INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN
BUSINESS AND TRAINING
The Cold Link newspaper .
" People told me it was impossible to have a show purely for refrigeration and air conditioning ," he says . Nevertheless , Ackermann paid the deposit for the show grounds and began planning the event . " I knew the refrigeration industry and its people , but not the specifics of organising exhibitions ," he admits . “ A key moment came when Eva Marcus from an exhibition company suggested hiring her firm to manage the event . This collaboration was key to the exhibition ' s success .”
Ackermann convinced SAIRAC and SARDA to hold a Frigair conference alongside the exhibition . " We formed a committee with members from the two bodies , organised the programme , and secured speakers , including international experts . This event attracted 2 900 visitors and was financially successful - a milestone for the industry .”
" When we did that first exhibition , Cooling Expo ‘ 92 , there was a lot of unrest in the country ," Ackermann recalls , referencing the volatile political climate of the time and bookings declined after the rioting . “ But we continued , and the show proved a success ”.
Encouraged by the success , Ackermann planned subsequent exhibitions in Cape Town in 1998 ( RAC Africa ) and in 2004 ( Cooling Africa ) " SARDA and SAIRAC members organised these events with the help of dedicated committee members and sponsors ," he says . Each event continued to build on the previous ones , solidifying the exhibition ' s reputation
He was the chairman of SARDA and twice the national president of SAIRAC : 1996-1997 and 1997-1998 , and then again from 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 .
and importance . The process would start nine months earlier with an organising meeting , with follow up meetings every six weeks to map out the speakers , programme , social event programme , and this would become weekly meetings as the event approached .”
Over time , Frigair morphed from a conference to an exhibition with the format of presenting technical papers with in-depth discussion gradually disappearing and the name changing from the Frigair conference to the Frigair exhibition , he adds .
Ackermann ' s leadership extended still further beyond organising events . He was the founding chairman of SARDA and twice the national president of SAIRAC : 1996-1997 and 1997-1998 , and then again from 2013-2014 and 2014- 2015 . " I did two years in each term and continued to run my business , Jack Agencies , while managing The Cold Link ," Ackermann says .
RUNNING THE COLD LINK
" The Cold Link was entirely managed by myself . I took photographs , wrote articles , and handled the layout . I did all the advertising , invoicing , and everything else required to keep the publication running ," he explains . He even manually folded and mailed out the publication until securing a mailing house to assist with distribution . Despite subcontracting layout work , Ackermann remained handson , doing proofreading and managing the entire process .
While this continued , Interact Media Defined ( IMD , the publisher of this newspaper ) took over the Cold Chain , as part of a competitive bidding process " I should have bought the Cold Chain when the old owner passed away ," he reflects . However , he missed the opportunity , leading to a situation whereby two publications coexisted in the HVAC & R industry .
Ackermann ' s commitment to his readers is evident . " I used to do the overseas mailing myself , ensuring the newspapers reached various parts of the world , including places like the UK , Norway , and Estonia . These travels helped build a robust international readership ," Ackermann explains .
As he built up a substantial overseas readership he wondered if any of them actually read it . Reassurance came from meeting readers at international
COLD LINK AFRICA • July / August 2024 www . coldlinkafrica . co . za 17