The Ammonia Refrigeration Foundation is in the midst of its annual fundraising drive, and this year is already looking promising, said Joe Mandato, chairman of the ARF board of trustees.

Your foundation has set a fundraising goal of $500,000. “I think that’s a reasonable goal,” Mandato said. “I anticipate we will reach the goal, but I hope to make more than that in total contributions.”

ARF is concentrating its fundraising efforts in the period between October 2019 and the conclusion of the IIAR annual conference, scheduled for March 2020 in Orlando.

Fundraising is so important to the foundation because at this point in time, the organization can generate a limited return with the amount of money held in its reserves and conservative investment strategy, Mandato said. In order to grow its programs, the foundation relies on the support of the industry.

“Our programs – particularly the research program and the scholarship program – are both very active right now and require significant money to fund,” Mandato said. “It’s imperative for the foundation to continue to increase its base asset position in light of what we think the reality of our investment return is going to be, compared to what our expenses will be moving forward.”

Mandato stressed that the foundation is doing important work to advance the industry, and to make it more sustainable.

An example of the foundation efforts is ARF’s research arm, which recently completed a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) study on the recommended positioning and quantity of ammonia detectors in refrigerated spaces – particularly cold storage facilities.

“The question was: ‘are we putting too many or too few ammonia detectors in a room, and are we putting them in the correct location’,” Mandato said. “The idea being to hone-in based on scientific information and multiple CFD models to come up with best practices.”

He added this is just one example of the many research contributions your foundation has made to the industry. “The purpose of the research projects that we’re working on is to make sure that the systems being installed are done so costeffectively… and are inherently safer.”

Additionally, this year’s cohort from the scholarship program was the largest yet. This program is critically important, Mandato said, to the sustainability and longevity of the industry. As refrigeration veterans retire, they need to be replaced by people from younger generations with the knowledge and expertise to get the job done.

“What we’re focusing on now is communicating to these scholarship recipients the many opportunities that are available within the industry,” Mandato said. “We’re creating direct connections for them to companies in the industry so that when they graduate, we can bring them in [seamlessly].”

Ultimately, by contributing, Mandato said donors to the foundation are helping promote and sustain the industry that has given so much to them. “Many of us – myself included – made our livelihoods working in the industrial refrigeration market,” he said. “This is an opportunity to give back to the industry that made us what we are.”

---

For more information on your foundation’s programs or to learn how to donate, visit the website at iiar.org/ foundation.