Finalists for the 2020 HVACR Leadership Awards were announced today for all seven categories including the dual award for Male and Female Rising Star.
Once again there were plenty of impressive entries making the judging process a tough one.
Woman of the Year in HVACR Award
All of the women that nominated for this category have accomplished careers in HVACR making it hard to select only three finalists. It is an award that Daikin has sponsored every year since its inception.
Martina Heine is the technical manager at ebm-papst. She is an electrical engineer and has been an air movement specialist for 15 years. Martina is renowned for her dedication to solving customer problems.
Hydrochem general manager, Christie Deneys, is thriving in the HVACR industry and was promoted to her current position in 2018. Previously, she was general manager for the Hastie Group.
The next finalist for this category is certainly well-known across the industry for her commitment to the trade and that’s Kirby HVACR communications lead, Elizabeth Paparo. She has been inspiring women in HVACR for many years.
Tradie of the Year Award
A category that always generates plenty of interest is the Tradie of the Year Award which is sponsored by Temperzone.
This award is strictly for technicians dedicated to their craft.
Finalists this year include CoolTech Refrigeration service manager, Joshua Whiting, who can only be described as a triple threat – he has completed three apprenticeships.
The second finalist is System Air, field supervisor, William McBride, who is a very process driven tradie when it comes to HVAC R diagnostics. He won’t just fix a problem but find the root cause.
Frank Roulent, director, HVACR Consulting Services, is a 30-year veteran that has used his experience to set up his very own consultancy.
The last finalist competing for the Tradie of the Year Award is Coldflow Heating & Cooling installation manager, Ryan Dodd, who is passionate about trade excellence, an essential quality for any award winner.
Energy Savings & Sustainability Award
There are two finalists for this category including City of Sydney Mayor, Clover Moore.
City of Sydney is one of the greenest councils in Australia, it is powered using 100 per cent renewable electricity, generated from wind and solar farms in regional NSW.
The second finalist is Gelion Technologies executive chair, Professor Thomas Maschmeyer. This is the man behind the revolutionary battery technology that powers the solar benches at Sydney University.
Contractor of the Year Award
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Air Conditioning Australia (MHIAA) has once again sponsored the Contractor of the Year Award.
It is such an impressive title to win that it was a struggle to select only four finalists. This year’s finalists competing for the award include mechanical engineer, Siby Blesson, from Res Air in Victoria.
The second finalist System Air director, Patrick Bond, has helped manage a company that began with a few employees and has seen extraordinary growth in the past decade.
The third finalist is Inter-Marine general manager, Rosario Di Bartolo, who provides HVACR services for the shipping industry. Inter-Marine has been at the forefront of transitional refrigerant retrofitting since the original Montreal Protocol.
CCN’s remaining finalist for this category is Ductus managing director, Jim Malek, who has been hard at work ensuring that the standards for duct requirements in Australia are the best in the world.
HVACR Leader of the Year Award
This category recognizes overall excellence in leadership and is for a professional with a well-established HVACR career.
Three finalists have been selected including AFA Air director, Reuben Kelley, who is all about exceeding expectations and going above and beyond for our industry.
Another finalist is Hussmann general manager, Vinney Kumar, who has been actively engaged in the HVACR industry for many years.
CCN’ third finalist, System Air managing director, Greg Dalton, began his career winning the apprentice of the year award. Today he has a Masters of Business Administration and is leading a company with more than 50 staff.
Rising Star Award (Male)
Once again ABB has sponsored this dual award to find a male and a female rising star.
Three finalists are competing for the Male Rising Star Award including Alex Sarry, refrigeration supervisor at SBS Electrical and Ian Decker, special projects manager at Alpine Refrigeration. The third finalist is Hirotec project manager, Joshua Eftimovski.
Rising Star Award (Female)
This award recognises the future champions of our industry who have risen quickly through the ranks. This year’s finalists include Talara Welling, an apprentice technician at Northern Air in Lismore, New South Wales.
CCN’s second finalist is Humiscope sales engineer, Sabah Massaoudi, who has the ability to combine technical skills with an eye for sales and marketing – a fierce combination. The next finalist is Abbey McGeachin, a refrigeration and air conditioning technician from D&T Refrigeration.
Innovator of the Year Award
Richard Agar-Wilson is the general manager and senior engineer for Pacific Ventilation.
His out of the box approach to decision making and unique style has made him a finalist for the Innovator of the Year Award.
He is competing against two more finalists including the director of the Australian Passive House Association and managing director of the Bridgeford Group, Nicholas Tassigiannakis and Eurofast director, James Fooks.
Award winners will be announced at CCN Live on November 12, 2020. Don’t miss out on this free, virtual event register at: : https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/ccn-lve-hvacr-leadership-awards-tickets-124492126301