Arthur (Artie) Irwin’s peers conveyed one final honour earlier this week as he was named among 17 new ASHRAE Fellows, elevated to the special category of membership for exceptional contributions to the HVAC industry and a sustainable built environment. Formal bestowal at the society’s 2019 Winter Conference, taking place in Atlanta, Georgia, sadly came just after the well known energy consultant’s death on January 7. He was 85.
Artie joined ASHRAE’s Halifax chapter in 1965. He’s a past president and a recipient of the Chapter Service Award who was named a life member in 1998. However, residents of Atlantic Canada might know him best as the home-heating expert who answered questions on a monthly radio phone-in show for nearly three decades.
His professional life began in 1955 after graduating from Halifax Regional Vocational School, as today’s Nova Scotia Community College was then known. Over the years, Artie worked in private industry in commercial heating equipment sales and as a consultant and program developer for the Nova Scotia department of energy before establishing his own consulting practice specializing in energy assessments. He served the industry and the public at large through his participation on advisory committees on energy and technical standards, developing HVAC training courses and materials, and publishing numerous papers.
Another author of influential research papers, Bert Phillips, a professional engineer and president of Winnipeg-based UNIES Ltd., is the other Canadian named to the select slate of ASHRAE Fellows. A specialist in building envelope issues, indoor air quality and HVAC system design, he holds a B.Sc. in Agriculture Engineering and an MBA from the University of Manitoba. He is a member of the board of directors of the Manitoba Building Envelope Council and served on the scientific committee for the 2018 Cold Climate HVAC Conference in Kiruna, Sweden.
ASHRAE Fellows are designated via an extensive peer nomination and vetting process. They are ASHRAE members of at least 10 years’ standing deemed to have a notable, unique and positive influence in advancing HVAC&R practices and the understanding of the industry’s role in a sustainable built environment.
In addition to recognizing new ASHRAE Fellows at the 2019 Winter Conference, the society handed out its Technology Awards for proven innovative projects, student design awards and three other individual awards for contributions to ASHRAE, education and public service. Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft Corporation, was named an honorary ASHRAE member.
