DALLAS - Ten educational institutions in the United States and Canada received air quality test instruments donated by Fluke Corp. The supplier of handheld test and measurement equipment made the presentation to the selected schools on the opening day of the AHR Expo, being held at the Dallas Convention Center.

Each winning school was presented with a pair of the company’s 975 AirMeter™ Tester, for use in training HVACR students. The selected schools were California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo, Calif.); Clarkson University (Potsdam, N.Y.); Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago); Linn State Technical College (Linn, Mo.); Perry Technical Institute (Yakima, Wash.); Purdue University (West Lafayette, Ind.); Seattle Area Pipetrades Education Center (Renton, Wash.); SAIT Polytechnic (Calgary, Alberta, Canada); Sheet Metal Workers Local 265 JATC (Carol Stream, Ill.); and University of Texas School of Public Health (Houston).

“Training programs in industrial hygiene and HVAC technology are in A+ shape,” said Mark Price, head of the Fluke Indoor Air Diagnostics business unit. “We were extremely impressed by the quality and depth of these programs. These advanced test instruments will help make them even better.”

The Fluke Education Grant Program, announced Oct. 1, 2006, drew applications from 109 high schools, community colleges, universities, and trade schools across the U.S. and Canada.  A review committee of air quality professionals, who are members of the Fluke Indoor Air Quality Advisory Council, and Fluke employees, chose winners. They examined many program elements, including the breadth of course offerings and the types and numbers of certificates and degrees conferred.

According to Fluke, its AirMeter tester measures multiple air quality factors, including velocity, CO2, CO, temperature, and humidity. It is also designed to calculate dew point and wet bulb temperatures, volume flow, and percent of outside air.

In another announcement, Fluke introduced its equipment loan program, created to give indoor air quality (IAQ) students the latest in test tools and instruments. Fluke promised to send applicants a container packed with a variety of indoor air quality (IAQ) test instruments for classroom and laboratory use. At the end of the two-week loan period, the instructor is supposed to ship the equipment to another school.

Each package - called an IAQ Hands-on Training or “HOT” tub - contains five Fluke 975 AirMeters™, five Fluke 922 air flow meters, a Fluke 983 particle counter, and a PowerPoint-based lecture complete.

“Indoor air quality is an important health and safety issue, and we believe students in this vital discipline deserve the best test instruments available,” said Price. “The Fluke equipment loan program will help enhance the quality of HVAC and industrial hygiene programs across the country.”

To access the Equipment Loan Program, instructors must register for the Fluke Education Partnership Program at www.fluke.com/education.

Instructors from two-year, four-year, and apprenticeship training programs that join the program can access the Fluke Education Discount to purchase Fluke products for their labs and students.  The program provides a 25-percent discount.