ASHRAE Wraps AHR Expo, Winter Conference in Orlando

ORLANDO, FL — The 2025 AHR Expo occupied the Orange County Convention Center February 10-12, hosting more than 1,800 exhibitors, and showcasing the latest technologies, products and services to an estimated 50,000 attendees over three days.

While the main focus of the show has always been HVAC/R, the size and the scope of the Expo have drawn exhibitors from across a broad swath of the built environment industry, including plumbing, piping, tools, IAQ, controls, hydronics, radiant, software, trade publications, code development organizations, media influencers and much, much more. A full list of exhibitors can be found at https://ahr25.mapyourshow.com/8_0/#/.

To date, there have been 75 AHR Expos since the inaugural launch in Philadelphia in 1930 at the Commercial Museum as a spin-off of The National Exposition of Power and Mechanical Engineering. In 1947, AHR Expo brought in ASHRAE as a show co-sponsor, and in the early 1970s, AHRI joined the co-sponsorship. Both esteemed organizations continue the partnership to the present day.

Education Offerings

As always, the Expo provided attendees opportunities to increase the range and scope of their technical and business knowledge. In 2025 this included both free industry seminars and for-credit sessions. Learning credits were offered in Continuing Education Units (CEUs), Professional Development Hours (PDHs) and American Institute of Architecture Learning Units (LUs). Topics ranged from commercial energy audits, the finer points of data center construction, heat pump system design, commissioning, decarbonization and many more.

This year the Expo included seven panel series, which brought some of the top experts in the industry together to discuss the important topics of the day in front of an audience, typically with a Q&A session following. Panel topics in 2025 included AI and Plumbing, Cybersecurity in HVACR, Refrigerant Transition, Workforce Rollover, Regulations, and New Business Opportunities.

If there was one can’t-miss panel session on the program, it would probably have to be Tuesday’s State of the Industry discussion, with Talbot Gee of HARDI, Dominick Guarino of the National Comfort Institute, M. Dennis Knight, 2024-2025 President of ASHRAE, and Stephen Yurek of AHRI, and moderated by Bryan Orr, HVAC School & Kalos.

For attendees pressed for time, two education options included the Podcast Pavilion and the New Product Theaters. The Pavilions offered more than 50 sessions from podcasters around the industry, all offered live. The New Product Theaters offered product demonstrations from top manufacturers in convenient 20-minute blocks.

Networking Opportunities

The show presented numerous opportunities for attendees to rub elbows and forge connections. On the show floor, some manufacturers offered coffee and breakfast pastries in the early hours, while others provided an open bar during the expo’s closing hours.

After hours there were several manufacturer-sponsored networking events, including the Burnham Holdings Hospitality Event held at Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville (at the Universal Studios Theme Park), the Heatcraft Customer Appreciation Event held at Howl at the Moon music venue, and the not-to-be-missed Taco opening day party at the Rosen Center Hotel.

ASHRAE Winter Conference

Running from February 8-12 and co-locating with the Expo, the 2025 ASHRAE Winter Conference brought together HVAC&R industry leaders, experts and professionals for an engaging and impactful event focused on key topics such as artificial intelligence, emerging technologies and workforce development.

The conference attracted close to 3,800 attendees and featured more than 400 committee meetings, 111 technical sessions and numerous networking and social events.

In his State of the Society Address, 2024-25 ASHRAE President Dennis Knight provided updates on the current Society Year theme: Empowering Our Workforce: Building a Sustainable Future.

“As we look to the future, I call upon each of you to continue to be passionate ambassadors for our industry,” said Knight. “Share your stories, engage in conversations, and inspire the next generation of professionals. We need to demonstrate to the world what we do and the profound impact our industry is making today—and the even greater potential it holds is in the future to address indoor environmental quality, sustainable development and resiliency.”

Knight highlighted progress on key initiatives, including a newly-released workforce development roadmap which outlines strategies for attracting, engaging and retaining talent to the HVAC&R industry.

Committment to Innovation

During the conference, President Knight announced the winners of the 2024-25 ASHRAE Decarbonization Challenge, a grant program supporting ASHRAE chapters in implementing local projects focused on energy efficiency and emissions reduction. The challenge, led by the Young Engineers in ASHRAE (YEA) committee, received 14 project submissions, awarding seven projects with grants ranging from $2,970 to $10,000, totaling $59,970.

Further reinforcing its commitment to industry innovation, ASHRAE announced the establishment of the $1 million Gordon Holness Presidential Fund. Created through an endowment, this fund will provide an annual $50,000 grant in perpetuity to support ASHRAE chapters in developing and executing creative solutions to some of the industry’s most pressing building challenges. Holness, who served as ASHRAE President in 2009-10, joined Knight at the 2025 Winter Conference to announce the fund’s launch.

Honors and Awards

ASHRAE honored the outstanding contributions of its members during its Honors and Awards Program. Additionally, ASHRAE Executive Vice President and Secretary Jeff Littleton provided updates on the Society’s progress in advancing the built environment in his report.

“ASHRAE remains steadfast in its mission to serve the built environment through research, education, and the development of industry-leading standards and guidelines,” said Littleton. “As we navigate the evolving challenges and opportunities within our field, our commitment to innovation, knowledge-sharing and workforce development is stronger than ever. Through collaboration with our global network of chapters and industry partners, we will continue to drive meaningful advancements that shape the future of HVAC&R. ASHRAE is not just adapting to change—we are leading it.”

ALI

The ASHRAE Learning Institute (ALI) provide valuable educational opportunities, offering 20 courses during the conference. All registered attendees, both in-person and virtual, will have access to the virtual conference platform during the conference and 12 months post-conference.

Mark Your Calendars

The 2025 ASHRAE Annual Conference will take place June 21-25 in Phoenix, Arizona. The next AHR Expo will take place February 2-4, 2026, and the next ASHRAE Winter Conference will take place January 31-February 4, 2026, both co-locating in Las Vegas, NV.