Ajita Rajendra, president and chief operating officer of A. O. Smith, has been appointed the 2012 chairman of the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI).

Rajendra’s agenda for AHRI in the new year include:

• The membership to work with industry partners to pass legislation on consensus agreements establishing new federal minimum efficiency standards for small-duct, high-velocity air conditioners and heat pump pool heaters.
  
  
• The membership to petition the Department of Energy to develop a new, technology neutral water heater testing procedure to correct deficiencies overlooked by the current process. By testing all water heaters on equivalent efficiency levels, a new procedure would yield more accurate and fair efficiency ratings, he said. 
  
  
• The members to work together to make AHRI more credible in the United States and worldwide by standardizing its certification program to be even more stringent than the current Department of Energy certification requirements.

"I’ve had the opportunity to be a member of AHRI for several years on behalf of A. O. Smith," said Rajendra. "I’m excited for this new level of involvement to serve our industry." 


Source: A. O. Smith