Preserving and recording the history of the heating, ventilating, air conditioning and refrigeration industry and its essential contributions to Canada’s rich heritage and way of life. HVACR Heritage Centre Canada

The Purpose

A number of purposes of the Centre have been identified through discussions to date:

• To identify, retrieve and preserve the significant historical artefacts, literature and business records of the HVACR industry, as an important public heritage resource belonging to all Canadians;

• To make these artefacts publicly available through modern digital technology as well as through traditional displays;

• To commission research, publish and disseminate information on the history of HVACR technology and its impact on Canadian society and culture;

• To contribute to public education, telling the essential stories of the role and contribution of HVACR technology to Canada’s rich heritage and way of life;

• To help promote regional and local economic, social and cultural development, through public education and tourism;

• To contribute to sustainable, industrial, economic development in Canada, through promotion of informed and knowledgeable uses of HVACR technology and the products and public services in the field;

• To stimulate interest and attract youth to career opportunities in the HVACR industry;

• To contribute to the training, development and continual renewal of a competent and knowledgeable Canadian industrial workforce;

• To contribute to the historic knowledge of the HVACR industry by all workers in the field, including it’s many accomplishments and contributions essential to the quality of Canadian life.

The Vision

The vision of the Centre (what it is, what it could look like, and how it might work) includes the following images:

• It is a national collection and catalogue of historically significant HVACR artefacts, part of the rich heritage of all Canadians;

• It is a centre for public learning and education, to understand better the technology that shapes the lives of Canadians, contributing to their rich heritage and wellbeing;

• It is an incorporated, non-profit organization with charitable status, with international registration, in order to capture the recognition, interest and support of the now-global HVACR industry;

• It is governed by a national board of trustees, working through an executive co-ordinator and a volunteer organization with representation from across Canada;

• It is a loosely-knit 21^st century network of facilities and resource centres across Canada, including manufacturers, wholesalers, professional, technical and trade organizations, colleges and universities, national, regional and local museums and technological enthusiasts;

• Its operational and capital funding will come from an endowment fund, planned giving, and regular annual fees from corporate and private memberships;

• It will generate income from fees: for information, display rentals, material for colleges and universities, exhibits at museums and trade shows across Canada.

• It will be eligible for grants from government agencies, private foundations, other supporters of educational and heritage organizations.

For example, in a country with harsh climactic realities, it is hard to imagine getting much else done for five months out of the year, other than keeping warm, without the convenience of reliable automatic space heating equipment. HVACR technology has laid the very foundations for modern contemporary Canadian life by providing many of the basic conditions needed for human health, diet, comforts and convenience. Yet few know its stories.While isolated collections of artefacts and documentation from the early years of HVACR still exist across Canada, they are now at high risk as a result of aging and significant changes within the industry itself. Those with firsthand knowledge of the early years of the industry in Canada are also no longer with us. Yet to date no public body has arisen to recognize and celebrate our HVACR heritage.In recognition of the millennium and the end of the century into which the industry was born, a group of individuals came together in October, 1999, as a Founding Committee for an HVACR Heritage Centre.

The industry has a public responsibility and an important job to do; yet time has all but run out. A concerted, integrated, national effort is urgently required. This is an opportunity for everyone in HVACR to help

Founding Partners

The Founding Committee of the HVACR Heritage Centre Canada expresses its thanks for the encouragement and support of the following organizations:They will be among those recognized for their special contributions to the work, by being designated as Founding Partners of the HVACR Heritage Centre Canada.

• The Heating, Refrigeration, Air Conditioning Institute of Canada – HRAIThe Ontario Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Contractors Association – ORAC
• U.A. Local 787, Refrigeration Workers of Ontario

Other organizations are invited to join in this historic and significant venture linking the many facets of the HVACR industry in a common cause.

Taking part in the HVACR Heritage Centre Canada cheque presentation: 
Bill Barnett, Norm Fraser, Les Oliver, Hart Holmstrom, Edmund Athaide, Martin Vandenberg, Doug Saunders and Bob Harford

HVACR Heritage Centre Canada
5045 Orbitor Drive, Building 11, Suite 300
Mississauga, ON  Canada  L4W 4Y4
Phone: (905) 602-4700 Facsimile: (905) 602-1197
Email: gl-mj.oliver@sympatico.ca