Janice K Means
1070 Greentree Rd
Bloomfield Hills,, MI 48304
United States
(248) 935-6468
Region: V
Honorarium: $50 for Research Promotion
Languages Spoken: English
Means

Janice K. Means has diverse experience in both industry and higher education in the fields of HVAC, alternative energy, facility O&M, and the writing and interpretation of codes and standards. She has been a U.S. State of Michigan Registered Engineer for over 40 years. As a strong promoter of sustainability and outreach to the public and students, she chaired ten local solar energy/sustainability conferences which included training others on ASHRAE Standard 90.1. She taught building MEP, solar energy, and environmental classes at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, Michigan USA for 15 years following her work in industry.

Professor Means has served in several ASHRAE leadership positions: Detroit Chapter President; Region V Vice Chair for Student Activities; and at the international level, as TC 6.7 - Solar Energy Utilization Chair: Scholarship Trustees Chair; and currently, TC 2.5 – Global Climate Change Handbook Sub-committee Chair. She is also a voting member of TC 2.8 – Building Environmental Impacts and Sustainability and TC 2.5 – Global Climate Change, and is an active member of TC 6.7 – Solar Energy Utilization. Additionally, she has served on the boards of the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association, Michigan Solar Energy Association, and Michigan Interfaith Power and Light.

She has authored numerous articles and papers, and presented at local and international conferences on sustainability topics, high performance buildings, and STEM promotion for young women and minorities.  She is the co-editor and co-author of three editions of the book ASHRAE GreenGuide—Design, Construction, and Operation of Sustainable Buildings, a co-author for the Climate Change Chapter in the 2021 ASHRAE Fundamentals Handbook, and a co-author of the 2019 ASHRAE Guideline 34 - Energy Guideline for Historic Buildings. She is also the author of a continuing series of articles, “Hidden in HVAC”, in the ASHRAE Journal.

Means’ most prominent recent honors include: her induction in November 2024 as the first engineer in the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame for her sustainability work; the 2024 ASHRAE Exceptional Service Award; Engineering Society of Detroit’s 2021 Gold Award as outstanding engineer; the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association’s 2021 Melanie McCoy Leadership Award for “her pioneering efforts in Michigan solar energy”; and the 2020 ASHRAE E.K. Campbell International Award for teaching excellence.  In 2015, she became an Engineering Society of Detroit Fellow and in 2022, she was the 20th woman to become an ASHRAE Fellow since the College of Fellows was initiated.

Professor Means earned her MSE in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan-Dearborn She also holds a B.S. in General Engineering and a B.A. in Secondary Education with a Physics Minor from Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan USA.

In retirement, Means continues to share her expertise by publishing and lecturing on sustainability topics and the promotion of young women and minorities in the STEM/STEAM fields. As a lifetime explorer, she relishes global travel, making new and diverse friends, hiking through nature, deciphering how ancient peoples constructed their homes primarily using only passive means and searching for those same ancient people’s rock art of petroglyphs and pictographs.

Topic
Climate Change – Myths and Reality
The presenter includes an overview of the latest and projected environmental transformations due to climate change, answers the question “Who or What Really Causes Climate Change”, and concludes with a summary of how it is affecting (and will affect) the world and the location of where it is being presented.
Carbon Sequestration – An Introduction
The speaker will give an overview of carbon capture and storage and its potential role in meeting the Carbon Budget to keep the earth’s temperature rise under 2oC. The IPCC has stated that decarbonization (going to net zero) alone will not keep the earth from experiencing the worst effects of climate change; carbon capture and storage technologies need to be part of the solution. The presentation will include definitions of the basic approaches with examples with their cost, feasibility, and ethics of its use.
Creating Resilience and Occupant Safety to Adapt to a Changing Climate
The presenter gives an overview of ways in which buildings can be designed or retrofitted to provide occupant safety and comfort while minimizing active HVAC equipment capacities. These include: basing designs on projected climate changes and predicted extreme weather events; borrowing passive design elements from pre-industrial, vernacular architecture; and generally designing/retrofitting/constructing to provide safe refuge for occupants and continuity of operation for buildings and their equipment systems.
Lessons Learned From a Life Member of a Professional Society
The speaker enumerates the many benefits of becoming a member of one or more professional societies through lessons she has learned from a lifelong career in engineering. This presentation is particularly appropriate for students as well as engineers newly entering the profession.
Considerations When Going Green With A Historic Building
Prior to applying energy efficiency measures (EEMs) to an existing building, it is essential to anticipate potentially negative effects. This is particularly critical when attempting to improve the energy efficiency of a listed building where there are other overriding considerations, e.g., preserving the historic character and materials. The presenter will refer to the ASHRAE Guideline 34 - 2019, Energy Guideline for Historic Buildings, for which she was a co-author as part of an international committee. She uses several examples in explaining how and why using EEMs for any historic building--listed or not listed--must be carefully thought out and executed.