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"Perspectives"
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"Perspectives"
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BACKGROUNDIn the 1940s, my one-mile walk to primary school each day took me across a railway line near the station at Preston, a suburb of Melbourne, and occasionally there would be a steam engine on the move to see. I was always impressed by the sight of steam and its power.
I guess I could say I grew up in an age of steam, when having finished secondary school I started work for a nearby company called Dreadnought Steam Equipment Company. I was a fitter and turner there – capstan lathes, milling machines, toolmaking, valve testing – and we manufactured steam valves and condensate traps and the like. I loved the work and the company wanted me to stay and advance with them, but I saw limitations and subsequently chose instead to undertake tertiary study at RMIT. I then secured in 1955 a cadet engineer position with the Federal Department of Works, completed the course and began my career as an Engineer grade 1 in 1959 working in the architectural/engineering drawing office in Exhibition St, Melbourne. I remained with ComWorks, in its many manifestations, until 1993 when that department was downsized. I then began a consultancy that is still active. |
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My association with AIRAH started in 1960 when I met Jim Watson and Stuart Brown, each of Werner, as we were night school students at Swinburne Tech (Diploma in HVAC&R).
They mentioned AIRAH meetings, which were then held in Kelvin Hall, 55 Collins Place (now part of Exhibition Street) Melbourne. I attended and was awestruck with the industry knowledge passed on by luminaries such as Bill Dobney Senior (and later his son, Bill Junior), and by the monthly speakers. I resolved to join to get closer to this knowledge bank but had to settle for the “Junior member” title myself. I could not enjoy the status of a full member until I was 26 years old. I think that limit was subsequently lowered to 24 and maybe doesn’t exist nowadays. Another luminary was Gwen Gray, who was noteworthy not only for the generosity of her time given to AIRAH but also for her role in leading HVAC&R course planning structures at RMIT and all on top of her day job at Bassetts. |
So much about all this was impressive. All those I met seemed to be, well, nice people. And the technical talent was patently obvious. I liked to listen.
That initial membership fee was a mere one pound 10 shillings, $2.10 in modern currency. It certainly proved to be good value! My certificate of membership is dated November 28, 1961 and was presented on March 14, 1962. The program for 1962 was very attractive and included site visits to the Gas Corp. and to CSIRO Highett. I have fond memories as these early years were the most influential of my life. AIRAH has continued to provide the means for meeting and listening to experts giving freely of their knowledge. It’s essential to maintain such contact and to be aware of industry developments. I feel honoured to still be a member. AIRAH for me was also the gateway to ASHRAE, the most influential of international societies in our building services industry. For AIRAH to be celebrating 100 years in this industry is not only commendable but also amazing. |
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Aurecon’s Danni Roberts, M.AIRAH, was originally from New Zealand, but now calls Queensland home. |
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BACKGROUNDBorn in England, lived on Tyneside with a brief sojourn to Leeds where I started high school. Finished school at year 10 back on Tyneside and almost completed a pre-apprenticeship at Hebburn Technical College before migrating to Western Australia at age 15, my first ever flight was London to Perth, a real eye-opener travelling on my own.
I had my 16th birthday on the road to Wittenoom in the Pilbara. Started work the next day for Australian Blue Asbestos – the “Blue Sky Mine” of the Midnight Oil song. I left home on decimal currency conversion day a few months later and moved through various jobs in agriculture, construction and oil exploration, before finding myself back in the Pilbara working on the construction of the Port of Dampier ore-loading facilities, where I was introduced to R&AC. Eventually I completed an apprenticeship with Hamersley Iron (now RIO) as a refrigeration mechanic and moved to Perth a few months after cyclone Trixie gave us a very sleepless night. I worked for Direct Engineering Services in Perth – the company that started manufacturing air conditioners that became APAC – as a tradesman, service manager and contract supervisor. I then moved into education and training when I successfully applied for a lecturing position at Perth Technical College. In my 40 years with TAFE I have been involved in teaching, curriculum development, secondment to special projects, management and resource development, including the national textbook project that produced Australian Refrigeration and Air Conditioning. I completed a bachelor’s degree in education and more recently with a change of focus completed a degree in theology and was ordained as an Anglican priest in the Diocese of Perth. |
AIRAHAIRAH has been an integral part of my career, especially in education and training. It has always been a requirement for TAFE to work closely with industry – how else do we keep up with change, maintain our currency and meet the needs of employers?
AIRAH has been a vehicle for me to maintain that close contact with the refrigeration and air conditioning industry. I have learned much, met great people and had the opportunity to contribute to our industry through my involvement. Much has changed in our industry since we crawled out of the cold store, but AIRAH has adapted and changed with the times. It hasn’t always been perfect but as an organisation we have endured due to the wise counsel of those who have taken up the baton of leadership. It is a great achievement to reach the Centenary and we look forward to AIRAH continuing to change and adapt towards the next 100 years. |
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BACKGROUNDI’m the first female fridgie for the federal government. I had a dream apprenticeship working within the industrial, commercial and domestic arenas. I did my trade in Darwin and loved it. I went on to teach at TAFE and helped inject many women into non-traditional careers. I have my own business, About Airconditioning, and still surprise people when I show up to work on a project.
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LESSONS LEARNEDMy tradesman used to tell me to walk into a plant room and listen, feel and look, because the system will tell you its story.
My TAFE lecturer used to say we are “bucketloads full of heat mechanics”. My Mum used to tell me to treat people with encouragement and respect. |
FULFILLMENTWorking with my hands, thinking out a problem and finding the root cause. Being good at diagnosis and remedy is my favourite thing.
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PROFOUND CHANGEI’ve watched ammonia come back into fashion and the digital era revolutionise control systems.
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FAVOURITE ASSIGNMENTSAnything customised or different always draws my full attention. Controls and sensors; it’s amazing how much information we can gather that can further the efficiency of a system. If you can think it, it can be done.
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AIRAHAIRAH has been supportive of women, and has been mentoring them to better represent in HVAC&R. We have so much to offer in this space, and it’s a rewarding career that needs to be considered.
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CONFIDENT COLLABORATORMikaila Ganado, M.AIRAH, is an associate and part-owner at GWA Consultants Australia, has recently been elected onto the AIRAH board of directors, chairs the of Women of AIRAH STG, and is associate director of the Institute’s NSW division committee. |
PROFOUND CHANGESCollaboration. I see owners, designers and builders working a lot more collaboratively to meet tight energy performance criteria.
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FAVOURITE ASSIGNMENTSThe Coliseum Theatre at West HQ, Rooty Hill. Not only has this theatre had a huge impact on the arts scene in the western suburbs and Sydney in general, but it was also an incredible project to be involved in. The huge open foyer area and multiple usage requirements for the theatre space resulted in a very challenging design brief. Working through those challenges to deliver a visually stunning and technically difficult solution for the air handling and controls systems was very rewarding.
AIRAHBeing involved with AIRAH has presented me with a lot of opportunities. From arranging events to presenting at conferences and now serving on the board. On a personal level, I've met some of my closest friends through my involvement with AIRAH and their encouragement, support and willingness to share their knowledge has helped me immensely throughout my career.
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LESSONS LEARNEDThe most important message that’s been imparted to me is that no one is qualified for a job until they’ve done it, so stand up and say “yes”. The rest will sort itself out – with hard work and dedication. And we don’t have to have all of the answers all of the time. It’s OK to say, “I'll get back to you on that.”
FULFILMENTBringing ideas to life and being able to measure successful performance.
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BACKGROUNDI’m a mechanical engineer with additional qualifications in building services and environmental management. I worked in both the consulting and contracting sides of the HVAC&R industry before moving into technical publishing and project management.
Having moved to Australia from Ireland in 1990, I got married, had three kids and made a tree change to a regional area in 2001. I now work in a small consultancy providing engineering advice, technical writing and project management services to a range of government and non-government clients. As a technical writer and project manager I have managed a number of projects for AIRAH, working with AIRAH members to develop technical guidance on HVAC&R applications, energy efficiency, water conservation, and development of education and training programs. I am currently working with AIRAH as the project leader for the Innovation Hub for Affordable Heating and Cooling (i-Hub). I’m helping AIRAH bring together leading universities, researchers, consultants, building owners and equipment manufacturers to create a connected research and development community in Australia. LESSONS LEARNED, WISDOM IMPARTEDA few come to mind:
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PROFOUND CHANGESWithout a doubt – digitisation. I remember a single shared computer in a computer room when I first went to university, and now we all walk around with computers in our pockets. The melding of computer and machine is relentless and changes everything we do. From very basic early calculators the industry has developed and adopted a range of digital tools such as load estimation, CFD analysis, CAD and evolving to modelling of building and systems for building design, construction and increasingly remote sensing and control for building operation and intelligent buildings.
The other profound change has been the recognition of the environmental impact that the industry has had, and continues to have. While refrigeration and HVAC services saves lives and improves health and productivity, both are rapidly growing sectors and are responsible for large chunks of energy use and global CO2 emissions. However, with refrigerants and energy use moving to top of mind, solutions integrating HVAC with onsite energy storage and renewable energy generation assets are beginning to add up, technically and economically. |
AIRAHI’ve been associated with AIRAH for over 25 years and in a range of capacities: as an industry liaison, as an AIRAH project manager and as an AIRAH member. I have collaborated with a wide range of AIRAH members and staff over the years, when developing AIRAH Application Manuals or other AIRAH projects.
For me AIRAH is somewhere between workmate and extended family member. Congratulations AIRAH, and all her supporters, on great work over the last 100 years! |
