The Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla., was a veritable Magic Kingdom for the 43,000 HVACR professionals who experienced the opening of the International Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Exposition (AHR Expo) on Monday, Jan. 25. Although the engineers, contractors, and architects walking the show floor did not get to have their pictures taken with Mickey Mouse, more than 1,800 exhibitors as well as educational sessions and new product technology showcases kept them suitably entertained.
Solar-related products were among the more popular technologies at the Expo. Lochinvar Corp., a Tennessee-based manufacturer of high-efficiency water heaters, boilers, pool heaters, and storage tanks, announced a new Solar Heating Initiative, the result of a new partnership between Lochinvar and TiSun GmbH of Tyrol, Austria. The two privately owned companies will provide the products, training, and support that mechanical and plumbing design engineers and contractors need to provide renewable energy solutions. Products will include commercial solar thermal panels, solar thermal storage tanks that enhance system efficiency, and the associated pumping stations used to move solar energy between these devices.
How to minimize costs also was top-of-mind for exhibitors and industry professionals alike. Cleaver-Brooks, which offers fully automatic, integrated boiler/burner packaged boilers for use in commercial, institutional, and industrial applications, was touting its proprietary Boost software program at the Expo. Boost can help users calculate the exact financial impact of their current boiler equipment's energy efficiency. Once personalized data is entered and then analyzed by the software, the program will create a user-friendly document that can serve as a guide to make an informed decision about boiler-room energy management.