AMCA Speakers Network Connecting with Engineers

AMCA Speakers Network Connecting With Engineers

The fledgling AMCA Speakers Network is off the ground and taking flight, with two presentations given since mid-December.

On Dec. 12, AMCA Associate Director, Business Development Josh Parent and AMCA Principal Engineer Tim Mathson visited Ross & Baruzzini (http://www.rossbar.com/), an international design and consulting firm based in St. Louis.

Before an audience of 23 of the firm’s mechanical engineers, Parent kicked things off.

“My portion of the presentation touched on AMCA as a not-for-profit—what that means; the value we provide—how specifying certified products protects their good name; and a high-level overview of our tenets—the Certified Ratings Program (CRP), advocacy, and education—basically, who we are and what we do,” Parent explained.

Mathson then gave an in-depth talk on fan energy index (FEI) and the CRP.

“Steve Duda, head of the mechanical group, was very appreciative of our offer to come out and thought the content was excellent,” Parent reported. “He said the AMCA intro was valuable in that it not only gave beginning engineers a program overview that was otherwise unavailable, but helped them to understand certification’s value and why he insists on AMCA certification in all of the firm’s HVAC specs. Regarding FEI, he said the metric sold itself once you got into potential efficiency increases and cost savings. He said that would be the lightbulb moment for specifying engineers.

“Steve suggested we visit two other Ross & Baruzzini offices and since has put us in contact.”

Parent added that eight of the firm’s engineers took up AMCA on its offer of a professional-development hour for attending.

On Jan. 15, Parent and William “Bill” Howarth, president of Lake Zurich, Ill.-based Ventilation & Fan Consulting Service International LLC, traveled to Rochester, N.Y., and the local office of M/E Engineering (https://www.meengineering.com/).

Before an audience of 13 mechanical engineers ranging from interns to 30-year professionals, Parent presented his overview of AMCA before giving way to Howarth, who touched briefly on fan safety before going in-depth on FEI and system effect.

“The presentation was warmly received, with Bruce Knapp, M/E’s principal mechanical engineer, immediately expressing his appreciation for AMCA making this educational opportunity available to them and requesting that we follow up regarding other available topics and schedule another presentation,” Parent reported. “I have since communicated with Bruce, and we are actively working toward a second go.”

Parent said Knapp praised the idea of offering PDHs, calling it a great way for AMCA to get its foot in the door of engineering firms. Additionally, Parent said, Knapp expressed appreciation for AMCA’s offer to review and revise the firm’s fan-system specifications.

“It was a good visit that netted us further visits,” Parent said. “I’d call that a win.”

Launched in late 2019 as part of AMCA’s efforts to advance the knowledge of air systems and uphold industry integrity on behalf of its members worldwide, the AMCA Speakers Network (https://www.amca.org/blog/education/amca-speakers-network.html) is a stable of subject-matter experts available to present on topics impacting the air-systems industry to engineering firms, technical schools, universities, ASHRAE chapters, and the like. For more information, including how to participate, contact Parent at +1 847-704-6330 or jparent@amca.org.