NatRef Topics on the Speakers’ Agenda at ARBS in Australia

The Air Conditioning, Refrigeration Building Services (ARBS) 2020 Exhibition in Melbourne, Australia, has announced a sneak peek into its speaker series, which includes two NatRef presenters: Scantec, which will present on replacing an HFC refrigeration system with ammonia; and shecco (publisher of this website), which will provide the latest global market trends for energy-efficient natural refrigeration systems. 

“The ARBS 2020 Speaker Series is in the final stages of development and if this sneak peek is anything to go on, we are in for an incredible series with some of our industry’s top names presenting on a diverse range of HVAC&R and building services topics, updates and trending issues,” according to a recent ARBS press release. 

The ARBS Speaker Series runs in conjunction with Australia’s only international air conditioning, refrigeration and building services trade exhibition, ARBS 2020, which takes place May 19-21.

Each session will provide attendees with the opportunity to accrue Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Points.

NatRef topics

Stefan Jensen, Managing Director of Scantec, an industrial refrigeration system manufacturer and contractor in Australia, will present, “Decommissioning of existing HFC based, air-cooled refrigeration plants and replacement with NH3 DX-based solutions.”

According to the preview, this session will draw on comparisons between the recorded energy performances of the new DX ammonia system and those of the previous HFC-based systems. The analysis will review the records of electrical energy consumed by the HFC system and consumption records generated by the SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) system of the new ammonia plant, as well as an economic comparison between ammonia DX and an equivalent transcritical CO2 system.

Marc Chasserot, CEO of market accelerator shecco, will present on “market trends for energy efficient technologies with natural refrigerants in Oceania and globally.”

The presentation will provide the latest market data on the use of certain technologies such as CO2 transcritical and low-charge ammonia. It will highlight the key policy opportunities and drivers for the uptake of natural refrigerant-based technologies. Chasserot will also outline key measures/practices to improve energy efficiency in HFC-free commercial refrigeration equipment and recommendations, best practices, challenges and barriers. 

Other topics that have been announced include:

• “Infrastructure Without Tears: How to transition from commercial to industrial contracts without losing your shirt” by Melissa Kirby and Murray Walls, Sharpe & Abel and RMIT University

• “The efficiency of air-movement systems – Improve your ROI by focusing on upgrading your HVAC&R systems” by Suzanne Lohmann and Thomas Heine, ebm-papst

• “The Future of NABERS (National Australian Built Environment Rating System) Energy” by Corine Mulet, NABERS

• “Cold Hard Facts: An Annual Update” by Michael McCann and Peter Brodribb, Expert Group

• “Seismic Restraint of HVAC Explained” by Jordan Bartlett, Eurofast

• “HVACPRO – AI: MPC for Optimization of HVACR Systems with Hybrid Energy Sources including Renewables” by Chirayu Shah, Subbu Sethuvenkatraman & Mark Hooper, Conserve It, CSIRO and Echuca Regional Health

More speakers will soon be announced.