New honorary life members in the International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration flank outgoing IIAR Chair Bill Bowles. At left is contractor Hank Saye of Republic Refrigeration and at right is engineer Ron Vallort of Ron Vallort and Associates.

An honorary life membership was presented to Hank Saye of Republic Refrigeration headquartered in Monroe, N.C. The company - which also has an office in Hammond, La., and operates as Carolina Refrigeration in Monterrey, Mexico - has more than 200 employees.

Saye, who has served on the IIAR board of directors and chaired the Code Committee, was cited by then-Chair Bill Bowles as "a dedicated professional who highly respects his employees, customers, and vendors."

The engineer given an honorary life membership was Ron Vallort, president of Ron Vallort and Associates of Oak Brook, Ill., which does engineering and building consulting for the food industry. He is a former chair of IIAR as well as past president of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers.

"Ron has been an exemplary member of the engineering community for more than 40 years," Bowles said.

Member of the Year recognition went to Brian Marriott of San Antonio, who is senior engineer at York Refrigeration Systems, a Johnson Controls company. Bowles cited him for his membership on the board of directors and the Standard Review Committee, acting as IIAR treasurer, chairing the Valve Committee, and serving on the task force developing the mechanical integrity database for pressure vessels.

Said Bowles, "He is a man who has been an enthusiastic and active contributor to the success and growth of IIAR."

Moving up to the chairmanship of IIAR at the conference was David Grong, who had been chairman elect. He is president of Carlson & Stewart Refrigeration in Marshall, Minn. Bowles took the position of immediate past chairman.

Also during the conference the IIAR welcomed three new members to its board of directors, re-elected another for a second three-year term, and honored three who have completed three-year terms.

New to the board are Robert Czarnecki, program manager at Campbell Soup Co. with responsibilities for refrigeration engineering and installation, startup work for new and retrofit systems, and troubleshooting existing systems; Joe Mandato, senior vice president responsible for Evapco's worldwide industrial refrigeration business; and Chuck Taylor, senior vice president of the Steller Group, responsible for refrigeration services. Elected to a second consecutive term was Jim Wright, principal of Wright Engineering.

Recognized for completing three years on the board were Bob House, Wal-Mart Foods; Rick Waters, AMS Mechanical Systems; and Wright.

Publication date: 05/01/2006