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AIRAH'S 100 FACES

#068

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Peter Dobney, F.AIRAH

A third-generation AIRAH member, Peter Dobney, F.AIRAH, can boast of a distinguished career that saw him follow in the footsteps of his father and grandfather – Bill Dobney Jr and Sr, respectively – by becoming a mechanical engineer and joining AIRAH.
 
He enjoyed noted success working on challenging projects such as the Australian Antarctic Division’s bases at Mawson and Casey.
 
Dobney graduated from Swinburne University as a mechanical engineer in 1974. His final year project was spent designing and building a (working!) hovercraft.
 
He joined the Commonwealth Department of Works (later known as the Department of Housing and Construction/Australian Construction Services), as a cadet engineer in 1972. All the cadet engineers were put on training courses, including refrigeration, air conditioning, acoustics and building modelling in wind tunnels.
 
In 1982, Dobney joined Enersonics Consulting Engineers, specialising in energy audits, efficient designs for buildings and – when energy markets opened – energy procurement.
​
He joined Amcor (later Orora) in 1999 as their General Manager – Resources and Energy. A large paper, glass and packaging manufacturer, Dobney managed their energy portfolio of more than $150M a year, as well as their energy efficiency and CO2 abatement programs.
 
He negotiated Orora’s energy contracts, including contracts with gas producers and pipelines for gas supply and power purchasing agreements with wind farms to supply more than 80 per cent of Orora’s electricity requirements.
 
In 2000, he became the founding chair of the Energy Users Association of Australia (EUAA), a lobby group representing large energy users. He was on the board of the EUAA for 20 years.
 
Despite segueing from HVAC&R to a rewarding career in energy management, Dobney has remained a proud AIRAH member.
 
He retired from professional life at the start of 2020.

100 Faces Q&A

​​What brought you to the HVAC&R industry?

My father, Bill Dobney Jr, started his career as a refrigeration mechanic during WWII, and later qualified as a mechanical engineer. He eventually became managing director of Luke Airconditioning (formerly Applied Airconditioning).
 
My grandfather, Bill Dobney Sr, was a refrigeration designer and salesman for Werner Refrigeration – so you could say I had refrigeration in my blood!
Both my father (a former AIRAH President, 1965–66), and my grandfather, had long-standing involvement with AIRAH.
What's your favourite HVAC&R-related memory?

Design of buildings and building services for the Australian Antarctic bases at Mawson and Casey, including building thermal insulation, heating, ventilation and heat recovery, powerhouse and reticulated heating hot water and drinking water.
 
Designing laboratories for CSIRO and CSL including the Human Vaccine Building at Parkville, Materials Science Laboratories at Clayton and the Australian Radiation Laboratories at Watsonia.
 
Designing one of the first ground-source heat pump systems in Australia at Victoria University’s Werribee Campus – the engineering and science building.

How long have you been a member of AIRAH?

I became a student member of AIRAH in 1972, and, despite a change in career path into energy, I have been a member ever since.
 
I can still recall attending AIRAH evening lectures in the 1970s at Clunies-Ross House with my father and grandfather.
 
Some of the highlights as an AIRAH member include:


  • Victoria division committee member in the late 80s and early 90s
  • Presenting papers at AIRAH conferences, including demand management; indoor air quality; energy supply and management for remote areas (Yulara/Ayers Rock village)
  • Receiving the WR Ahern Award for my AIRAH conference paper on energy targets for commercial buildings (Perth conference, 1990)
  • Organising AIRAH’s Building Automation and Control Systems Exhibition at the National Science Centre (Clunies-Ross House, 1990)
  • Organising the first major display of HVAC equipment at AIRAH’s Melbourne Conference, a forerunner of the ARBS Exhibition (Royal Showgrounds, 1992)
  • Member of the AIRAH Design Aid Committee, drafting and editing the Cooling Tower Design Aid (DA17), first published in 1995.
How do you see the HVAC&R industry developing over the next 100 years?

We will see more emphasis on the passive design of buildings so that they require less heating and cooling.
 
There will be more use of renewable energy, including eventually moving from natural gas to more sustainable fuel sources such as hydrogen.

For more on Peter Dobney, visit his LinkedIn.

EXPLORE AIRAH's 100 FACES

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