ARBS Awards put HVAC&R achievements centre stage

Held at Zinc, Federation Square, and hosted by television and radio personality Myf Warhurst, the evening brought together leaders from across industry, academia and consulting to celebrate major achievements. 

“The ARBS Industry Excellence Awards exist to shine a light on the extraordinary work happening across our industry every day,” CEO of ARBS, Amanda Searle, says.  

One of the highlights of the ceremony is the recognition of those exceptional individuals who have made an enduring contribution to the HVAC&R and building services industry and are inducted into the ARBS Hall of Fame. 

Inductees are nominated by the six ARBS member associations: AIRAH, AMCA, AREMA, ARWA, CIBSE and RACCA. 

ARBS Hall of Fame – 2026 inductees

• AIRAH: Bryon Price L.AIRAH 
• AREMA: Robert Beggs 
• ARWA: Paul Campbell 
• CIBSE: Steve Hennessy 
• RACCA: Paul Wright, Affil.AIRAH
• AMCA: David Eynon 

“On behalf of the entire ARBS team, I offer our warmest congratulations to every winner and Hall of Fame inductee,” Searle says. 

ARBS 2026 Industry Excellence Winners

The awards also highlighted some of the most innovative, challenging and accomplished people, projects and products in the industry. 

EDUCATION AND TRAINING EXCELLENCE AWARD 

Precise Air Aboriginal Pathways (PAAP) by Precise Air Group 

HVAC PRODUCT EXCELLENCE AWARD 

ECU45DV Dual-Voltage Environmental Control Unit from Cold Logic 

IBTECH PRODUCT EXCELLENCE AWARD 

Refrigerant Leak Detection Solution by Bueno Analytics 

IBTECH PROJECT EXCELLENCE AWARD 

123 Albert Street, Brisbane, QLD by VAE Group 

MAJOR PROJECT EXCELLENCE AWARD (OVER $5 MILLION) 

Sydney Metro Martin Place, NSW by A.G. Coombs Group 

MINOR PROJECT EXCELLENCE AWARD (UNDER $5 MILLION) 

Eastland Shopping Centre (VIC), Chiller Upgrade by Airmaster 

REFRIGERATION PRODUCT EXCELLENCE AWARD 

Panasonic Transcritical CO₂ Technology (TCO2) Outdoor Condensing Unit from Hussmann Australia 

Future Leader Award winners

On the final day of ARBS, the Future Leaders Forum also recognised up-and-coming talent across consulting, engineering and technical trades. A total of $25,000 in scholarships was awarded to five winners to support their professional development, education and research pursuits.

Young Achiever Award: Finn Veeneklaas, WSP

HVAC&R Tradesperson Award: Adam Morgan, Clements Airconditioning Refrigeration and Electrical and Jaimee Van Leerdam, D&E Air Conditioning

Outstanding Female in Industry Award: Deepika Naicker, Actron Air and Manasa Marasani, GWA Consultants

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