November Newsletter: President's Notes and Wireless for HVAC

NOTES FROM THE PRESIDENT:
Last month we had a great overview of constant volume zoning technologies and design from Ryan Hoger of TEC. We would like to thank everyone who attended the meetings and made last month's programs a success. Thank you to Ryan Hogar as well for taking so much time out of his busy schedule and hitting both the South Bend meeting and Calumet meeting.

We, as a chapter, have several ongoing projects that I would like to let you all know about.

We are working on putting together a scholarship to help local students. The intent of this scholarship is to assist those in school that may be involved with ASHRAE activities at their schools. Currently we have a student chapter at Purdue Calumet. We are hoping to include other local universities as well. We hope to encourage more students to become involved with ASHRAE and to study HVAC.

As many of you are familiar with, we put on an annual golf outing to support ASHRAE Research. Last year we raised a record amount of money. I hope that we can match or better that this year. Please start talking with your employers and start thinking about what you may want to personally donate to this worthy cause. Check with you employers as well if they will match any donations that you make. No, we are not saving kids from cancer. However, ASHRAE Rearch supports research in areas that directly impact things such as indoor air quality and energy consumption. One thing you may not know about ASHSRAE Research is that 160% of every dollar is used for research. Administration of ASHRAE Research is performed by ASHRAE, which is covered by your dues. In addition to this, there are matching grants from other institutions that boost the value of every dollar you may donate to ASHRAE Research.

Nationally, ASHRAE has committed to providing the tools for designing low energy buildings. Locally, we are committed to diseminating those tools. This year we will be putting together programs to start introducing these tools such as the Advanced Energy Design Guides. The Advanced Energy Design Guide for small commercial buildings is one way to achieve easy LEED energy points, by the way. We'll also be looking into alternative energy sources and LEED projects, to name a few things.

I hope you have enjoyed the programs so far. Please send me any comments that you may have.

Thanks again for all your participation,

Louis van Belle
Chapter President

WIRELESS!

Have you ever had that perfect spot for a thermostat but just don't have anywhere to route the wiring? Have you ever needed to get data from point A to point B but didn't want to loop hundreds of feet of cabling through plenums, up and down columns, and every which way? This month Jim Kohl of Trane will be presenting on wireless technologies in the HVAC field. He will discuss the current state of affairs in addition to upcoming future technologies and their applications.

Jim Kohl joined Trane Global Controls in May, 2005. As Product Manager, Jim is currently responsible for Sensors, Wireless Technology, and Outsourced Products. Jim has experience in product and applications engineering, as well as over ten years in product management. Jim was employed by Donaldson Company for nineteen years, where he was awarded one US patent. Most recently, Jim managed the aftermarket development department at McQuay International. Jim holds both a BA in Business and an MBA from Metropolitan State University, where he also a member of the University's resident faculty.

Please make an effort to come out and join us Thursday, November 15 at Margaritas. Everyone is free to attend so invite friends, mothers, brothers, clients, building owners, architects, etc.

Dinner Meeting
Cost: $20 (Students are free)
Check-in: 5:30 pm - 6:00 pm EST
Dinner / Program: 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm EST

Margaritas
19606 S. Burnham
Lynnwood, IL
708-412-2650
Google Maps

Please RSVP by Tuesday, November 13
Send an e-mail using the links are on the right.
Or, phone Louis van Belle at 219-924-8400 for the dinner meeting.

Ethanol from Trash?

I just wanted to post a couple I've items I've seen in the news in the last few days. First, I saw this article in Wired.

Now, this morning, I was reading my Post-Tribune and found this article about something very similar. Something worries me about this, is this another government boondoggle? It almost sounds too good to be true. We can get rid of our garbage at half the price of landfilling it and you get ethanol to boot? Sounds a little too good to be true.

On the topic of ethanol and biofuels, National Geographic has a published a good, balanced article in it's October issue.

Please don't take me as a non-biofuels supporter. I just think a little more thought needs to be put in what we decide to fuel our cars. Using our food and the food of the nations so we can get to work and drive to soccer practice does not seem right. We're making a good start at weening our selves from foreign oil. More research, however, needs to be done on such things as cellulosic ethanol and other biofuels. Maybe we should even work on using less...

Greenbuild in Chicago!

Don't forget USGBC's Greenbuild is coming up on November 7 through 9! You can visit www.greenbuildexpo.org for more information. Former President Bill Clinton will be doing the opening plenary.

October Meeting

It was good to see many of you at our last two refrigeration meetings. Just remember there are four ingredients to beer: water, malt, hops, and yeast. Also, glycol is important for keeping beer cool.

We are trying something a little different with the newsletter this year. Instead of e-mailing it to everyone, it will be posted on the website. Currently the web address for our chapter is in a little flux. For now you can find the newsletter here. Along with the newsletters, pictures of the events will be posted, so please visit after the meeting. This site is interactive. So, if you have any comments about the meeting or the chapter, in general, feel free to post them. Finally, please use the links on the right to e-mail your RSVP. Phone numbers are given below if e-mail is not available.

This month, our meeting topic is:

Proper Applications & Sequences for Constant Volume Pressure Dependent Zoning Systems

These types of systems are known by several different names…..constant volume zoning...variable volume and temperature (VVT)...pressure dependent zoning...auto-changeover VAV...bypass VAV. This month’s topic will be about the history of these types of systems and why some engineers swear by them and why others swear at them. Our guest speaker, Illinois Chapter President Ryan Hoger will discuss how to correctly apply these systems with a practical list of do’s and don’ts. Open discussion is encouraged.

Mr. Hoger is the Commercial Systems Product Manager at Temperature Equipment Corporation, the local distributor of Carrier HVAC equipment and control systems. Ryan has been with TEC’s controls division for the past ten years. In addition to being the President of the Illinois ASHRAE Chapter, he has also served as the Chapter Secretary, the Vice-Chair of the Programs Sub-committee, and the Co-Chair of the Technology Transfer Committee. Ryan was a 2005 Top Five Finalist for the global ASHRAE New Faces of Engineering Award and is a current member of YEA (Young Engineers in ASHRAE). He has had significant local experience with design, specification, installation, and programming of constant volume zoning systems since 1997. Ryan presented this same constant volume zoning technical topic for the Illinois chapter in May. As some of you may remember, Ryan has also presented the topic of CO2-based Demand Controlled Ventilation for both the Northern Indiana and Illinois chapters, as well as a presentation on web based controls systems for the Illinois chapter. Ryan has a Bachelor of Science degree in General Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Please invite anyone (wife, brother, mother, client, building owner, contractor, engineer, etc.). We are not an exclusive chapter. We hope that you can join us on October 18^th to contribute to the discussion. Professional Development Hours (PDH) can be earned by attending this technical seminar.

Lunch Meeting
Cost: $15
Check-in: 11:30 am - noon EST
Lunch / Program: Noon - 1:00 pm EST
Tippecanoe Place
620 W. Washington ST.
South Bend, IN
574-234-907
Google Maps

Dinner Meeting
Cost: $20
Check-in: 5:30 pm - 6:00 pm EST
Dinner / Program: 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm EST

Margaritas
19606 S. Burnham
Lynnwood, IL
708-412-2650
Google Maps

Please RSVP by Monday, October 15
Send an e-mail using the links are on the right.
Or, phone Tom Schneider at 574-232-6908 ext. 13 for the lunch meeting.
Or, phone Louis van Belle at 219-924-8400 for the dinner meeting.

I just want to post this e-mail I got today as a reminder to everyone that next week is the 90.1 meeting in Chicago. Feel free to attend as all the sessions are open to the public. This will be a great opportunity to see how the standards process works, do some great networking, and participate in a very important part of ASHRAE business. If you want more information, feel free to e-mail me.

From: "Ferguson, Steve"
To: Louis van Belle
Date: 10/4/07 8:20AM
Subject: ASHRAE SSPC 90.1 Meeting Agenda 10-2007

ASHRAE SSPC 90.1 MEETING AGENDA

Chicago Interim Meeting

October 11-13, 2007

To: Interested Parties of SSPC 90.1

Ladies and Gentlemen:

The meetings are scheduled to begin at noon on Thursday, October 11. All
meetings are open to the public

Location:

Hilton Garden Inn

Chicago O'Hare Airport

Chicago, IL

847-296-8900

www.chicagoohareairport.stayhgi.com

We look forward to your attendance, ideas, and help as we work toward
moving the standard forward.

Regards,

Mick Schwedler, PE

ASHRAE SSPC 90.1 Chair

Steve Ferguson, Assistant Manager of Standards - Codes
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc.
Web: www.ASHRAE.org

Reaching New Heights with ASHRAE at its 2008 Winter Meeting,
Jan. 19-23, New York City. Registration is now open
at www.ashrae.org/newyork