The HVAC&R industry has appeared in the 2019 40under40 awards with the nomination of Nicholas Turney, Affil.AIRAH, Managing Director of Eco Climate Solutions in the People’s Choice category.
Established in 2002 by Business News, the 40under40 awards celebrate Western Australia’s 40 leading business entrepreneurs under the age of 40. According to the organisers, “the program recognises not only personal determination and commercial drive but also the philanthropic pursuits that balance these young individuals’ professional achievements, recognising the less public contributions to the welfare of Western Australia”.
Turney says he founded Eco Climate Solutions with a vision to provide the most energy-efficient and environmentally friendly commercial building and cooling solutions. A feature of the business has been its focus on leading green and cost-effective solutions.
“We’re a small company taking on major industry players, reducing clients’ operational costs by optimising efficiencies,” says Turney. “Our approach is unique: using the latest technologies, we combat waste without compromising standards.
“We recently custom built a power and plant monitoring tool which identified inefficiencies in the power and mechanical equipment of a major client. We designed a tailored solution to reduce electricity expenditure by 83 per cent utilising solar PV and reduce remaining consumption by 25 per cent with intelligent controls. This client alone will save an estimated $138,000 per year with a 447,000kg annual CO2 abatement.”
The company is gaining experience of working in hazardous area environments to develop safe procedures and practices that could aid policy change for the national commercial roll-out of low-GWP hydrocarbon refrigerants to replace existing high-GWP versions.
“We research the latest technologies and developments internationally to minimise emissions locally,” says Turney. “We talk to people, travel and learn. We’ve proved it is possible to change attitudes and improve the environment given the right approach, the right people, and the right knowledge.”
Turney says that the company’s new client database has grown by more than 75 per cent in its second year, while reducing 812 tonnes of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere.
“If businesses maximised the efficiency of mechanical services, there’d be a reduction of around 11.4 million tonnes of CO2 emissions Australia-wide annually at a saving of almost $4 billion,” he adds. “I’m passionate about getting this message across; it makes sense on a commercial and environmental level. Efficiency is something that motivates me in all aspects of my life and I look for efficiency gains wherever I can. This is the same approach I use to build my business.”
Voting for the 2019 40under40 People’s Choice closes Friday, January 11. The winner will be announced at the 2019 40under40 Gala Awards at Optus Stadium on March 13.