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Category: News
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Time to close the natural ventilation loophole
How to improve indoor air quality in Australia’s public spaces? Experts from diverse disciplines have put forward various answers to this question. One solution, flagged by mechanical engineers long before the pandemic, remains frustratingly obvious for those in the HVAC&R industry: revisiting the provisions for natural ventilation in the National Construction Code (NCC). According to […]
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Pathway for procurement in green construction
The Australian Procurement and Construction Council (APCC) has published a best practice guide for procurement to support more sustainable construction. The Pathway to Green Construction Procurement sets out the documentation and decision-making processes required by government officials to realise green construction of government infrastructure assets. It includes the full range of environmental sustainability impact factors […]
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Daikin opens high-tech centre in Adelaide
Daikin Australia has officially opened a new state-of-the-art facility in Adelaide, South Australia. The opening ceremony was attended by Daikin dealers and key business partners involved in the development of the site. Daikin’s South Australia State Manager Matthew Tonkin; Daikin Australia Director – HR, Corporate Affairs and Service, Ian Hurley, Affil.AIRAH; and General Manager – […]
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Master Plumbers condemns gas bans
The Master Plumbers Association (MPA) of New South Wales has criticised the City of Sydney, the City of Parramatta and other local government areas (LGAs) proposing a ban on implementing gas in new builds in the state. “This move demonstrates a clear lack of consideration for its impact on essential services, such as heating, hot […]
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Infrastructure and the path to net zero
Ten industry bodies have joined forced to co-ordinate, collaborate and report on Australian infrastructure’s pathway to net zero. The Infrastructure Net Zero collaboration will share the responsibility of decarbonisation, and look at methods to combine the time, effort and expertise to develop initiatives to drive change. It will be led by a steering committee with […]
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Shipping container opens doors for cooling
Researchers from Washington State University (WSU) have created a test chamber within a shipping container to trial passive cooling systems. The project aims to help researchers and builders test carbon-free systems in a controlled environment, such as using wind towers or water evaporation instead of electricity to cool spaces. Lead author of the study and […]
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On butterfly wings: new nanofilms reflect light
Researchers from Shenzhen University in China have created a new nanofilm inspired by the structures in butterfly wings that could significantly reduce the energy needed for cooling buildings or vehicles. In a recent paper published in Science Daily, researchers explained how the new films avoid the heating effect usually experienced by coloured objects absorbing light on […]
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Winners are grinners at WorldSkills Nationals
The WorldSkills Australia National Championships were held in Melbourne over the weekend, with 470 competitors from around Australia vying for medals in different areas of vocational education and training (VET). The aim of the event is to get young Australians excited about skills and trades and growing Australia’s skills culture. It’s also about building the […]
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CO2 scholarship program open for applications
The Kirby Apprentice Fund has opened applications for the CO2 Training Scholarship program to fourth-year HVAC&R industry apprentices. The scholarship includes a two-day CO2 systems training experience, including: CO2 safety and CO2 repair and service systems training (held at the Sydney-based Beijer Ref Training Academy) Australian Refrigeration Council Green Scheme Accreditation, upon successful completion of […]
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Engineers Australia embarks on European tour
Engineers Australia’s CEO Romilly Madew and Board Chair Nick Fleming are travelling to Europe in August and September with the goal of strengthening international relations. The pair will begin the tour in Denmark, then travel on to London and Dublin. The purpose of the trip is to strengthen their post-COVID relationships and connect with overseas […]
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Students design a sustainable future
ASHRAE has announced the winners of the 2023 Student Design Competition and the Setty Family Foundation Applied Engineering Challenge. Students were challenged to design the HVAC system for a laboratory facility located in Cairo, Egypt, for the 2023 Student Design Competition. This consisted of a large single-story building with a rooftop penthouse equalling about 2,515m2. The teams were […]
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High hopes for freeze ray technology
An unusual discovery by a University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science professor is being developed as an on-demand cooling solution for high-flying military electronics. Mechanical and aerospace engineering professor Patrick Hopkins wants to create on-demand surface cooling for electronics inside spacecraft and high-altitude jets because “a lot of electronics on board heat […]
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States move ahead on road to registration
It may have taken some time since the recommendations originally appeared at the top of the priority list in the 2018 Building Confidence report, but professional registration schemes are now spreading quickly across the country, and establishing new rules to lift standards in Australia’s building and construction industry. Practice Standard in New South Wales This […]
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Highlighting the ‘health’ in OH&S
Although the concept of occupational health and safety (OH&S) is enshrined in our laws and even our culture, how much of the focus is on immediate safety issues, rather than health and wellbeing? This question is at the heart of a new book by Helen Lingard and Michelle Turner, both professors at The Centre for […]
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Supermarkets hold the key to a cool future
The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) is working with Enel X to launch “Unlocking Flexible Demand in the Commercial Refrigeration Sector”, a program that will assist with integrating renewable energy sources into electricity networks. ARENA has granted Enel X $3.7 million in funding to demonstrate how the flexible demand systems can work in the commercial […]
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Getting warmer on solid-state heat pumps
Scientists at Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics (IAF) have made a breakthrough in refrigerant-free heating and cooling technology: a circuit topology for voltage converters with an electrical efficiency of 99.74 per cent. According to the AIF, the technology could considerably raise the coefficient of performance for electrocaloric heat pumps and the scientists […]
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EIA launches “What the F” campaign
The Environmental Investigation Authority (EIA) has launched a new campaign to educate consumers about the impact of fluorinated gases on the environment. “EIA’s Climate campaign has long advocated tackling the ‘low-hanging fruit’ of climate-warming emissions, specifically the phasing out or down of fluorinated gases, or F-gases,” says the EIA. “These are a range of greenhouse […]
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ACT seeks input on electrification plan
The ACT government is seeking input on its Integrated Energy Plan to guide the energy transition away from gas to renewable energy. “The ACT continues to lead the world in taking action on climate change,” says the ACT government. “We are set to become the first Australian jurisdiction to be powered exclusively by renewable energy, […]
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Government survey on pair coil issues
The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) is conducting a survey to investigate issues with pair coil. There have been reports of ant nesting and corrosion problems with pair coils, resulting in the leaking of refrigerant. DCCEEW notes that under consumer guarantee law this issue could be costing businesses time and […]
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Daikin opens cutting-edge facility in Brisbane
Daikin Australia has officially opened Daikin Park Brisbane, a cutting-edge centre located in Murarrie, Queensland. The park encompasses a range of features and initiatives aimed at optimising logistics, promoting sustainability, and enhancing customer experience. “The centrepiece is the implementation of the Manhattan Warehouse Management System, providing a comprehensive logistics solution for efficient fulfillment and dispatch […]