CALMAC founder inducted into ASHRAE Hall of Fame
March 3, 2016
The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers Society's 2016 Winter Conference was held between Jan. 23 and Jan. 27 in Orlando, Florida, and 54 people were recognized for their lifetime contributions to ASHRAE and their respective industries. CALMAC founder Calvin D. MacCracken was inducted into the hall of fame for his extensive body of work which included over 250 inventions and 80 patents.
Cal worked on and released well-known products such as flexible ducts for heating and cooling, plastic mats for ice rinks, comfort controls for astronaut suits and the Roll-A-Grill hotdog cooker. MacCracken lived from 1919 to 1999, and his son and current CALMAC CEO, Mark MacCracken, gave an acceptance speech in his father's honor.
Hall of Famer Calvin MacCracken
Cal will join the ranks of some of the greatest innovators, as a member of the ASHRAE Hall of Fame. Willis H. Carrier, the father of the modern air conditioning system, as well as Reuben N. Trane, the inventor of the convector radiator, are both members.
"Cal MacCracken invented over 250 products and held around 80 patents."
CALMAC began in 1947 under a different name - Jet Heet Inc. The company was started by the then 27-year-old MacCracken and was billed as a creative engineering firm, boasting clients such as Whirlpool and Westinghouse.
In 1964, after moving the headquarters, the company was renamed CALMAC. The company spent all of its time and energy conducting research and development in cleantech, particularly for solar and thermal energy storage solutions.
After a fire broke out in 1980, two days before Christmas, the company headquarters was wiped out and the business had to start from scratch. This allowed Cal and Mark to focus all of their energy on pursuing thermal storage - particularly connecting thermal energy storage to a conventional cooling system.
The rest is history. As of now, CALMAC has over 4,000 projects in 60 countries. Mark MacCracken notes the fire as a big reason for their success, as the company was able to focus its effort and become the best provider in the industry for thermal energy storage.
Mark MacCracken on the success of his father
Mark MacCracken accepted the ASHRAE honor on behalf of his late father at the conference. His speech truly encapsulated what the induction would have meant for his father.
"I can tell you that he would have been thrilled and truly honored by getting this award. He loved this organization - he adored this organization," MacCracken said after accepting the recognition in his father's honor. "I would say [there were] many reasons, [for] all the great things we do, but it was made up of engineers. He was passionate about engineers."
Perhaps his passion for his profession was most obvious in the way he conducted his business.
"In 1983, after firing our third Harvard MBA, my father said, 'That's it! We are outsourcing our finances and we are now only hiring engineers.' He had an affinity for engineers," MacCracken said.
It's clear that ASHRAE couldn't have honored a more deserving person - one who gave their life to innovation, and worked to make other people's lives better.
