The stand-out projects, people and products of the Australian HVAC&R industry took centre stage at the black-tie AIRAH Awards presentation dinner held at Melbourne’s Central Pier on Thursday, November 15.

Recognised as Australia’s premier annual HVAC&R awards ceremony, the AIRAH Awards celebrate the industry’s exemplar projects, high achievers and ground-breaking research.

Winners were announced across 11 categories and included flagship projects such as the International Convention Centre in Sydney, the RN Robertson Building at the Australian Nation University in Canberra, and the Bend Motorsport Park in Tailem Bend, South Australia.

The AIRAH Awards also recognise individuals, from the most promising students who are just starting their careers to industry doyens who have contributed tirelessly over many years. As in the project categories, it was encouraging to see the winners coming from right across country: Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney and Wollongong.

“The overwhelming feeling at this year’s AIRAH Awards presentation dinner was that the future of our industry is bright,” says AIRAH CEO Tony Gleeson, M.AIRAH. “We’re going through a time of transformative change – and massive opportunity. It’s great to see our leading companies and individuals tackling the challenge to create a more sustainable built environment and raising the bar for everyone.

“This year the judges were especially impressed with the calibre of entries and the closeness of the competition. Congratulations to all the finalists, and especially the winners in each category.”

Winners of the AIRAH Awards 2018 are:

• Student of the Year – Higher Education or Research: Clayton McDowell, Stud.AIRAH, Sustainable Buildings Research Centre, University of Wollongong
• Student of the Year – Trade: Patrick Brennan, Stud.AIRAH, TAFE Queensland Skillstech, Acacia Ridge, Brisbane; and Anthony Consterdine, M.AIRAH, South Metropolitan TAFE, Perth
• AIRAH Future Leader Award: Massimo Fiorentini, Affil.AIRAH, Sustainable Buildings Research Centre, University of Wollongong
• Best HVAC Retrofit or Upgrade: Norman Disney & Young – RN Robertson Building at the Australian National University
• Excellence in Innovation: G. Coombs and AECOM – International Convention Centre, Sydney
• Excellence in Refrigeration: Glaciem Cooling – The Bend Motorsport Park
• WR Ahern Award: Hongsen Zhang, M.AIRAH, and Dr Paul Bannister, F.AIRAH – “A calibrated simulation case study for an office building in Canberra”

This story and the accompanying image were provided courtesy of AIRAH Communications.