By Healthcare Facilities Today

ATLANTA – Through a memorandum of understanding, ASHRAE and the Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA) are working together to promote better indoor air quality in the built environment.

The agreement was signed on Oct. 15, 2013, during ASHRAE’s IAQ 2013 Conference held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

The agreement commits ASHRAE and IAQA to working together in the areas of consistent leadership communication, chapter collaboration, advocacy, technical activities coordination and research.

“As professionals responsible for environmental control of buildings and transportation systems, our first priority must be making those environments safe, healthy, productive and comfortable,” ASHRAE President William “Bill” Bahnfleth said. “This partnership between ASHRAE, a worldwide organization with a scope to broadly promote the arts and science of HVAC&R and allied arts and science for the benefit of the general public, and IAQA, an organization focused on services to ensure good indoor air quality, will enhance the ability of both to achieve their shared goals. We welcome the opportunity to combine the resources of ASHRAE with the expertise of IAQA to strengthen our effectiveness in this critical area.”

“This agreement is a great step forward for IAQA and the indoor air quality field. ASHRAE and IAQA have agreed to work closely on issues that are of mutual interest,” Donald M. Weekes, CIH, CSP, IAQA President, said. “I am personally looking forward to working with ASHRAE in the coming year.”

Founded in 1998, the Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA) is dedicated to bringing practitioners together to prevent and solve indoor environmental problems for the benefit of customers and the public.

ASHRAE, founded in 1894, is a building technology society with more than 50,000 members worldwide. The Society and its members focus on building systems, energy efficiency, indoor air quality, refrigeration and sustainability. Through research, standards writing, publishing, certification and continuing education, ASHRAE shapes tomorrow’s built environment today.