The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is revising its self-directed fundamentals learning courses to incorporate the latest technologies, while the "fundamentals" will remain the same.

Revision of the nine-course Fundamentals series will take place over the next two years. It was created in 1995.

The first revision will be to Fundamentals of Thermodynamics and Psychrometrics. It will be divided into two courses, Fundamentals of Thermodynamics, which will be completed by June 2004, and Fundamentals of Psychrometrics, which will be completed by September 2004. In addition, a new course, Fundamentals of Steam System Design, is being created.

Proposed revisions include updating Heating and Cooling Loads to match the latest methods in the ASHRAE Handbook, Fundamentals; reformatting HVAC Systems to expand upon the changes in many HVAC&R systems available today; and rewriting the direct digital control chapter of Controls to include current technology.

ASHRAE's Fundamentals series currently includes courses on HVAC systems, thermodynamics and psychrometrics, heating and cooling loads, air system design, water system design, heating systems, electrical systems and building electrical energy use, HVAC control systems, and refrigeration.

For more information on the series, visit