Well, 2022 is in the books, and in the HVAC-R industry, we all know what the new year brings – the AHR Expo and ASHRAE’s annual Winter Conference! And, after a somewhat scaled-back presence in 2022 due to the lingering pandemic, Super Radiator is excited to exhibit and attend as normal (booth #B2947).
In this post, we’ll give a brief preview of the event, some topics we’re focusing on as exhibitors, and some things we’re looking forward to.
The expo is designed to showcase industry technology, offer educational and professional development opportunities, and provide a networking platform for industry professionals, among other goals. This year’s installment will mark the event's 93rd year in existence, said Nicole Bush, press officer for the AHR Expo.
“The first show was in 1930,” said Bush in an email. “Minus a few forced cancellations for things beyond our control here and there, we’ve been here ever since.”
This year’s vendor list features more than 1,750 registered exhibitors and a combination of nearly 300 panel discussions, educational workshops, new product & technology presentations, and more.
The Georgia-based American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Condition Engineers (ASHRAE) also holds its annual winter conference concurrently with the AHR Expo and is one of its title sponsors alongside the Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI).
For AHR 2023, we’re adding a refrigerant-focused section to our booth. Refrigerant legislation has long been a hot topic of the HVAC industry, especially in the last five years or so. The recently passed American Innovation in Manufacturing (AIM) Act, will likely prove to be a pivotal event in the regulatory history of refrigerants, as it granted the EPA the authority to regulate hydrofluorocarbons – power it didn’t have previously.
This legislation has outlined a phasedown schedule for several popular HFCs, the effects of which have prompted industry-wide shifts away from substances that the agency deems as having the potential to contribute to global warming, including R-410A, a longtime favorite of the HVAC industry. OEMs like Daikin and Carrier have chosen R-32 and R-454B as their replacements and the refrigerant section of our booth includes information about the performance implications of that shift.
The AHR Expo and ASHRAE Winter Conference are staples of our industry’s calendar, and each year offers the opportunity to connect with friends and colleagues, add to our knowledge, and keep up with everything going on in the industry. This year, we’ll be sending more than 20 representatives from our company to do just that.
For SRC’s attendees, we thought it’d be fun to get a feel for what everyone was excited about – from our longtime vets of the show to folks who are attending for the first time. Here’s what they had to say.
Daren Carlson – Sales Application Engineer, SRC RichmondThis will be my sixth time attending the conference and expo. A few things I’m focusing on are carbon footprint reduction and upcoming technologies. One of the things that I’ll have my eyes peeled for is information on new refrigerants. What are the big players moving to? Will there be some uniformity or standardization or are different companies moving to a patchwork of different refrigerants? I’ll also be curious to see what sort of heat pump hot water heaters are being exhibited, and of course, networking ALWAYS!
Mark Schuch, Corporate Director of Materials, based at SRC PhoenixFor me, as someone on the purchasing and materials side of things, AHR and ASHRAE are primarily networking events. It’s a great opportunity to meet with our existing vendors as well as work on potential new relationships with different suppliers and to keep an eye out for new technologies and products that vendors may be presenting. I’ve gone every year during my 27 years with the company.
Robert Morales – Sales and Engineering Manager, SRC PhoenixNetworking is typically my main goal when attending the AHR show. Historically, we don’t always have a lot of people from the West that stop by the booth when AHR is on the East Coast. With that in mind, I think I’m going to focus this year on education/information. I would like to see what new developments people are talking about and what is driving change. This year’s expo will mark my fourth time attending.
Jonah Thune – Sales Application Engineer, SRC ChaskaThis will be my third time attending the AHR Expo. I’m looking forward to working the SRC booth and speaking with existing and potential new customers. Aside from that, my main goal is networking. There’s also the added bonus of getting to interact with SRC folks from our sister plants.
Ken Allen – Southeast Regional Sales Manager, SRC RichmondThe main thing I’m interested in for this year’s AHR Expo is refrigerants, specifically natural refrigerants, and new/upcoming refrigerants. I also always enjoy my work with different committees, attending educational sessions, searching for potential new customers, and of course, networking. If memory serves, this will by my 21st AHR Expo.
Gail Miller – Sales Application Engineer, SRC RichmondThis will be my first time attending AHR! I hope to learn more about ground source heat pumps and potential energy recovery opportunities. Overall, learning is my main goal. I'd like to gain a better understanding of the systems we design equipment for. Some sessions I’m excited for are Advancements in Energy Recovery for Decarbonization and the session on Modeling and Analysis, especially vibration analysis and failure detection.
Hunter Pfaff – Sales Application Engineer, SRC PhoenixOne of the main topics I’m hoping to learn more about is decarbonization and HVAC’s role in it. This will be my second time attending the expo and my goal for this year’s is to spend more time walking the floor to learn more about other organizations in our industry and how SRC could be of service to them.
We look forward to seeing friends at colleagues at this year’s event and feel free to stop by booth #B2947 to learn more about SRC, especially if you’re looking for a partner who can help you understand new refrigerants and navigate the changing regulatory landscape.
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