Industry Perspectives

Like every business in the HVAC Industry, R.E. Michel faces many challenges, from government regulations to a major shortage of people coming into the trades. Doc Michel says the latter is the biggest hurdle today.

‘The next biggest challenge is the upcoming refrigerant phaseout. I worry about the 2023 deadline.

‘The question really is whether manufacturers can be ready with product. And we really haven’t settled into a standardized replacement refrigerant which can cause even more problems.’

He adds that he knows that industry associations like HARDI and AHRI are on top of all this, but it is an uphill battle with grave ramifications for the entire industry.

‘No matter what happens,’ he continues, ‘success in today’s world depends completely on having a well-trained workforce. Contractors need to spend more time than ever training their technicians.

‘The technology and requirements for installing and maintaining HVAC equipment are becoming ever more complicated and the ramifications of poorly designed and installed systems can be dire in terms of consumer health, comfort, and safety.

‘And we (the distributors) need better sales and branch personnel to help our contractor customers.’

It is these things that help tie together the relationship between the distributor and contractor.

Congratulations to R.E. Michel on its 85th Anniversary of service and for being this month’s High-Performance HVAC Today magazine’s Partner Spotlight.