We are World Refrigeration Day 2022 Sponsors

World Refrigeration Day ( #WREFD2022 ) is a registered not-for-profit company increasing the awareness of Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pump systems that are used within Industrial, Commercial and Residential sectors.

It is not limited to a specific geographic location and has a Global reach. Sectors include but are not limited to:
– Manufacturing industries such as food, beverage, petrochemical, pharmaceuticals, etc
– Data Centres, Wind Tunnels R&D Testing Chambers, etc
– Commercial Offices, Retail Supermarkets, Shops, Leasure Centres, Hospitals, etc
– Residential Houses, Apartment Blocks, etc

Sometimes referred to as a hidden industry #WREFD aims to increase awareness around the importance and impact the industry has globally.

To support this each year there are different themes to raise awareness of the importance and impact Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps has on our lives which for many people is unknown. More specifically its “objective is to make the public aware of cooling’s essential benefits, how cooling impacts daily life, and how technology choices foster environmental well-being of future generations.”
DaAnon, (n.d.). About | World Refrigeration Day. [online] Available at: https://worldrefrigerationday.org/about/ [Accessed 17 Mar. 2022]

Prior themes have included the following:
– 2019 #Refrigerants4Life
– 2020 #ColdChain4Life
– 2021 #CoolingChampions

At the 2022 launch event Steve confirmed the theme for 2022 would be #CoolingMatters saying:
“Cooling is at the very heart of modern life. It enables people to live and work comfortably, it saves lives, it enables people to achieve. The need for cooling is everywhere, it touches lives in fantastic, though often unnoticed ways. However, we look at it, cooling matters.”
Worldrefrigerationday.org. (2022). Cooling Matters: World Refrigeration Day 2022 theme announced | World Refrigeration Day. [online] Available at: https://worldrefrigerationday.org/news/cooling-matters-world-refrigeration-day-2022-theme-announced/ [Accessed 17 Mar. 2022]

World Refrigeration Day was started by Steve Gill on the 26th June 2019 in over 153 countries. It is supported by a wide range of stakeholders, ranging from industry bodies, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), equipment specifiers, national and local training companies, designers, installers, maintenance and repair contracting companies to name a few. Full details of sponsors can be found on their website https://worldrefrigerationday.org/sponsors/.

World Refrigeration Day Is held through a mixture of online and offline mediums by its supporting stakeholders. Details of physical events can be found at https://worldrefrigerationday.org/events/, with previous events including PHVACR – The importance of refrigeration in our daily life. and Cool Careers: the Cool Youth will save our World 2.0.

World Refrigeration Day celebrations take place on or around the 26th June 2022, often with supplementary events before and after the coolest day of the year.

Whether Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps (RACHP) systems are used for manufacturing processes or thermal comfort they can consume significant levels of energy, which has a direct environmental impact on global CO₂ emissions.

Energy prices are also on the increase due to global gas prices rising at record levels. For example, within the UK from 1st April 2022 approximately 22 million residential customers have been effected by energy price caps of 54%. OFGEM has said “Those on default tariffs paying by direct debit will see an increase of £693 from £1,277 to £1,971 per year (difference due to rounding). Prepayment customers will see an increase of £708 from £1,309 to £2,017.”
OFGEM (2022). Price Cap to Increase by £693 from April. [online] Ofgem. Available at: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/price-cap-increase-ps693-april.

The combined buildings and buildings construction sectors also generate 1/3 of global final energy consumption, along with almost 15% of direct CO₂ emissions. As the global demand for energy continues to rise, combined with a growing demand for Air Conditioning greater awareness of sustainable options are required.
IEA. (n.d.). Buildings – Topics. [online] Available at: https://www.iea.org/topics/buildings.

In addition, the global demand for energy due to space cooling has tripled since 1990 and has a large impact on the infrastructure of each countries electricity grid. In 2020 space cooling continued to grow and is estimated to account for almost 16% of the building sectors final electricity consumption in 2020. Although energy efficient Air Conditioning systems are available on the market, many consumers still purchase systems that are 2-3 times less energy efficient highlighting significant room for improvement.
IEA. (n.d.). Cooling – Analysis. [online] Available at: https://www.iea.org/reports/cooling.

Furthermore, in 2020 almost 180 million Heat Pumps were used for heating with the global stock increasing nearly 10% over the past 5 years. While Heat Pumps are now common for new homes in many countries they still only meet around 7% of global building heating demand. Taking the aforementioned in consideration based on the current 2050 Net Zero Emissions scenario installed Heat Pumps will reach 600 million by 2030, signalling a significant 10 year 420 million global market growth potential compared to 2020.
IEA. (n.d.). Heat Pumps – Analysis. [online] Available at: https://www.iea.org/reports/heat-pumps.

Combine all this with a growing global population that is estimated to require 60% more refrigerated food by 2050, there is a real risk some people will have to make a choice between heating or eating because of market forces increasing costs due scarcity.

Taking all this into consideration we can see that #CoolingMatters and has a really important impact on our daily lives.

Those interested in World Refrigeration Day can get involved by contacting info@worldrefrigerationday.org, visiting their website www.worldrefrigerationday.org or by following #WREF2022, #WorldRefrigerationDay and @worldrefday on social media.