The University of Wollongong (UOW) is conducting an online survey of HVAC technicians and contractors who service office buildings around Australia. The survey will help UOW support the Australian government in understanding the industry and shape future policies and programs.
“Well-maintained HVAC systems function better, use less energy, produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions and boost comfort for building occupants,” says AIRAH CEO Tony Gleeson, M.AIRAH. “What you do on the job has a big impact on how they perform.”
The survey is particularly focused on work done in older, smaller and poorer quality buildings. OUW project leader Dr Chantel Carr explains that although Australia is a world leader when it comes to larger and premium commercial buildings, there is a lot of room for improvement in the mid-tier.
“Thanks to initiatives like the Commercial Buildings Disclosure program and ratings schemes such as Green Star and WELL, we know that the top end of town is in great shape. But the majority of commercial buildings in Australia don’t fall into this bracket. We have a blind spot when it comes to how the rest of our building stock is performing.
“Contractors who work on these buildings every day are well placed to help us understand how much better they could perform with regular, effective maintenance of HVAC systems. We’re really interested in a ‘coalface’ perspective – what contractors and facilities managers see and do on the job, and how this varies across Australia.”
AIRAH is supporting this important research and has called on members to share their personal experiences through the survey.
“We often bemoan the fact that HVAC&R is an invisible industry,” says Gleeson. “This survey is an opportunity to reveal the impact we have. If we can show people the big numbers and quantify the opportunities for improving HVAC systems and reducing costs and emissions, they will take notice.”
Gleeson is asking all AIRAH members working in the commercial HVAC space to complete the survey, and share the link with any contractors they know.
“Many AIRAH members work in commercial HVAC and manage teams of technicians who do the day-to-day maintenance tasks,” says Gleeson. “We hope they will share the link and strongly encourage their staff to complete the survey. It will be of great benefit to the industry.”
As an added incentive, those who fill in the survey can go into a draw to win one of forty $100 gift vouchers. The survey takes about 15 minutes to complete and is open until September 30.
To complete the survey, go to betterwaystowork.com.au
