Welcome Message

Welcome to the Ottawa Valley Chapter of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

Founded in 1894, ASHRAE is an international organization of 55,000 persons. Its sole objective is to advance through research, standards writing, publishing and continuing education, the arts and sciences of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC&R) to serve humanity and promote a sustainable world.

The Ottawa Valley Chapter was established in 1952, and supports roughly 500 local ASHRAE members, of which approximately 200 are Chapter members. Our membership is comprised of a diverse group of men and women from the various fields in the HVAC&R and construction industries; e.g. consulting engineers, contractors, developers, facility managers, federal, provincial & municipal government, manufacturers, researchers, sales organizations, students, university and college faculty.

Our Chapter meets the third Tuesday of the month from September to May (excluding December) and typically consists of a tour or technical session, followed by a social gathering starting at 5:30 pm, dinner at 6:30 pm and the featured presentation to round out the evening. The meetings are held at Restaurant International at Algonquin College Woodroffe Campus, with the exception of the September meeting, which is occasionally held at a different venue.

The cost of a Chapter Membership is $60.00 and $30.00 for students. Chapter membership gets you a copy of the Ottawa Valley Chapter Roster which contains the contact information of the roughly 500 local ASHRAE members, monthly electronic access to chapter newsletter and discounts on Chapter meetings, seminars and events.

I hope you enjoy our web site and look forward to seeing you at our chapter meetings.

Yours very truly,

Roderic Potter
2013-2014 OVC President

Presidential Message November 2013

At my time of writing, Remembrance Day November 11th is virtually upon us, and street corners and Loblaw's entrances are festooned with cadets and retired service personnel selling us poppies. By the time you are reading this, that day will have passed us by, and I am hoping that you will have taken just a small portion of your day to think about those who have fallen in an effort to make our future brighter. We often hear of soldiers fighting to "make our lives safe" and similar phrases and I usually question whether they were really doing that, or just out there risking everything because they were told to do so. I expect if I were thrown into a combat situation I would not be thinking "I am doing this to make my kids' future secure" - I would be thinking more about keeping my head down and trying to protect my buddies.

Most of us have not had to endure anything like a war with real bullets and I expect most of us never think about how lucky we are because of it. We live in a Fool's Paradise here in North America and are sheltered from most conflict because of the huge distance we are from the usual hot spots. People elsewhere grow up entirely aware of what it means to live in a war zone. We should endeavour to appreciate our good fortune, particularly around Remembrance Day, and realize that this life we lead is largely owing to those who have passed through before us - and not just the fallen service personnel.

My favourite movie of all time is "Saving Private Ryan" - not because of all the graphic killing, but because I believe that level of realism has not been achieved in any other film. The direction and acting are first rate, and the movie pays great and accurate homage to the landings on Omaha Beach. Every time I watch it I grit my teeth and get rather annoyed at the idiocy of such carnage - and I have watched it more than a few times. There is a scene during the landings where an explosion temporarily renders Tom Hanks' character deaf with a loud ringing in his ears. Luckily his hearing returns after a few minutes. Our topic for the November meeting will be "Noise and Vibration Control" so there is a slight coincidence there.

This will be only our second meeting at our new venue, Restaurant International at Algonquin College Woodroffe Campus. The October meeting was a great success and the food was spectacular to the point where I was in shock. We are lowly HVAC types and not used to food that both looks and tastes good! I look forward to seeing everyone at the November meeting - and assuming the bar staff are ready for us, we can all enjoy a drink together.

Cheers!

Roderic Potter
2013-2014 OVC President
rod@rodders.com