HVAC&R industry’s finest shine at 2025 AIRAH National Awards

AIRAH AIRAH updates and events

December 1, 2025

Nick Johns-Wickberg

The Australian HVAC&R industry has celebrated its best and brightest for another year at the 2025 AIRAH National Awards in Sydney. 

The gala dinner took place at Crown Sydney on November 20, with more than 200 AIRAH members and HVAC&R industry professionals in attendance. The evening was masterfully hosted by the energetic Steve Tabone, whose wit and charm kept things rolling along beautifully. 

Entertainment was provided by the aptly named band Two-Way Split. One can only imagine that their whole career has been leading to the opportunity to play in front of a crowd of air conditioning experts! 

But as much as the guests enjoyed the entertainment, the great food, and the opportunity to network among peers, it was the awards that people really came for. 

This year, the AIRAH Awards were bestowed across a lucky 13 categories, including the new “Excellence in Knowledge Building” award. Several past winners returned to claim glory once again, including Woolworths, which won across two categories with its Doolandella HVAC&R integrated T-CO₂ system. There were also plenty of first-time winners, including young future leaders within the industry. 

“One of AIRAH’s priorities is to raise the profile of HVAC&R, which is such an important industry for health, lifestyle and sustainability in Australia, but which remains invisible to many in the public,” says AIRAH CEO Sami Zheng, Affil.AIRAH. “The AIRAH Awards are our way of recognising outstanding achievements that contribute to our goal of HVAC&R for a better world. 

“I want to offer my heartfelt congratulations to all our winners and finalists in 2025. Your contributions are seen, appreciated and respected.” 

Award winners and finalists

AIRAH congratulates all finalists and winners, not just for their achievements in 2025, but for their longstanding commitment to improving the world through HVAC&R. 

• Excellence in HVAC – Best New Project: Ellis Air – Queens Wharf chilled water ring main and heat recovery system 

The enormous Queens Wharf complex consists of multiple interconnected towers that combine private apartments, high-end hotels, retail hubs, entertainment facilities, a brand-new casino, and public walkways. It was one of the biggest engineering projects in Queensland history, and the iconic complex has already become a much-loved part of Brisbane’s skyline. Ellis Air was responsible for the largest mechanical services package in the project.  

Ellis Air designed the complex’s central energy plant, which uses an innovative design as well as clever heat recovery and reuse to centralise the entire HVAC system for these interconnected buildings. This provides redundancy and uninterrupted cooling across all podiums and towers, all while maximising energy efficiency.  

• Excellence in HVAC – Best Retrofit Project: A.G. Coombs – 540 Wickham St  
  Finalist: Airmaster – Future-ready chiller upgrade, Eastland 

To move towards net zero – in line with the Australian commercial building market – this iconic property in Brisbane needed to decommission its gas-fired cogeneration plant. A.G. Coombs Group provided the technical design, installation and maintenance expertise to deliver a complex energy systems transition task. This challenging project was carried out with minimal disruption to the large, occupied facility and delivered a significant carbon emissions reduction and improved energy efficiency while modernising the mechanical and electrical assets and enhancing the electrical safety of its operations and maintenance.  

• Excellence in Refrigeration: Woolworths Group – Woolworths Doolandella HVAC&R integrated T-CO₂ system
  Finalist: Regis Aged Care – Proactive refrigerant phase‑down and lifecycle transition for portfolio‑wide emissions reduction

Woolworths Doolandella is located in the Brisbane surrounds, classed as climate zone 2 by the Australian Building Codes Board. The warm and humid conditions, especially in summer, represent one of the more challenging settings for refrigeration and comfort cooling systems. In response, Woolworths developed a template for a “Bright Green” store, where climate zones presented no boundary. The innovative “net-zero” emissions solution is characterised by safety, repeatability, optimised capital investment, energy efficiency, ease of maintenance and climate resilience. Observations through summer and winter 2025 suggest Woolworths Doolandella achieved the aspirational HVAC and refrigeration solution the Group was aiming for, while also opening the door towards net-zero HVAC and refrigeration solutions in all climate zones.

• Excellence in Innovation – Best New Project: Woolworths Group – Woolworths Doolandella HVAC&R integrated T-CO₂ system

• Excellence in Innovation – Best New Product: Louvreclad Aerion Series  
  Finalist: Cold Logic – ECU45DV dual-voltage environmental control unit 

The Louvreclad Aerion Series of vertical performance louvres was engineered in collaboration with Formula 1 aerodynamic specialists and sets a new global standard in aerodynamic and weather performance for architectural façades.  

Constructed from lightweight, low-carbon extruded aluminium, the Australian engineered and tested system has been certified to achieve maximum ventilation efficiency and 99–100% rain defence. 

 The product’s performance has been validated through third-party testing at a trusted Australian test facility, where the rig, tests, data and certifications have been quality assured and scrutinised by chartered professional engineers.  

• Excellence in Training: Inderpal Saund, Beijer Ref Academy  
  Finalists: Peter Griffiths; Midea Air Conditioning; Paul Wright, Affil.AIRAH 

With a career marked by leadership in natural refrigeration technology, Inderpal Saund has excelled as head instructor at the Beijer Ref Academy, Sydney, and in roles across Beijer Ref and Danfoss. His commitment to industry-wide training is evident in his interactive, knowledge-sharing approach. 

• Leadership in Diversity and Inclusion: Women’s Working Group – Airmaster  
  Finalists: Alfredo Tilan, M.AIRAH; Luke Purser 

Launched in 2024, Airmaster’s Women’s Working Group is a national, employee-led initiative driving inclusion in a male-dominated industry. Key outcomes include company-funded paid parental leave, a national mentoring program, leadership development for women, and a school holiday care initiative for working parents. In development are pregnancy support guidelines, wellbeing initiatives, and staff development training. 

• Young Leader: Molly Mayal  
  Finalists: Renee Youngs; Rylan Coonan; Aliesha Clark; Myfanwy Santwyk 

• Student of the Year – Trade: Adam Attewell  
  Finalists: James Ferris; James Colin-Thome; Joshua Budd; Jie Wang 

• Student of the Year – Higher Education or Research: Beau Kupris  
  Finalist: George Simpson 

• Excellence in Knowledge Building: Brett Fairweather, F.AIRAH  
  Finalists: Richard McElhinney; George Aristo Pieratos; Inderpal Saund 

Brett has made a lasting impact through his work in training and education, particularly in areas like fire and life safety and building ventilation. The courses Brett delivers and the material he has developed are of an exceptional standard. He’s generous with his time, genuinely passionate about supporting AIRAH members, and consistently focused on lifting the standard of engineering across the industry. This year Brett has also received his AIRAH fellowship through his outstanding achievements and contributions to the Institute. 

• WR Ahern Award: Stefan Jensen, L.AIRAH  
  Finalists: Saber Mohammadi, Simon Witts, M.AIRAH & James Moyes; Kanthasamy Mohan, M.AIRAH; Dino Pisaniello, Affil.AIRAH et al 

Over nearly five decades, Stefan Jensen, L.AIRAH, has been an influential figure in the Australian and global natural refrigeration sector. As the part owner of Scantec Refrigeration in Queensland, Stefan has led the charge to “make ammonia great again” in refrigeration. In 2023, he received the James Harrison Medal – AIRAH’s highest individual honour for lifetime contribution to HVAC&R.    

In this award-winning paper, he shares real-world experiences and insights from multiple industrial refrigeration projects using ammonia as a refrigerant. 

• James Harrison Medal: Bryon Price, L.AIRAH 

Bryon Price, L.AIRAH, truly defines what it is to be an AIRAH legend. Throughout 25 years of membership, he has been actively involved in countless events, both as a technical committee member and a speaker. He is a long-time member and former associate director of the Institute’s Victorian division committee, and has also severed as the chair of the Facility Management Association of Australia, as well as holding a position on the board of ARBS. 

Perhaps most impressively, Bryon sat on the AIRAH national board for 14 years, helping guide the Institute through challenging times, including the COVID-19 pandemic. He is widely regarded as an innovative engineer, a champion of sustainability, and a true leader within the HVAC&R industry. 

This article appears in Ecolibrium’s Summer 2025–26 edition

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