HVACR & Mechanical Workshop 2012

I just got home from the 2012 HVACR & Mechanical Conference in Colorado Springs. The weather was great, the location was perfect, and the conference was really one of the best I have been to. What sets the HVACR & Mechanical Conference apart from all other conferences aimed at the HVACR educational community is the presence of the industry. Not only is the conference sponsored by a who’s who list of industry organizations, industry professionals are plentiful at this conference. National training or service reps for companies like Appion, Danfoss, Tecumseh, or Genteq are there, providing plenty of opportunities to learn beyond the scheduled sessions. I frequently found myself seated next to someone who knew a great deal more about a particular aspect of HVACR than I do. Although it can be argued in my case that it is not too difficult to find someone who is more knowledgeable than I am, I think most people attending the conference picked up valuable information during breaks or downtime from the industry professionals they were around. It was really pretty hard NOT to learn something. At breakfast on Wednesday I found myself sitting with a group of people who love what they do, have years of experience, and represent the best of our industry. I realized how much I enjoyed those informal sessions with people I truly admire. So my advice to anyone fortunate enough to attend next year’s 2012 HVACR & Mechanical Conference: find someone who knows something and share a drink, a few laughs, and pick their brains. Go ahead and save the date now: March 11–13 2013 in Colorado Springs at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort.        

The BIG Showis Almost Here

The AHR Expo is coming up January 25 in Orlando Florida. The AHR Expo is the granddaddy of all air conditioning industry shows. It is co-sponsored by two of the HAVC/R industry heavy hitters: ASHRAE and AHRI. This is truly a world class show with people and companies from all over the globe. My experience has been that it is really impossible to look at all the exhibits in a day because there is so much to see. If you are located anywhere close to Orlando and can find a day to visit the expo, it is well worth your time. Instructors and students can get so much free literature that it will take you hours just to read it all. There are many free seminars every day for discussion of new technologies and products. The AHR Expo is usually where HVAC/R companies roll out their latest and greatest, so it is a perfect place to see where the industry is heading. Perhaps most useful to instructors are the contacts you can make with OEM suppliers, manufacturers, wholesalers, and industry technical gurus of all stripes. Of course the expo will be located in the land of fun and sun, making the overall trip more pleasant. However, you will probably have to wait until after the show to see Mickey because there is just so much to do at the expo. Click on AHR Expo to learn more about the show.

Naturally, when you get home you will be thinking about how to incorporate what you saw in the show into your program. One way is through links to the online literature of HVAC/R companies. A good way to do this is to add links in MyHVACLab at appropriate places in the program. This gives the information some structure and makes it more meaningful than a long list of unrelated hyperlinks. Although on advantage of MyHVACLab is that it is a complete program out of the box, another big advantage is that it is easy to modify to fit your needs. Click on MyHVACLab to learn more about MyHVACLab or Fundamentals of HVAC/R, the AHRI endorsed text that MyHVACLab supports. So pack your sunscreen and head down to the land of fun and sun to see the world’s largest air conditioning show!