| (1876
- 1950) |
| Inducted: |
1981 |
| Region: |
Northeast |
| Industry: |
Engineering
|
|
Willis H. Carrier started a subsidiary of Buffalo Forge so he could design custom air-conditioning systems. In 1914 Buffalo’s leaders shut down the little engineering unit. Carrier raised $32,600 to start his own company Carrier Corp. and worked out the relationships between air temperature and humidity in a series of mathematical formulas that remain the basis of the industry. Air-conditioning’s first applications were industrial. Though few analysts agreed, Carrier insisted that home air-conditioning would become commonplace. Trusting his instinct, Carrier built a business and changed the way we all live and work. |
