INVESTING IN OUR FUTURE ENGINEERS

AIRMASTERADVISOR

Airmaster is providing opportunities for Australia’s future engineers to further their studies and experience by offering a range of learning initiatives.

Through partnerships with various educational institutions, Airmaster provides both scholarships and apprentice-based opportunities.

Third-year electrical engineering students at RMIT University in Melbourne are invited to apply for the RMIT Airmaster Scholarship, whilst mechanical engineering students undertaking their studies at the University of Tasmania in Hobart can apply for one of two Airmaster Scholarships. The scholarships provide financial support to the resulting successful applicant.

The scholarships encourage and support aspiring students to pursue their interest and career prospects in various engineering sectors.

RMIT and UTAS are just two beneficiaries of Airmaster’s program. Croydon Community School, a Melbourne school providing alternate secondary education to students who have experienced difficulty in previous schools, is benefitting through a partnership whereby Airmaster provides one of their students an intern placement with the company.

Airmaster currently has an ever-growing number of apprentices nationwide, initiatives such as these help to ensure the industry remains in good hands.

Plant room optimisation & controls software solution PlantPRO has been recognised at the prestigious AIRAH Awards, named Product of the Year.

Engineered and developed by Conserve It, and distributed exclusively in Australia by Airmaster, PlantPRO uses feedback from an on-board real time analytics, diagnostics, measurement and verification system to continually readjust the chiller plant for optimum performance.

The AIRAH Awards recognise and celebrate Australia’s outstanding projects and leaders in the heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration industry.

The latest news and insights from across the Airmaster network

For more visit airmaster.com.au APRIL 2016

For more visit us online:

airmaster.com.au

AIRMASTERCONTINUES TO GROWOngoing growth has seen Airmaster expand operations, with the opening of our latest branch in Newcastle. Read more on the next page.

Our Brisbane branch at their new base in Mansfield

PLANTPRO NAMED AIRAH PRODUCT OF THE YEAR

CEO Noel Courtney accepts the Product of the Year Award

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AIRMASTER ADVISOR | APRIL 20162

The industry’s latest buzzword “big data” comes with the promise of business transformation - from restaurants who want to know their client preferences to building owners seeking to minimise costs. We sit down with our resident expert on big data, BUENO Managing Director Leon Wurfel, to discuss what big data means for the industry.

Big data is regularly described as a fast-flowing river of unstructured data and information. What is your definition of the term?

Wurfel: Big data is a relative term. If you imagine a data tap and data sink, then big data is whenever historically, the data tap has been on but there has been no plug in the sink. Whatever data has been going down the drain in our industry is because it has been too hard to extract value from it – due to siloing or ability to process. That is big data.

It’s relative because big data in the technology space is really orders of magnitude bigger than what we typically talk about in buildings. So the big part is relative for sure, but the framework is the same no matter what.

Touching on all the hype around the subject, does big data represent a revolution or an evolution?

Wurfel: Big data is both an evolution and a revolution. In reality, big data is a tool, and it’s going to be incorporated into “business as usual” for most businesses. The people that don’t figure out how to make it work for their businesses are going to be playing catch-up when everyone else turns it into a competitive advantage.

From an HVAC perspective, what can big data reveal that we don’t already know?

Wurfel: Big data techniques like analytics can be an MRI for your building. If done well, it can tell you every single issue with the operation of your building.

Analytics need to be supported with talented domain expertise to get the

value and the outcomes for the clients, owners and FMs. If you give someone technology, you’ve added to their to-do list. But if you give them technology and services you take things off their to-do list, and probably get a better outcome.

What is the business case for big data, particularly in HVAC? Do the rewards outweigh the costs?

Wurfel: If executed well the rewards will definitely outweigh the costs. The “general business case” takes into account improved energy efficiency, improved maintenance efficiency through automated maintenance tasking and reductions in repair and maintenance costs over time – after an initial spike to fix all the important latent issues. There is also the benefit of improved tenant comfort.

What are some of the challenges around the integration of big data analytics in the HVAC field?

Wurfel: For BUENO, we have solved a lot of the technical problems around integration, curating the data and doing something meaningful with it. But the real issues are around stakeholder education and engagement in operation.

Some people we talk to just get it immediately, but with others it doesn’t matter how many hours you spend explaining it or showing them examples, they just don’t understand what they’re missing by not using their data better.

This is an excerpt from a full interview with Leon on the impact of big data on the HVAC&R industry. To read the full interview visit the news section of the Airmaster website airmaster.com.au.

One of the many community-based initiatives that Airmaster is involved in includes sponsorship of Tasmania’s Northern Hawks Netball Club. The Hawks, who are partnered with current AFL Premiers Hawthorn, have competed in Tasmania’s premier netball league continuously since 1987.

Airmaster, having recently attended their season launch, is proud to be a Gold Sponsor of the club and we wish the team all the best for the upcoming ANZ State League season.

Due to continued growth around the country, the past few months has seen a number of branch changes across the Airmaster network.

We recently opened our newest branch in Newcastle, encompassing the wider Hunter area. Whilst our existing Brisbane, Perth, Geelong and Hobart branches all recently moved to larger premises to cater for ongoing growth in these markets.

To ensure you have the most up to date contact details for our branch network please visit the Airmaster website.

OUR BRANCH NETWORK CONTINUES TO GROW

AIRMASTER IN THE COMMUNITY

Leon Wurfel is the Managing Director of BUENO, an industry leader delivering data related and technology driven services based on fault detection, optimisation and business intelligence that simplify client operations and enhance their effectiveness across all building sectors and building information systems.

BUENO’s work has received award-winning recognition in both Australia and internationally. For more visit buenosystems.com.au

BIG DATA: HOW IT IMPACTS THE HVAC&R INDUSTRY

Northern Hawks players at their 2016 season launch

Newcastle is home to our 11th and newest branch