< Previous20 AUGUST 2018HIGH PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYWe all know how for years the De-partment of Energy (DOE) stressed equipment efficiency. But now with higher minimum equipment efficien-cy standards in place, they’re shifting their focus to the duct system. They finally figured out that most perfor-mance and energy is lost through poor distribution systems.Until recently, most government agencies, along with utilities and “Energy Crusaders,” focused on tight ducts alone to make systems more efficient. It’s taken some years for them to accept what some of us have said all along: Tight ducts alone don’t provide efficient system performance. Unfortunately, many still don’t get it. In fact, because there are so many undersized duct systems out there, just sealing ducts can choke down the system. This can compromise perfor-mance, comfort, and efficiency. Duct sealing alone might cause safety is-sues by creating pressure imbalances that can cause flues to spill and pro-duce deadly carbon monoxide.Tight ducts are only a slice of the system performance pie. It’s impos-sible to assure consumers’ energy efficiency based on sealed ducts alone. Again, there’s nothing wrong with the new culture built into a Perfor-mance-Based business. It’s not unusu-al to see 20-30- year industry veterans get excited about their industry again.WILL YOU LEAD OR FOLLOW?In recent years, we’ve seen both federal and local governments cracking down on poor installations. Some states passed legislation allowing building inspectors to demand air balance reports on residential installations.MANAGEMENTPhoto courtesy of DiFillippo’s Service CompanyAUGUST 2018 21HVACTODAY.COMThe handwriting is on the wall – look around you when you attend meetings and association conferences. The movement is towards measured, documented performance. It just makes sense. It’s what this industry should have been doing all along, but it lost its focus with all the attention on equipment alone.While it’s important to sell high quality equipment, your focus with your customer needs to be on how that equipment will perform in their home. Remember, customers don’t “want” furnaces and air condition-ers, they want the comfort these ap-pliances provide. And they want it as safe, efficient, and reliable as possible. Measured performance allows you to deliver on that promise.There are many other benefits to transforming your company into a Per-formance-Based business. Your thor-ough and unique approach will gener-ate referral business. You’ll also likely get their service business with long-term maintenance agreements. After all, who else can they trust their fine-ly tuned high-performance system to?In the next article in this series we will examine the 10 steps successful contractors have taken to implement High Performance in their contracting businesses. sealing ductwork. It’s part of any good duct renovation. But before we seal, we must make sure the ducts are big enough to handle the needed airflows.A GRASS ROOTS MOVEMENTParallel to government intervention is the growing movement among qual-ity contractors to take their companies to the next level with delivered perfor-mance. I think this is very powerful. The National Comfort Institute alone has trained and certified nearly 30,000 professionals in more than 7,000 com-panies in air diagnostics, system per-formance testing, and air balancing. Many have embraced this approach as their new way of doing business. Dominick Guarino is publisher of HVAC Today magazine and CEO of National Comfort Institute, Inc. He can be reached at domg@ncihvac.comHIGH PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYsays, “I didn’t buy you $15,000 worth of instru-ments then pay to have them calibrated so you can run up my phone bill too!”WHAT ARE THE RIGHT AIRFLOW TOOLS?So, what are the tools a TAB professional should have for measuring airflow and why should they have several that perform similar functions? The answer is every tool does one or two things differ-ently and/or better than others. You need them in your toolbox so you can decide on the one that works best for your situation. Everyone recog-nizes the balancing hood. I’ve been on job sites to balance pumps and chillers where the gener-al contractor calls the office stating I’m not there because he didn’t see a balancing hood anywhere. Owning a reliable, calibrated balancing hood is only step one. There are other required instru-ments that every TAB professional should own.HOT WIRE VS. ROTATING VANE ANEMOMETERSFor example, a thermal anemometer (hot wire) is hypersensitive to low airflow, and perfect for low velocity, non-combustible airflow applications. A Rotating Vane Anemometer (RVA) is a poor choice for low velocity, as it takes a higher air velocity to turn the blades and produce accurate readings. This makes the RVA a better instrument to read outside air intakes on a rooftop package unit (RTU) where the sensitive thermal anemometer is highly impacted by wind.Another great application for a thermal anemometer is a duct traverse. This instrument also reads well in more turbulent, less laminar airflow. Depending on the make and model of the thermal anemometer, technicians can simulta-neously read and record wet bulb and dry bulb temperatures while performing the duct traverse. The thermal anemometer is temperature sensi-tive and may not be appropriate in some applica-When vetting applications or teach-ing classes, I’m often asked: Why do we need so many instruments to read airflow? My immediate response is “How many tools do you carry to loosen or tighten a 5/8th inch nut? How many of you carry a Six-In-One multi-driver? A set of nut drivers? Standard wrenches? Almost always the answer is all the above. They have these tools and more. They also have oth-er odd contraptions they plucked off Amazon or found in a supply house. The bottom line is that everyone has at least four to six tools to loosen a 5/8-in. nut, and will provide a passionate, detailed response why they need every single one of them. If technicians are so adamant about loosening a 5/8-in. nut, and possess-ing various tools to accom-plish this task, then why are TAB (Testing, Adjust-ing, and Balancing) pro-fessionals often so resis-tant to buying and using multiple test instruments to read something as criti-cal as airflow? Each instrument has its specific application, even though it technically per-forms the same function. Remember that adage, “If your only tool is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.” One professional certi-fied by the National Bal-ancing Council (NBC) trains his technicians NOT to call for technical support “until they’ve used every in-strument in their truck!” He Use the Right Tool for the JobBy Scott FielderTECHNICALJoseph Kosky of the University of Pittsburgh, using the Rotating Vane Anemometer.22 AUGUST 2018AUGUST 2018 23HVACTODAY.COMframing crew by tool, make, model, and price. The bottom line is it costs him well over $10,000 to equip his guys with everything they need. Each crew requires various nail guns, drills, saws, levels. Every drill will make a hole, but each has a specific application. The same is true for the hot wire, ro-tating vane, straight pitot tube, and velocity grid: all of them read airflow, but each has a specific application. As NCI’s David Richardson likes to say, “You can’t use a single test instrument like a Swiss Army Knife.” All trades face such expenses. One thing my friend pointed out is that in most trades, if you try to use the wrong instrument for the wrong job, it’s no-ticeable and easily spotted. Protruding nails, ugly cuts, etc. You can’t tell by eye if some one used a 2’ x 2’ balancing hood skirt on a 1’ x 4’ linear diffuser. You may feel it once the building is occupied and airflow is actually 20% to 30% lower than recorded, but the results are not always visible.THE PRICE OF DOING BUSINESSIn any trade, you must buy the right tools for the right job. You also need to understand that instrument’s purpose and know how to use it. With the right tools and instruments, you are fully prepared for any field variable, espe-cially a confrontation or challenge. Every certifying organization has a list of required instrumentation. If you DO NOT own the required instru-ments, you are not officially certified in spite of owning a “certification stamp.”With the right tools and instru-ments, you are more accurate in your measurements, diagnostics, and rec-ommendations. All are vital in your TAB report to the customer. We ex-pect every tradesperson who works on our homes to be properly equipped to perform the job at hand, why wouldn’t we expect the same from ourselves? Yes, it’s expensive, but so is any trade. Owning, maintaining, calibrating, and correctly applying these instruments are the critical differences between a certified professional, and a guy with a balancing hood and a van. If the cost of being a professional doesn’t agree with you, as Ted Knight said in the film Caddyshack, “The world needs ditch diggers, too.” tions. This is one reason to own both a pitot tube and straight-pitot tube/air-foil. The straight pitot tube/airfoil is also a better instrument for lower velocities and more turbulent airflow.VELOCITY GRID/MATRIX OR VELGRIDThe velocity grid/matrix, as Dwyer and Alnor refer to it, or VelGrid as Shortridge refers to it, are meant to cover a larger area of airflow/velocity readings. It is very suitable for reading outside air on RTUs, and is preferred by manufacturers (such as Captive Aire and Greenheck) for reading airflow at grease filters. In fact, NCI, NBC, and most TAB procedural standards suggest or re-quire using the manufacturers’ best practices when reading airflow on commercial kitchen hoods. Again, use the right tool for the right job. Man-ufacture correction factors — some-times referred to as Ak — ONLY work when using the exact instrument they used, in the exact manner they used it. For example using a velocity grid to read airflow at a grease filter, with one inch stand-offs, when the manufacture used two-inch stand-offs, can result in airflow readings 20% off from actual airflow.ALL TRADES DO THISThe HVAC and TAB trades aren’t alone with regards to needing several tools for similar jobs. I have a friend who owns a Florida-based framing company. We often discuss issues impacting the construction industry in general. I asked him about instruments specific to his trade and he explained EVERY item needed to run a six-man Dawn Vickers-Mroczek of GVs Heating and Cooling, Glenview, IL uses a VelGrid.Scott Fielder is director of National Balancing Council, a division of National Comfort Institute, Inc. He is responsible for vetting and approving all applicants for certification, developing and modifying course and exam material, providing both technical and administrative support to NBC Certified Professionals, promoting NBC to future applicants, contractors, design teams, and facilities owners.24 AUGUST 2018HIGH PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYing steps to root out sources of problems. Install-ers are trained to follow an efficient process for removing and replacing old equipment so that every installation is done correctly.Successful companies invest the time to doc-ument the right way to do things, so each team member has the information necessary to do their job well.Every company benefits from creating and managing a proven sales process. Team members appreciate knowing what their part in the sales process is, and the sales person, consistently fol-lowing established best-practices, benefits by selling more jobs for more money.Let’s take a look at the reasons for having a company sales process and managing your team members to support it.CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONSWhen an existing, or potential, customer calls to schedule a sales call, they expect to work with a qualified representative. After all, a new HVAC system is something they will live with for 15 years or more and will impact their entire fam-ily in many ways. Most people only go through the replacement process once in a lifetime. They are a bit apprehensive about investing thousands in something they know little about, from a com-pany they may not have a lot of experience with. They expect a professional approach from a pro-fessional person. Winging it on the call won’t de-liver that impression, or a great result.I’ve been on ride-along sales coaching calls that lasted 20 minutes while others took more than three hours. You can imagine what the 20-min-ute call was like: a quick visit to the basement, Successful sales people are effective at adapting to ever-changing circumstances during their sales calls. No two custom-ers are alike, and the best at selling actu-ally enjoy the challenges such diversity brings. It follows that these pros are not inclined to be con-strained with a step-by-step, follow-the-numbers in-home sales process.However, following a proven process will pro-duce better results. Henry Ford revolutionized the automobile industry with an assembly-line process. Service technicians are taught how to follow an established sequence of troubleshoot-Don’t Have A Sales Process? Here’s What it Means to Customers, Employees, and YouBy Tom PiscitelliSALESPROFESSIONAL SELLING SERIESWith this article we kick off a series that will take a deep dive into the sales process. Authors that include Tom Piscitelli, Drew Camer-on, and others, will provide ideas and tips to help you grow your Performance-Based Contracting Business.AUGUST 2018 25HVACTODAY.COMresents that kind of revenue potential. I encourage you to think of these re-peat customers as clients.How many clients would you like? Thousands, right? Well how about having a philosophy that says every sales call is an opportunity to create a $30,000 client-for-life? With that as your mindset, being prepared and having a professional sales process makes a lot of sense.NEXT, YOUR PRINCIPLESWhen owners are growing their business and doing the selling, they are usually very effective at convinc-ing customers that they will take excellent care of them. This means doing whatever it takes to insure cus-tomer satisfaction. As the company grows and others take over the sell-ing, it’s important to make sure they understand how to communicate the same commitment to excellence. There are fundamental principles that drive philosophy and behavior, and you should think about them, discuss them, and get buy-in from your team.Four of my favorite principles are:t Honestyt Integrityt We will not judge what customers may or may not wantt We will not judge what customers can or can’t afford.attic, or crawl space; a look at the con-denser; a note with a few numbers on it; a quick photo or two; and then a thank you and promise to the custom-er that a bid, quote, or estimate would be emailed. Surely there was more to look at, more to inspect, more to mea-sure, and more questions to ask.START WITH A PHILOSOPHYHave you ever considered the life-time value of each customer? If you add up the replacement sale, annual maintenance, service repairs, acces-sory sales, a second replacement, this can total $30,000 or more. It’s nice to think that every time the phone rings there is someone calling who rep-26 AUGUST 2018HIGH PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYsales person made. In this context, everyone is in sales.I encourage sales people to reach out to everyone connected to the sale in any way. This includes the recep-tionist, CSR or sales coordinator, all of the installers, office support staff, and service technicians.COMPANY’S REVENUE PER LEADHVAC marketing firms often say the cost for a marketed lead is $300 or more. Given a close rate of 40%, then the marketing cost per sale is $750. No one would deliberately flush that much money down a toilet, but that’s exactly what happens when a sales person doesn’t have or follow a pro-fessional sales process. Sure, every-one has an off day, or a bad call, but to consciously cut corners or other-wise short change the customer, also short-changes the company and all of its team members.A PROVEN SALES PROCESSThis article has, I trust, made the case for having a sales process and the value it represents. In the next articles we’ll look at what each of the steps in the in-home sales process can be and what you can do to create them for yourself. SALES PROFESSIONALISM AND ACCOUNTABILITYThe HVAC industry spoils sales peo-ple by giving them hundreds of leads. This is often too many to handle well. I ask sales people to keep these four best practices in mind:t Every lead you get is to be valued and respected as an important compa-ny assett Every call must get your best ef-fort. You understand the decision your customers make will impact them and their family in many important ways for up to 20 yearst Always follow up with the custom-er until they make a buying decisiont When they choose you, you will continue to serve them after the sale with intention to create a personal connection that produces repeat busi-ness and referrals.NOTHING HAPPENS WITHOUT A SALEOld sayings like this one stand the test of time because they represent the truth. Everything and everyone in your business depends on the success of the sales person. I’m not certain that many sales people understand this. It’s important to discuss this fact with them and with all team members. In many ways, all team members are doing something that contributes to the sale or that fulfills promises the SALESTom Piscitelli has over 40 years’ experience in HVAC sales, sales management, marketing and consulting. His articles have been pub-lished in trade magazines. He often speaks at industry events and has produced three HVAC sales training DVD’s. Tom particularly enjoys bringing cutting edge training approaches to our industry. His website is www.sellingtrust.com. His most recent project has been co-authoring and publishing the book, Proposition Selling: How to Create Extraordinary Success in Business-to-Business Sales. Learn more at www.propositionselling.com.EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE IN YOUR BUSINESS DEPENDS ON THE SUCCESS OF THE SALES PERSON. I’M NOT CERTAIN THAT MANY SALES PERSONS UNDERSTAND THIS.AUGUST 2018 27HVACTODAY.COMPHOTO OF THE MONTH“Why are my utility bills so high?” — Bradley Hoff, Trinity Air, Peachtree City, GA “Our power bills are high. We’ve been using this other contracting company for service for 10 years.” WHAT???Bradley Hoff from Trinity Air is the August 2018 winner of our Photo-of-the-Month contest, as voted on by the subscribers to the High Performance HVAC Today magazine and visitors to the website. He will receive a $50 gift card.You can too – submissions are always welcome. If you’d like to submit a photo for consideration in our Photo-of-the-Month contest, go to ncilink.com/POMSubmit and fill out the information as requested.THE SEPTEMBER CONTEST OPENS ON AUGUST 13, 2018. That gives you plenty of time to submit something in any of our three categories: The Good , The Bad , WTH (What the heck). Submit today!!28 AUGUST 2018HIGH PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYthe comments and if you want to contribute, feel free to do so.Like other social media sites, you can tag people you are mentioning in your conversation by using the “@” symbol in front of their name.You will receive an email notifica-tion every time a topic you commented on, or one you started, gets a response (if you’re not actively on the site). The good news is you can then respond by email – you don’t have to log back onto the website unless you want to. You can even begin new posts by email. You can adjust your email notification frequency at any time via your settings.To start a new topic (shown above), just add a title to the upper left box, click on the general topics drop-down menu to assign your thread to one of the specif-ic topic areas, then start typing. You can create bold type, underline type, embed web links, photos, and more, easily.High-Performance Talk is mobile friendly, mean-ing you can easily read and reply to posts from your mobile phone or tablet.This is a professional site and it does have some rules to follow. Just check the Guidelines and Usage Rules and Privacy Policies for more information.Says Greg Vickers of GV’s Heating & Cooling Inc., Glenview, IL, “High- Performance Talk lets us connect with other perfor-mance-based contractors all around the country. It allows us to help each other with business and technical issues we may be having and can even help us help customers who move to other areas find good NCI-member companies.” That’s it. High-Performance Talk links you to your performance-based con-tracting peers like no other forum can. From CO to air to business practices, ask your fellow members (and NCI knowl-edge experts!) for advice. Please contact our Customer Care line at 800-633-7058 to get started now.DID YOU KNOW … Did you know NCI’s member support not only includes technical, but it also offers sales, marketing, and business management assistance? It does. Call 800-633-7058, Monday-Friday, 8 am–5 pm ET.Did you also know that as an NCI member, you have access to the Com-fortMaxx software which provides you advanced diagnostic abilities that let you outperform your competition? ComfortMaxx does this by helping you to pinpoint the most cost-effective repairs, help customers save more en-ergy, and can increase your technicians’ productivity and installation quality.So, are you using it? If you need help getting started or have any questions, call our Customer Care line at 800-633-7058.ARE YOU USING HIGH-PERFORMANCE TALK?One of the key features of NCI mem-bership is having access to our peer-to-peer discussion forum, which we call High-Performance Talk. This is includ-ed in your membership and exclusive only to NCI members. It’s easy to use, and most importantly, provides you direct access to fellow members – some of the best minds in the Perfor-mance-Based Contracting™ industry.The forum enables you to access all the discussion threads via email, just like our old discussion list used to. Simply send your email address to highperfor-mancetalk.com once you’re signed up. It’s simple to sign up and participate. If you aren’t already set up with High-Performance Talk, please call NCI Customer Care at 800-633-7058, Monday - Friday, 8 AM - 5 PM EST.We’ll get you on the site and help with any questions.Once in, customize your profile or scan the topics and jump right in. 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Read through NCI MEMBER UPDATEAUGUST 2018 29HVACTODAY.COMAdvertiser IndexHIGH PERFORMANCEHVAC TODAY TMAD INDEXGoodman Manufacturing | www.goodmanmfg.com ...............................................................2High Performance HVAC Today Magazine | HVACToday.com .............................................29Jackson Systems | www.jacksonsystems.com .........................................................................21Lazco Corp. | www.lazcocorp.com.................................................................................................27The New Flat Rate | www.thenewflatrate.com ...........................................................................4TSI, Inc. | www.TSI.com/comfort .....................................................................................................5To Subscribe to High-Performance HVAC Today:ONLINE: Visit HVACToday.com/subscribe for a FREE digital subscription.PRINT: 1 year/$72; single copy $7. Canada: 1 year/$92; single copy $9. Payable in advance with U.S. funds. Prepaid subscriptions may be sent to: High-Performance HVAC Today, PO Box 147, Avon Lake, OH 44012. Phone: 440-949-1850; toll free 800-633-7058; FAX 440-949-1851, or visit HVACToday.com/subscribe to order online.PublisherDominick GuarinoEditor-in-ChiefMike WeilArt DirectorConnie ConklinOnline Development DirectorBrian RosemanSales ManagerDave KenneyCirculation ManagerAndrea Begany- GarsedEditorial AssistantMarge SmithEmail us at contactus@hvactoday.com with your comments and questions.Next >