ASHRAE Journal - November 2020 - 6

INDUSTRY NEWS

ETF Chair: Limited Virus
Knowledge is Key Challenge
ATLANTA-ASHRAE's Epidemic Task

Force (ETF) was created seven
months ago and has since developed guidance on mitigating
potential health risks in light of
the COVID-19 pandemic. The ETF's
guidance has helped built environment professionals reopen buildings and implement mitigation
strategies.
ASHRAE Journal staff talked with
the task force's chair, William
Bahnﬂeth, Ph.D., P.E., Presidential
Member/Fellow ASHRAE, about lessons the ETF has learned and what
the industry can expect from the
task force's continued work.
Now that we are more than
seven months into this pandemic, how has the ETF evolved
to keep up with the latest information on the virus, how it's
transmitted and how to respond?
Bahnﬂeth: Fundamentally, the
position of the task force has not
changed. From the outset, we saw
it as our objective to provide guidance on reducing airborne exposure
to SARS-CoV-2 because there is
sufﬁcient evidence to believe that
airborne transmission is possible
in some circumstances, e.g., when
there is low ventilation in a space.
Emerging research and the changing position of the World Health
Organization (WHO), the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) and other health organizations have tended to support this
point of view.
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Similarly, we have not seen evidence of transmission through
HVAC systems, although within a
space, air motion caused by HVAC
components as well as fans can be a
factor. The main evolution of the ETF
and its guidance has been a greater
focus on reﬁning recommendations
to minimize energy use and operating cost impact. For example, current guidance does not recommend
24/7 operation of systems, always
shutting off energy recovery wheels
or maximizing outdoor airﬂow for
all systems.
What are some key insights the
engineering/built environment
industries learned during this
pandemic?
Bahnﬂeth: The ﬁrst is that, not
surprisingly, buildings and systems
that are not designed to reduce risk
of infectious disease transmission
are generally not well-equipped
to do so. A second is a reminder
that deferred maintenance has
consequences. Many systems need
to be repaired before they can be
upgraded. Perhaps a third is that
more outdoor air is not always the
best solution to indoor air quality concerns if energy use and
economic factors are taken into
consideration.
The industry has begun to educate
itself about ways of utilizing ﬁltration and air cleaning more effectively. Unfortunately, we have also
learned that there are important
gaps in knowledge related to the

N OVEM BER 2020

effectiveness and performance of
some air cleaners.
What are ASHRAE members
saying are their biggest challenges regarding mitigating
the spread of the virus in built
environments?
Bahnﬂeth: One key challenge is
posed by the limited knowledge we
have regarding the characteristics of
the SARS-CoV-2 virus, speciﬁcally,
the production rate of infectious
aerosol by infected persons and the
relationship between exposure and

AHR Expo Cancelled
WESTPORT, CONN.-The 2021 AHR Expo

has been cancelled, according to
ASHRAE and Show Management.
"With roadblocks set in place by
the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic
and current state and local
restrictions that prohibit mass
gatherings over 50 people, an inperson event will not take place
in 2021," according to a statement from Show Management.
Now, the focus is shifting to
prepare for an in-person 2022
AHR Expo in Las Vegas.
ASHRAE is planning to host its
2021 Winter Conference virtually. From February 9 - 11, 2021, the
Winter Virtual Conference will
include a mixture of live, prerecorded and on-demand sessions.
ASHRAE committee, council and
board meetings will take place
virtually in January.

https://www.ashrae.org/

ASHRAE Journal - November 2020

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