Bryan Becker checks the equipment
The value of ASHRAE research is being highlighted industrywide as chapters work to raise funds for the 2015-16 RP Campaign.
In 2014-15, the RP Campaign raised $2.5 million, of which $1.88 million went toward research. For every dollar raised, the Society matches the funds up to $2 million dollar per year.
Since 1959, ASHRAE Research has initiated a total of nearly 900 research projects with a combined value of nearly $150 million in today’s dollars.
But what do those 57 years’ worth of dollars mean in today’s money?
“These monetary figures help highlight the profound impact that ASHRAE research has had on the industry and the world,” David Underwood, ASHRAE president, said. “Only an organization such as ASHRAE has the continuity, the ability to generate research funding, and is able to attract researchers from disparate backgrounds and institutions. ASHRAE provides a forum to integrate their knowledge to advance the science of HVAC&R engineering. The value of our research also lies in the fact that ASHRAE’s technical committee structure ensures the research meets the needs of practitioners and does not serve proprietary interests.”
Here is a breakdown of the value of ASHRAE research based on inflation adjusted total:
Total expenditures on projects, special projects, awards (the New Investigator Award, Grants-in-Aid and the Homer Addams Award) and grants (Innovative Research Grants and co-funded projects)
- Actual amount: $82.1 million
- Inflation adjusted amount: $143.3 million
Projects and special projects
- Total number: 883
- Actual amount: $76.9 million
- Inflation adjusted amount: $135.5 million
Research related awards
- Total number Graduate Student Grants-in-Aid awarded since 1968: 2,289
- Total number New Investigator Award since 1995: 22
- Total number Homer Addams Awards (honors work of a graduate student each year on ASHRAE research) since 1959: 54
- Actual amount: $5.2 million
- Inflation adjusted amount: $7.7 million
Research grants and co-funded projects led by other non-profits
- Total number of co-funded projects since 2015: 4
- Total number of grants since 2013: 4
- Actual amount: $350k
- Inflation adjusted amount: $352,000