ATLANTA  — The 2019 Innovation Award winners were honored at The AHR Expo on Tuesday, Jan. 15. Each received a classic crystal triangle trophy from Clay Stevens, manager of AHR Expo, and Sheila Hayter, president of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

“Every year we look forward to award submissions that set the bar for innovation and professional practices in HVACR,” said Stevens. “Year after year we continue to receive entries that exceed our expectations. We congratulate these winners as leaders from across all facets of the industry.”

In announcing the Product of the Year winner, the master of ceremonies explained that the product of the year is a coveted award that, “singles out an organization which has exhibited exceptional merit in the research and development of groundbreaking technology.” He went to say, “Of the winner one of the judges said, ‘the product was not only innovative, but was visionary.’ Another referenced this technology as an ‘industry game changer.’ ”

The crowd applauded when he announced enVerid as the winner for its HVAC Load Reduction® (HLR) module 1000E-M.

In a live interview with Udi Meirav, founder and CEO of enVerid, there was nothing but excitement and elation as he and his team celebrated the win.

"It's wonderful to have this trophy," said Meirav. "We've worked very long and very hard to get to this point and I can't even say how exciting this is for us."

According to the company, this indoor air scrubber module is designed to lower energy wastage from HVAC systems and reduces the amount of outside air needed for ventilation by 60-80 percent. This results in increased energy efficiency and annual energy savings of 20-30 percent with peak capacity reductions of 10-20 ton per HLR® 1000E-M module. The product is fully compliant with ASHRAE

Standard 62.1 Indoor Air Quality Procedure (IAQP) and the international mechanical code

(IMC). Considered a first-of-its-kind solution that, it safely removes all molecular contaminants, including carbon dioxide (CO²), formaldehyde, and a full range of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from indoor air.

"This is a method for contractors, engineers, and designers to make air conditioning systems that are more efficient; smaller, cheaper to deploy; and end up providing better air quality and efficiency for the building occupants,” said Meirav. "It's a win, win for the industry. It is a new way of doing things and it takes a while to get people to recognize it and to be comfortable with it and we are moving very quickly in that direction now."

Also during the awards, the AHR Expo presented a $20,500 check to the Atlanta Police Athletic

League (PAL), gathered from the entry fees of the Innovation Awards. PAL is a non-profit public benefit corporation working under the mission of providing a safe environment for Atlanta area youth to reach their full potential through a partnership with local police and the surrounding community. It was founded in 1983 as a community partnership between the Atlanta Police Department (APD), NPU’s, community investors, and local business associations. The partnership has pioneered programs serving at-risk youths aged 8-18 years by implementing constructive, planned athletic and academic activities aimed at teaching moral, civic and social principles in a safe and nurturing environment.

“We are thrilled to have been named the recipient of the AHR Expo’s generous donation for

2019,” said Sergeant Vincent Sims, Atlanta Police Athletic League. “We are deeply appreciative of the support given to our program and what we are doing here in Atlanta. We look forward to using the funds to support our HVAC projects that will improve our youth facilities in the coming year. This will help us as we grow our program and provide service to more youth in the area.”

Publication date: 1/15/2019

Want more HVAC industry news and information? Join The NEWS on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn today!