American Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers

ASHRAE (sometimes pronounced ash-ray) stands for the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers. It was founded in 1894 and has more than 50,000 members worldwide. It focuses on building systems, energy efficiency, indoor air quality, refrigeration and sustainability technologies.

The ASHRAE was founded in 1894 at a meeting of engineers in New York City, formerly headquartered at 345 East 47th Street, and has held an annual meeting since 1895. Until 1954 it was known as the American Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers (ASHVE); in that year it changed its name to the American Society of Heating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHAE). Its current name and organization came from the 1959 merger of ASHAE and the American Society of Refrigerating Engineers (ASRE).

Despite having 'American' in its name, ASHRAE is a global organization, holding international events. In 2012, it rebranded itself with a new logo and tagline: "Shaping Tomorrow's Built Environment Today". As of 2015, ASHRAE has more than 50,000 members.

The ASHRAE Handbook is a four-volume resource for HVAC&R technology and is available in both print and electronic versions. The volumes are Fundamentals, HVAC Applications, HVAC Systems and Equipment, and Refrigeration. One of the four volumes is updated each year.

ASHRAE also publishes a set of standards and guidelines relating to HVAC systems and issues, that are often referenced in building codes and used by consulting engineers, mechanical contractors, architects, and government agencies. These standards are periodically reviewed, revised and republished.

Examples of some ASHRAE Standards are:

The society also publishes two magazines. 'ASHRAE Journal' is issued monthly and 'High Performing Buildings Magazine' is published quarterly. They contain articles on related technology, information on upcoming meetings, editorials, and case studies of various well-performing buildings.

ASHRAE also publishes books, 'ASHRAE Transactions', and the 'International Journal of HVAC&R Research'.

ASHRAE supported the Streamlining Energy Efficiency for Schools Act of 2014 (H.R. 4092; 113th Congress), a bill that would require the United States Department of Energy to establish a centralized clearinghouse to disseminate information on federal programs, incentives, and mechanisms for financing energy-efficient retrofits and upgrades at schools.

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