulation of Fan Performance Is Upon Us

Regulation of fan performance is about to retake center stage in our industry.

Many of you may remember how the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) regulation of fans and blowers appeared imminent in 2016. The next year, however, then-President Trump signed an executive order requiring the federal government to eliminate two regulations for every new regulation, effectively killing any momentum for federal regulation of our industry.

In the absence of federal action, the State of California embarked on its own path to regulating the energy consumption of fans, which appears to be on the near horizon.

Now, the DOE is back in the game, having recently issued a request for information related to air-circulating fans. The general sentiment is that the DOE is close to moving forward regarding fans and blowers as well. As to what happens next, your guess is as good as the next person’s.

This new regulatory action must consider myriad developments of the last five years, including the emergence of fan energy index (FEI); the publication of ANSI/AMCA Standard 208-18, Calculation of the Fan Energy Index, and ANSI/AMCA Standard 214-21, Test Procedure for Calculating Fan Energy Index (FEI) for Commercial and Industrial Fans and Blowers; and new ASHRAE requirements for fan efficiency.

The point in all of this? Fan regulation is upon us and will impact our businesses and our trade association. The good thing is there are people—among AMCA member companies and on the AMCA staff—who are up-to-speed and advocating on our behalf, as well as providing the resources we need to understand the issues and prepare ourselves and our companies.

If you want to know more or otherwise need assistance, reach out to our advocacy experts, Senior Director, Global Affairs Michael Ivanovich ([email protected]) and Senior Manager, Advocacy Aaron Gunzner ([email protected]). They will be able to help or point you in the right direction. In the meantime, watch for member alerts, newsletter articles, and possibly webinar announcements related to the subject.

The AHR Expo Returns, and AMCA Is There

Following a COVID-19-forced cancellation in 2021, the International Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Exposition (AHR Expo), billed as “the world’s essential HVACR event,” returned Jan. 31 to Feb. 2 at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas.

The 2022 AHR Expo drew 30,678 attendees, considerably fewer than the 50,000-plus who turned out for the pre-pandemic 2020 event in Orlando, Fla. Still, “It was impossible to miss the energy in the halls this year,” show manager Mark Stevens of International Exposition Company Inc. said.

“There have been some heavy ups and downs across the industry in recent years, and we, as a community, needed to feel the inspiration that happens when we gather together under one roof,” Stevens said. “The 2022 AHR Expo surpassed any expectation—our exhibitors, attendees, associations, speakers, and everyone involved made this event one of the most special we’ve ever hosted. If you were there, the camaraderie was hard to miss. This industry is strong, and we are back on track to tackle the challenges before us.”

AMCA was among 1,573 exhibitors spread over 443,769 sq ft in two exhibit halls. Masks were required for all attendees indoors, and social distancing was encouraged in small areas.

After presenting three free educational sessions at the 2020 AHR Expo, AMCA presented eight—and, with Women in HVACR (WHVACR), co-presented a ninth—this year. The sessions were:

• “HVAC Terminal System Selections: A Real-World Project Data Survey,” presented by Aaron Gunzner, senior manager, advocacy, AMCA, and Dave Morrow, managing partner, Applied Marketing Knowledge.
• “Living With a Skill Gap—Designing Higher Efficiency Fans With a Less Experienced Workforce,” presented by Geoff Sheard, DSc, president, AGS Consulting LLC.
• “Minimizing Fan System Effect,” presented by David Maletich, vice president of marketing, The New York Blower Co.
• “Acoustical Design for the A/E/C Industry,” presented by Jeff Boldt, managing principal, IMEG Corp.
• “High Velocity Low Speed (HVLS) Fans: Updates on COVID Guidance and Federal Energy Regulation,” presented by Aaron Gunzner, senior manager, advocacy, AMCA, and Christian Taber, principal engineer, codes and standards, Big Ass Fans.
• “Air Curtain Technology and the Impact on Building Energy Consumption,” presented by David Johnson, director of engineering, Berner International, and Frank Cuaderno, vice president of engineering, Mars Air Systems.
• “Louver Requirements, Codes & Specifications in Hurricane Prone Regions,” presented by Michael Bulzomi, director of marketing, louvers and dampers, Nailor Industries.
• “Field Modifications of Fire, Smoke, and Combination Fire/Smoke Dampers,” presented by James Carlin, product manager, dampers, Pottorff.
• “Empowering Women in the Workforce,” presented by Emma Barnhart, senior marketing specialist, Ruskin; Erica Leonor, member, board of directors, WHVACR; Rhonda McCaughey, regional sales manager, Ruskin; and Ben Middleton, national sales director, Goodman Manufacturing.

To encourage attendance, AMCA distributed “passport books.” For each AMCA-sponsored session a passport holder attended, AMCA stamped a page in the book, with five or more stamps qualifying the passport holder to receive a special gift: an engineering design kit.

“AMCA’s educational sessions were very well-attended, and audience members were extremely engaged, asking lots of questions of the speakers and attending multiple AMCA presentations over the two days,” AMCA Education Manager Lisa Cherney said. “Total attendance for all nine sessions was close to 500 people.”

Each of the AMCA-sponsored sessions was worth one professional-development hour (PDH).

“The extensive variety of topics presented, plus the addition of the joint session with WHVACR and the credibility AMCA brings to the industry, really put us in the spotlight of offering a leading education track at the conference,” Cherney added. “So many people thanked the speakers and AMCA for being present in 2022. It’s clear the absence of in-person presentations and networking was missed.”

The 2023 AHR Expo will be held Feb. 6-8 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

AMCA Partnering With ITR Economics for Business Intelligence

ITR Economics, the economic research and consulting firm that has been providing expert economic forecasting at AMCA meetings for years, has entered into a partnership with AMCA to provide additional economic intelligence to assist AMCA member companies in making practical and profitable business decisions.

Established in 1948, ITR Economics employs a unique forecasting methodology it claims has allowed it to achieve an unmatched accuracy rating of 94.7 percent four quarters into the future.

Through AMCA’s partnership with ITR Economics, AMCA members have access to monthly articles providing ITR Economics’ data-driven, non-affiliated perspective on current events. Additionally, AMCA members can “test drive” the following ITR Economics subscription programs:

• ITR Insider, which includes ITR Advisor, a “snapshot of the U.S. economy with a quick overview of key indicators, overall business health, and immediate actions to take in response to unfolding events”; monthly updates on leading U.S. economic indicators; three-year forecasts with qualitative summaries for the major components of the U.S. economy; and topical webinars.
• ITR Trends Report, a publication providing updated forecasts covering the complete spectrum of U.S. and world economies.
• DataCast Essentials, which provides a forward view and planning roadmap using leading economic indicators and a company’s business cycle.
• DataCast Pro, a data-analysis tool allowing subscribers to plot their data against 10,000 indicators found in the ITR Economics database in real time.

Each subscription trial includes a workshop recording providing information on key features and benefits. To view a video on Alliance Powered by DataCast, the “personal portal” for uploading sales data and comparing rates of change to leading indicator trends, click here.

Through the partnership, AMCA members also will receive exclusive discounts on all other ITR Economics online subscriptions as well as non-subscription services.

To sign up to receive free economic updates (for the first, click here), stay current with ITR Economics’ outlook, and learn of special opportunities through the AMCA-ITR Economics partnership, click here.

For more information, contact AMCA Director of Marketing, Membership, and Education Robb Clawson at [email protected].

AMCA in the Media

The January/February issue of HPAC Engineering magazine contains two contributions from AMCA:

• “New COVID-19 Guidance for Large-Diameter Ceiling Fans” by Senior Director, Global Affairs Michael Ivanovich, Senior Manager, Advocacy Aaron Gunzner, and Manager of Industry Content Scott Arnold, a republication of “AMCA COVID-19 Guidance for Large-Diameter Ceiling Fans,” the cover article from the 2021 edition of AMCA inmotion magazine.

• “What’s New? What’s Next? Industry Leaders Look at the Year Ahead,” in which Ivanovich is among nine HVACR thought leaders featured.

To participate in any of AMCA’s content initiatives, contact Arnold at [email protected] or +1 847-704-6335.

AMCA Hires Christine Rogers as Event and Meeting Manager

On Feb. 7, Christine Rogers joined the staff of AMCA International in the role of event and meeting manager.

Reporting to Director of Marketing, Membership, and Education Robb Clawson as part of the AMCA engagement (marketing, membership, meetings, education) team, Rogers is responsible for the organization and execution of AMCA meetings and events, including location siting, contracting, agenda planning, and registration management.

Rogers previously worked for nearly eight years with employee-benefits association United Benefit Advisors (UBA), most recently as director of events. In that role, she was responsible for site selection, leading committees to build out agendas, creating and managing event registration, working with exhibitors and sponsors, and executing event and survey follow-up. Additionally, she led UBA’s education initiatives, which included procuring instructors, managing registration, overseeing location selection and details, and managing on-site needs.

Prior to UBA, Rogers worked as a guest-service agent for Residence Inn and Adler Planetarium. She is a graduate of Governors State University with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and teaching.

“Christine has more than a decade of experience working in education and events,” Clawson said. “… She has planned, developed, and executed events, meetings, and educational conferences—both in-person and virtual—around the world. I am confident she will be a wonderful addition to the AMCA staff.”

Born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, Rogers enjoys acting, traveling, and spending time with her family: husband Donald and children David, 7, and Lena, 3. They are avid fans of Walt Disney World, “Star Wars,” and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Janet Blanchfield, who last year relocated to be closer to family, will continue working remotely as AMCA meeting manager through the first quarter, concentrating on this week’s 2022 AMCA Idea Exchange and 2022 AMCA North America Region Meeting in Orlando, Fla., as well as the spring Board of Directors meeting. Additionally, she will work with Rogers on initial preparations for the summer board and 2022 AMCA Annual meetings.

AMCA Publications, Standards Manager Joins Society for Standards Pros

AMCA Manager of Publications and Standards Shruti Kohli-Bhargava recently joined SES - The Society for Standards Professionals, gaining access to resources and opportunities to enhance her standards-development skills while broadening and deepening her connections within the standardization community.

Founded in 1947 as the Standards Engineering Society, the SES “is open to anyone interested in the principles, techniques, and effects of standards and standardization.” It “provides a neutral forum where standards users and developers” from industry, commerce, academia, service organizations, government, and standards-development organizations (SDO) “can come together to address mutual issues, opportunities, and interests in ways that work to the benefit of everyone involved with, or affected by, standards.”

On Feb. 2 and 3, Kohli-Bhargava attended the virtual SES Standards and Innovation Forum.

“I had no idea that the standards space is so big,” Kohli-Bhargava remarked. “There are literally hundreds of organizations that comprise the SDO and consortia world. It was wonderful to connect and share ideas with professionals who had a similar perspective to ours. Also, it was interesting to see that so many competitors play so nicely together and have found a way to really help each other by sharing best practices.”

The theme of the forum was “rethinking the standards-development process in a connected world.” Kohli-Bhargava said the sessions that resonated with her most were:

• “The Global Network of Standardization Systems,” during which Joy Fitzpatrick, technical lead for standards, Boeing, and Christopher Millward, president and managing director, United States Information Technology Office, discussed differences in standardization systems from region to region and the value of diversity in participation models used in the United States, China, and Europe. “They talked a lot about China wanting to reform its standardization system,” Kohli-Bhargava said. “China is heading toward mandatory national standards. There also is a move for their national standards to be brought forth as international standards. … China wants its standards process to be government-driven and controlled as much as possible.”
• “Best Practices and Policies for Standards Development,” during which Khaled Masri, program manager, Building, Systems, and Industrial divisions, National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), discussed how standards-development processes are managed within traditional SDO and the skill set required for those serving on governing-body committees. “I connected with quite a few NEMA employees and shared best practices,” Kohli-Bhargava said. “It’s interesting how similar our structure is to NEMA’s; the difference is, they have over a thousand technical documents that go through periodic revision. Like us, they are an ANSI- (American National Standards Institute) accredited organization and have been investigating opportunities for automation, but have not yet found a vendor that meets all of the needs of an SDO.”
• “Standardization Strategies Around the World,” during which Mary Saunders, vice president, government relations, ANSI; Thomas Reibe, senior officer, European Commission; and Bruce Farquhar, director, global standards, Standards Council of Canada, discussed differences and commonalities of various regions’ approaches to standardization. “There is a prevalent need to bring up the next generation of standards experts, as many in senior positions will be retiring over the next few years,” Kohli-Bhargava said. “Also, promoting gender diversity and inclusion at an international level is a huge topic right now. There was a lot of discussion on how that could benefit organizations and how it could be achieved. This is a topic I feel passionately about.”

Through Kohli-Bhargava’s affiliation with the SES, AMCA has opportunities to grow its brand, such as by sponsoring an event or exhibit at the SES Annual Conference, presenting or hosting a webinar, preparing an article for publication, and sharing a press release for dissemination in the SES E-news.

For more information, contact Kohli-Bhargava at [email protected].

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