Organised by Datateam Business Media, the ACR News Awards is designed to recognise innovation in the industry and reward the companies and individuals that demonstrate excellence in the way they operate or in what they produce.
Upon arrival, guests were greeted with an exclusive drinks reception, sponsored by Samsung, before proceeding into the main hall for the SkillFRIDGE presentations. Neil Hitching of Toshiba Air Conditioning presented the SkillFRIDGE trophy to the winning 2017 apprentice, Jack Culhane. The SkillFRIDGE shield was awarded Eastleigh College. The Shield recognises the exceptional work and support the college offers their apprentice.
After dinner, guests were greeted by the evening’s compere, critically-acclaimed radio, TV and cinema actor and comedian Miles Jupp.
Miles then proceeded to announce the awards. The first award of the night, the prestigious Alan Moor Award, sponsored by Bitzer UK, went to Dave Pearson of Star Refrigeration. The Alan Moor Award is presented in memory of the late one-time managing director of Bitzer UK, recognising the contributions of one individual whose efforts on behalf of the air conditioning and refrigeration industry have largely gone unrecognised.
Next up was the Apprentice of the Year award, sponsored by Hawco, which was deservingly awarded to Stephen Taylor of Kooltech. This award recognises an apprentice that demonstrates commitment to personal development and progression and contributes to the workplace.
Chirs Bailie of BL Refrigeration and Air Conditioning scooped up Service Engineer of the Year, designed to reward the most outstanding engineer in the industry.
The winner of Wholesaler/Distributor of the Year 2018 was TF Solutions, demonstrating an impressive overall company performance over the past 12 months.
The Online Initiative of the Year award, which celebrates an innovative online platform, went to Mitsubishi Electric for The Hub.
Environmental Project of the Year 2018 was scooped up by Panasonic Heating & Cooling for the Marina Village Greystones Project. This accolade rewards a project that has environmental benefits and a commitment to sustainability.
Guntner’s Guntner Masterpanel was the winner of Ancillary Refrigeration Product of the Year. The Refrigeration Product of the Year, meanwhile, went to Bitzer for its Ecoline Plus CO2 compressor range. These awards recognise the most innovative refrigeration products and accessories in the industry.
Ancillary Air Conditioning Product of the Year, sponsored by Hitachi, was scooped up by Daikin UK for the Auto Cleaning Duct Accessory. The final award of the night, the Air Conditioning Product of the Year award, sponsored by Bitzer, was awarded to Samsung for its AR9500M. These awards celebrate air conditioning products that go above and beyond the competition.
After all of the accolades were presented, all in attendance came together to partake in the evening’s charity fundraiser, raising a generous amount of £1370 for Rainbow Trust, chosen for its support for families who have had a child with a life threatening or terminal illness.
Lynn Sencicle, editor of ACR News Magazine, said: “This year’s ceremony was an amazing evening with a packed room full of energy. The winners all deserve huge congratulations, and the guests all had such a great time they didn't want to leave!”
Journal manager Steve Bennion added: “The ACR News Awards 2018 was a great night. It was brilliant to see so many companies represented at our sold-out event. Overall, it was an evening of fellowship and fun for all of our guests.”
The ACR News Awards 2018 were sponsored by Bitzer, Hawco, Hitachi, Advanced Engineering, First Choice Group, Fixxy, Fujitsu Air Conditioning, Pastorfrigor, Samsung, Smith Brothers Stores and Toshiba.
For the full list of this year’s winners, and for more information, visit www.acrnewsawards.com