Jun 21, 2011 - Claremont, Calif. - For the fourth year, Harvey Mudd College awarded its Green Engineering Award at the Annual TechAmerica Orange County High-Tech Innovation Awards. Energy firm Greenway Design Group, Inc. (GDGI.PK) was recognized for its energy-saving evaporative pre-cool misting technology designed for commercial and residential central air conditioning systems.

Greenway Design Group, Inc. is the innovator of “pre-cool” solutions, marketed under the trademark "Cool-n-Save," that reduce the cost of operating conventional air conditioning systems. Results from Greenway's customers show that Cool-n-Save evaporative pre-cooling systems may produce energy cost savings as high as 30 percent, with an average savings of about 26 percent from air conditioning use during peak heat seasons. The company has been developing pre-cool misting technology since 2005.

"We are grateful to have received this tremendous honor for our work of the last five years," says Darius Jakubik, Greenway's senior vice president. "Cool-n-Save could be the answer to a country in search of a way to significantly reduce energy consumption and cut carbon output. We developed Cool-n-Save to be cost-effective and practical. Many of our customers have seen enough savings to make up the cost of their investment in less than 12 months."

Larry McKenna, inventor and Greenway Design Group CTO, and HMC engineering Professor David Money Harris.

“Greenway has led the way in designing technology for energy-saving air conditioning systems,” added David Money Harris, professor of engineering, who presented the award on behalf of the College and its engineering department. “I grew up in the Mojave desert, where evaporative cooling was the most cost-effective way to keep a building comfortable in the dry summers. It is exciting to see the technology applied to improve the efficiency of air conditioning by about 25 percent even in normal climates. As air conditioning is one of the major consumers of energy in the United States, this technology will make a huge impact.”

The Cool-n-Save pre-cool system raises a “pre-cool shield” of treated water mist into the air around an HVAC unit. Flash evaporation causes the mist to evaporate almost instantly. The result is an adiabatic boundary, a shield that literally insulates the HVAC from excess heat. Ambient air temperature around the unit drops by as much as 30°F. That means that if the ambient air temperature is 98°F, Cool-n-Save will reduce it to 68°F. The air then acts on the fins and increases heat exchange efficiency.

Based in Huntington Beach, CA, Greenway Design Group, Inc. has been an innovator of commercial and residential solutions for HVAC systems that conserve energy and equipment since 2005. They sell do-it-yourself residential kits and, in 2008, began marketing commercial systems.

Two Certificate of Merit awards were also presented to finalists in the HMC Green Engineering category: Amonix, Inc., the leading designer and manufacturer of concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) solar power systems, and Fisker Automotive, an American premium electric vehicle manufacturer with a mission to redefine the luxury automobile.

The Harvey Mudd College Green Engineering Award Committee was led by Professor of Engineering, Harris, and included two other professors, two students, one trustee and external industrial members including the prior year’s award winner, M2 Renewables.

The Green Engineering Award, established in 2008, was sponsored this year by Mavenlink LLC. Their CEO Ray Grainger ‘88, is also a trustee of Harvey Mudd College and chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee.

About TechAmerica
TechAmerica is the leading voice for the U.S. technology industry – the driving force behind productivity growth and jobs creation in the United States and the foundation of the global innovation economy. Representing approximately 1,200 member companies of all sizes from the public and commercial sectors of the economy, it is the industry’s largest advocacy organization and is dedicated to helping members’ top and bottom lines. TechAmerica is also the technology industry's only grassroots-to-global advocacy network, with offices in state capitals around the United States, Washington, D.C., Europe (Brussels) and Asia (Beijing).It was formed by the merger of AeA (formerly the American Electronics Association), the Cyber Security Industry Alliance (CSIA), the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) and the Government Electronics & Information Technology Association (GEIA).Learn more about TechAmerica at ww.techamerica.org.

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