Day 1 of the 2015 AHR Expo is in the books and it was everything it was billed up to be and more. I arrived to the show at 9:30 a.m. — a half-hour before the exhibitor halls were open — and the lines in the atrium of McCormick Place in Downtown Chicago were massive. Show visitors were excited to visit manufacturers and see the latest product offerings.
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| Lochinvar showcased its CON-X-US app for tablets and smartphones. |
On Monday (Jan. 26th, 2015), I stopped by a number of booths and saw the continued push toward providing end-users with the ability to have all the information needed at their fingertips. For example, Lochinvar showcased its CON-X-US app for tablets and smartphones (pictured). CON-X-US provides all the information that can be found deep in a mechanical room and brings it to a contractor of building services manager’s living room. From there, a user can monitor all areas of its system and adjust settings remotely.
Another option that I found very intriguing about CON-X-US is that 10 contacts can be inserted so if a problem occurs, the people on the list will be contacted in order of appearance via email or phone. Imagine if a major problem occurs late on a Saturday night when a building is empty and people are out of town. With 10 emergency contacts, it would be a rare occurrence that someone with the necessary skills would not be reached and can avert a disaster coming Monday morning.
Harco Industrial Patterson-Kelley has developed its NURO touchscreen control system for its P-K SONIC model boilers. NURO monitors and adjusts the combustion and ignition for the unit and makes it simple for an end-user to make the necessary changes.
Outside the scope of accessibility of information for end-users, I liked what I saw at Armstrong Fluid Technology’s booth. I got a tutorial on how its Parallel Sensorless Pump Control is providing greater efficiencies by setting up multi-pump operations in firing the additional pumps when the efficiencies dip and not the flow of water.
Stray observations:
- Do not drop anything while walking the exhibitor hallways, especially after you have been on your feet for five hours. I accidentally dropped some materials in the middle of an aisle and struggled to bend down to snatch them up. I held up the line for an extra 15 seconds and was very embarrassed. I did not check the faces of the people around me, but I could feel their glares.
- The after-hours events I attended where very well done. Taco’s event at the Hyatt, which is directly connected to McCormick Place, filled up quickly. After a long day, it was nice to shuffle over a few yards away from the show for some good food and a couple of drinks. The conversations were great, too, as it was hard to not bump into an industry friend.
- Bell & Gossett held its event at the Chicago Sports Museum in Water Tower Place. The rooms were packed and I enjoyed making a fool of myself at the museum’s interactive stations. I tested my vertical leap compared to Michael Jordan’s and may have injured my knee trying to hit 9 ft., which I failed. The “virtual” quarterback experience was a hit as people tested out how accurate they were in front of a captive audience. I finished with 54%, which is better than most Jay Cutler games here in Chicago. Boom!
