Institute of Refrigeration

The Institute of Refrigeration is an organisation in the UK that supports the refrigeration and air-conditioning industry.

History

The Institute was formed in 1899 as the Cold Storage and Ice Association, the first national society in the world for the refrigeration industry. The Institute's first president was Alan Egerton, 3rd Baron Egerton.^[1] It became the IOR in 1944 when professional membership was introduced (when certain qualifications had to be obtained). A division of the organisation, the Air Conditioning and Heat Pump Institute, was launched in 2009. In 2010 the Institute launched a short video explaining the opportunities for careers in the refrigeration industry under the title Careers in Cooling. This uses interviews with a wide range of young people working in different aspects of refrigeration and air-conditioning to explain what a rewarding career it can be. A webpage was also set up to support the video.

Structure

The Institute of Refrigeration is governed by an Executive Council which comprises the President, the President-Elect, the Immediate Past-President, the Honorary Treasurer and six elected members.

The current council comprises

• President - Steve Gill, FInstR
• Immediate Past-President -Prof Graeme Maidment, FInstR
• Hon Treasurer - Roger Borer, FInstR
• Elected Members - Bob Arthur, FInstR, David Ball, FInstR, John Emm, FInstR, FInstR, Matt Morton, FInstR, John Skelton, FInstR, Chris Vallis, Kevin Glass

The work of the Institute is carried out by committees, including

• Membership Committee - chair John Emm
• Technical Committee - chair Dr Andy Pearson
• Marketing Committee - chair Dr Jolyon Thompson
• Papers and Publications Committee - chair Colin Vines
• International Refrigeration Committee - chair Prof Judith Evans
• Service Engineers Section - chair Steve Benton
• Air Conditioning and Heat Pump Institute - chair John Ellis
• Sustainable Innovation in Refrigeration and Air Conditioning - chair Prof Graeme Maidment
• Annual Dinner Steering Committee - chair Paul Arrowsmith
• REAL Skills Europe steering group - chair James Bailey
• Education Committee - chair John Skelton

Branches

It has branches covering:

• East Anglia
• London Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Society
• Northern
• Scotland

Purpose

The purpose of the Institute of Refrigeration is outlined in the Institute's constitution as follows:

a) The general advancement of refrigeration in all its applications, in relation both to the perfection of its methods, and to the extension of its services to the community.

b) To promote means for communication between members and their interchange of views.

c) To encourage invention and research in all matters relating to the science and practice of refrigeration.

d) To promote a sustainable approach to all aspects of refrigeration system design and operation

e) To co-operate with educational institutions for the furtherance of education in the science and practice of refrigeration.

f) To hold meetings of the Institute for reading and discussing papers dealing with refrigeration and allied subjects.

g) To publish and distribute the proceedings or reports of the Institute.

h) To do all other things, incidental or conducive to the attainment of the above objects or any of them.

The Institute hosts monthly meetings when a technical paper on a topical subject is presented. The current programme of meetings can be found on the Institute's website IOR. The Institute also hosts a black-tie dinner in London, usually on the third Thursday in February. In previous years the Institute dinner was held in the Great Room of the Grosvenor House Hotel, but declining numbers in recent years prompted a move in 2009 to the Grand Connaught Rooms in Covent Garden and then in 2012 to the Grange St Pauls Hotel. The Institute publishes an annual set of Technical Proceedings on CD-rom as well as Safety Alerts, Guidance Notes and Good Practice Guides for Technicians. It has also hosted International Scientific Conventions.

Membership

There are four main grades of membership; Associate, Technician, Member and Fellow. Membership grade is based on relevant qualifications and experience in the industry and is determined by application to the membership committee. The Institute is affiliated with the UK Engineering Council and has many overseas members.

See also

• British Frozen Food Federation
• Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute
• Federation of Environmental Trade Associations
• American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE)
• Chiller
• Psychrometrics

References

External links

• IOR
• Real Zero (made in collaboration with The Carbon Trust)
• Institute of Refrigeration Ireland - separate organisation
• Real Alternatives