American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers
Encyclopedia
HVAC
HVAC refers to technology of indoor or automotive environmental comfort. HVAC system design is a major subdiscipline of mechanical engineering, based on the principles of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer...
). The Society, organized into Regions, Chapters, and Student Branches, allows exchange of HVAC&R knowledge and experiences for the benefit of the field's practitioners and the public. ASHRAE provides many opportunities to participate in the development of new knowledge via, for example, research and its many Technical Committees. These committees meet typically twice per year at the ASHRAE Annual and Winter Conferences. A popular product show, the AHR Expo, is held in conjunction with each Winter Meeting. The Society has approximately 50,000 members and has headquarters at Atlanta, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, USA.
Publications
The ASHRAE HandbookASHRAE Handbook
The ASHRAE Handbook is the four-volume flagship publication of the nonprofit technical organization American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc....
is a four-volume resource for HVAC&R technology and is available in both print and electronic versions. The volumes are Fundamentals, HVAC Applications, HVAC Systems and Equipment, and Refrigeration. One of the four volumes is updated each year.
ASHRAE also publishes a well recognized series of standards
Standardization
Standardization is the process of developing and implementing technical standards.The goals of standardization can be to help with independence of single suppliers , compatibility, interoperability, safety, repeatability, or quality....
and guidelines relating to HVAC systems and issues. These standards are often referenced in building codes, and are considered useful standards for use by consulting engineers, mechanical contractors, architects, and government agencies. These are legally unenforceable, but commonly accepted standards for architects and engineers.
Examples of some ASHRAE Standards are:
- Standard 34 – Designation and Safety Classification of RefrigerantRefrigerantA refrigerant is a substance used in a heat cycle usually including, for enhanced efficiency, a reversible phase change from a liquid to a gas. Traditionally, fluorocarbons, especially chlorofluorocarbons, were used as refrigerants, but they are being phased out because of their ozone depletion...
s - Standard 55 – Thermal Environmental Conditions for Human OccupancyThermal comfortThermal comfort is a term used by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, an international body. It is defined as the state of mind in humans that expresses satisfaction with the surrounding environment...
- Standard 62.1 – Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air QualityIndoor air qualityIndoor air quality is a term referring to the air quality within and around buildings and structures, especially as it relates to the health and comfort of building occupants....
(versions: 2001 and earlier as "62", 2004 and beyond as "62.1") - Standard 62.2 – Ventilation and Acceptable Indoor Air Quality in Low-Rise Residential Buildings
- Standard 90.1ASHRAE 90.1ASHRAE 90.1 is a standard that provides minimum requirements for energy efficient designs for buildings except for low-rise buildings. The original standard ASHRAE 90 was published in 1975 and had multiple editions to it in years after...
– Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings – The IESNA is a joint sponsor of this standard. - Standard 135 – BACnetBACnetBACnet is a communications protocol for building automation and control networks. It is an ASHRAE, ANSI, and ISO standard protocol....
- A Data Communication Protocol for Building Automation and Control Networks - Standard 189.1 – Standard for the Design of High Performance, Green BuildingsGreen buildingGreen building refers to a structure and using process that is environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building's life-cycle: from siting to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation, and demolition...
Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings
These, and many other ASHRAE Standards, are periodically reviewed, revised and published, so the year of publication of a particular standard is important for code compliance.
The ASHRAE Journal is a monthly magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
published by ASHRAE. It includes peer-reviewed articles on the practical application of HVAC&R technology, information on upcoming meetings and product shows, classified and display advertising, and editorials. Members of ASHRAE receive the magazine and the current year's volume of the ASHRAE Handbook as membership benefits. ASHRAE also publishes many books, ASHRAE Transactions, and the International Journal of HVAC&R Research.
History
ASHRAE was founded in 1894 at a meeting of engineers in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, formerly headquartered at 345 East 47th Street
47th Street (Manhattan)
47th Street is an east-west running street between First Avenue and the West Side Highway in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. Traffic runs one way along the street, from east to west, starting at the United Nations Headquarters....
, and have held an annual meeting since 1895. Until 1954 it was known as the American Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers (ASHVE); in that year it changed its name to the American Society of Heating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHAE). Its current name and organization came from the 1959 merger of ASHAE and the American Society of Refrigerating Engineers (ASRE). The result, ASHRAE, despite having 'American' in its name, is an influential international organization. Amongst other international activities, it helps organize international events.
Headquarters Renewal
In 2006, ASHRAE adopted sustainabilitySustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
as the central theme for the organization’s Strategic Plan and committed to making the renovation of the Society’s 35000 square feet (3,251.6 m²) headquarters building a demonstration of these values. Two years later, they hired Richard Wittschiebe Hand
Richard Wittschiebe Hand
Richard Wittschiebe Hand is a medium-sized architecture firm based in Atlanta, Georgia with an office in Madison, Wisconsin. Richard Wittschiebe Hand specializes in...
and General Contractor Gay Construction to design and build the project. Today, they have their very own LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
Platinum-rated building
, which has an extensive building monitoring system and other design features and functions which are intended to demonstrate energy conservation and cost savings through sustainable building practices.
ASHRAE's goals could only be achieved through collaboration, innovative use of technology, and aggressive partnerships with product and equipment manufacturers, many of which are based in Georgia. As the leader in codes and standards for the building industries’ engineers, the renovation and addition to ASHRAE’s existing building incorporated the membership's expertise from around the country to collaborate with the local design firm, their consultants, and the general contractor. Throughout the design and construction process the team evaluated numerous building components, including mechanical equipment, electronic systems, as well as over $1 million of donated equipment.
The renovation of the existing headquarters building included the reconfiguration of existing space and an additional wing. The existing windows, which had been replaced and upgraded in the late 1990s, remained. The new entrance was designed and relocated to the rear of the building to provide a quieter entrance. Project requirements for the facility included a new training center, meeting and education spaces for their members, a technical library, offices, collaborative workspaces for personnel, and a shipping and receiving area. The facility incorporates open and flexible planning to take advantage of natural light and efficient planning methods that increased the total number of future staff above previous levels by 25% within a reduced office footprint. Enclosed offices for 95% of staff were eliminated and replaced with furniture-based work station layouts which conserved space, provided exterior views for all employees, and fostered collaboration. A new training center was added to respond to the organization’s growing outreach and continuing education needs.
See also
- The ASHRAE HandbookASHRAE HandbookThe ASHRAE Handbook is the four-volume flagship publication of the nonprofit technical organization American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc....
- Building services engineeringBuilding services engineeringBuilding services engineering, technical building services, architectural engineering, or building engineering is the engineering of the internal environment and environmental impact of a building...
- Chartered Institution of Building Services EngineersChartered Institution of Building Services EngineersThe Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers is a British professional engineering body based in London, England that represents building services engineers...