WILMINGTON, N.C. - HVAC pioneer Roland Ares died on Jan. 3, 2005. He graduated from Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston and began his career in HVAC. He entered Worthington Corp. after graduation and retired from Hussmann Corp. in St. Louis in 1990 as vice president of advanced engineering.

Mr. Ares then began his own consulting company, and once again retired in 1995 when he began volunteering his services to developing companies in Romania and Thailand with the International Executive Service Corps (IESC), which describes itself as "a private, not-for-profit organization that relies on private sector volunteers to assist economic growth around the world."

Mr. Ares was awarded the Hussmann Man of the Year award, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Distinguished Service Award, and the IESC's Frank Pace Award as top volunteer based on results achieved for an overseas client.

According to his family, "Roland was highly regarded in his field and many college mechanical engineering textbooks, as well as ASHRAE publications, today contain his work on standards for equipment specifications and application methods." His designs earned 20 patents and he was registered as a professional engineer in eight states.

Mr. Ares was preceded in death by his son Robert (1971) and is survived by his wife Mary and daughters Karine, Mary Ann, and Carol.

Memorials may be made to the American Lung Association, P.O. Box 40236, Fayetteville, NC 28309, or to the Lower Cape Fear Hospice and Life Care Center, 1406 Physicians Dr., Wilmington, NC 28401.

Publication date: 03/21/2005