In celebration of World Refrigeration Day on June 26, Australian retailer Woolworths will be opening up the plant room in two of its stores using transcritical CO2 refrigeration to the public.
The event aims to spread awareness about the refrigeration trade among young people and to showcase the latest technology. It will take place at a store in Western Melbourne and one in Western Sydney.
“What we’d like to do is reach out to young kids who are looking for a vocation,” said Dario Ferlin, sustainable innovations engineer for Woolworths, during the ATMOsphere Australia 2019 conference held in Melbourne last month.
“Kids of moms and dads who shop in our stores, kids who attend the local schools, potentially even young people who are working in our supermarkets — we would love to tap into some of those passionate kids and present them with a viable trade option, which will be very gratifying for them,” he said.
According to a Woolworths flier publicizing the event, there will be an opportunity to “meet industry professionals and experience a day in the life of a refrigeration technician.” Each plant room visit will run for about one hour.
The event is being supported by several local industry associations and educational institutions, including the Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Contractors Association (RACCA), Australian Institute of Refrigeration Air Conditioning and Heating (AIRAH) and Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT).
World Refrigeration Day will be celebrated globally for the first time on June 26, with more than 100 industry groups around the world participating in various events to showcase the importance of refrigeration in our daily lives.
A list of other initiatives that will be held on that day around the world can be found here.
