HIGH PERFORMANCEHVAC TODAY TMIf You Don’t Measure, You’re Just Guessing!™hvactoday.comSEPTEMBER 2018Working in a Family Business:Success through CommunicationALSO IN THIS ISSUE:Typical Commercial System Cooling PerformanceThree Tips for Increasing Service Agreement SalesFive Steps to Becoming A Performance-Based ContractorSEPTEMBER 2018 3HVACTODAY.COMSEPTEMBER 2018 VOLUME 2 NUMBER 9HIGH PERFORMANCEHVAC TODAY TMSALES:Increase Service Agreement SalesDrew Cameron provides three tips — based on his experience working with high-performance contractors — you can use to increase service agreement sales.TECHNICAL:Commercial System PerformanceBen Lipscomb explains how to use data to understand typical performance levels for existing commercial equipment and systems before and after system renovations. MANAGEMENT:ABCs of High-Performance Contracting – Part 3In this installment, Dominick Guarino explores the Five Steps to Becoming a Performance-Based Contractor.24201614 DEPARTMENTSOnline Content ......................................................................................4Today’s Word ........................................................................................7High Performance News ....................................................................8High Performance Products .............................................................9Contractor Spotlight: DiFilippo’s Service ...............................10Photo of the Month .........................................................................27Member Update ...............................................................................28Ad Index ................................................................................................29One More Thing ...............................................................................30COVER STORY:Family Businesses: Success Through CommunicationOwning a family business isn’t easy. Contractor Tom Johnson shares how his family and company make it work.4 SEPTEMBER 2018HIGH PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYONLINE CONTENTFREE Monthly DownloadIn this issue we focus on a procedural checklist for using the Testo Smart Probe App. It is available in both the Apple and Google stores.The checklist provides you with six steps for syncing the app with the probe and an ex-planation of the test screens and what they are used for.This one-page data sheet is a nice addition for techs who are new to using Testo Smart Probes as well as for the pros who just need a refresher.Go to ncilink.com/md0918, or use your phone with the QR Code below.By registering for free on NCI’s website, you can access this download and many more.Online UniversityFeatured this month is the second module of National Comfort Institute Inc.’s System Performance Testing Series: Measuring Static Pressures. In this course you will learn how field testing shows that most HVAC systems deliver only 57% of the rated equipment capacity. Taking this course will help you find out how “Delivered Efficiency” explains the ACTUAL efficiency of a system – not just the AFUE or SEER rating of the equipment. Learning how and where to take the static pres-sure reading is a big step in learning this.Read more at ncilink.com/ou0918.SEPTEMBER 2018 5HVACTODAY.COMBLOG POSTSROOFTOP CURB DIAGNOSTICS AND SOLUTIONSRooftop equipment curbs can contribute to the deterioration of commercial HVAC system efficiency by as much as 40%. In this blog, Rob Falke examines what you can do to quickly diagnose and solve any curb issues you encounter in the field. He highlights three of the top curb issues and details their solutions. Read his blog here: ncilink.com/FalkeOnCurbs.DOES YOUR BUSINESS OPERATING SYSTEM NEED A TUNE-UP?NCI’s David Holt compares the operations of a contract-ing firm to a computer operating system. He says, “Just like a computer, your business needs a powerful op-erating system that ‘directs traffic.’ Your business operating system has four major modules: leader-ship, people, processes, and execution.”Read his blog here: ncilink.com/bOSThere’s an APP for that...Mobile Smart ProbeThis month we feature the Testo Smart Probe App which turns your mobile phone or tablet into a remote control and measure-ment device. The app works with the following Testo measure-ment instruments: 405i, 410i, 605i, 510i, 115i, 549i, 805i, 905i, a testo 552 or a testo 770-3. It works on both iOS and android mobile devices. The app uses bluetooth technology to share air conditioning and refrigeration measurement data, Airflow (register and grille), infrared temperature and mold indicators, and more. The app can create and send PDF reports (including photos of the measure-ment location) and can handle up to six probes at the same time. This FREE app is available in both the Google and Apple Stores.SEPTEMBER 2018 7HVACTODAY.COMHere in Cleveland, a focused effort by one of the local media outlets is the year-long initia-tive called, “Girls In STEM” (ncilink.com/STEM) that has been drawing a lot of attention through-out Northeast Ohio. This is terrific and I have found there are many other major cities across the country with similar television programming.Manufacturers have raised the ante as well. Em-erson isn’t alone in its promotion of STEM to the general population. But more needs to be done.The Emerson survey found less than 50% of parents say their daughter is encouraged to pur-sue a STEM career. This “encouragement gap,” according to Emerson, represents a significant opportunity, as nearly half of their survey respon-dents (48%) believe STEM jobs in the U.S. will grow in the next 10 years.Emerson is helping address this issue through its own “We Love STEM” initiative and partner-ships with universities and technical colleges. These organizations provide hands-on digital work experiences for current young students and people re-training for second careers.“There is an increasing demand for highly skilled HVACR professionals, especially with a re-tiring workforce,” said Becky Hoelscher, director of air conditioning aftermarket sales for Emerson Commercial and Residential Solutions. “The im-portance of valuable training and the number of job openings is soaring.”In the Performance-Based Contracting Indus-try, the need for skilled field workers is even high-er than the norm. I like what I see happening here at home and throughout Ohio. I think efforts of manufactur-ers and others in our industry are starting to make some headway. But now it is your turn. So what are you doing to push STEM in your com-munities? For those of you who don’t know, I live in the great city of Cleveland, OH -- home of the Cleveland Browns, Cavaliers, and Indians. We have the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame, the Great Lakes Science Museum, world class enter-tainment venues, the internationally acclaimed Cleveland Orchestra, and so much more.I am proud of these things. I am also proud of the fact that in a recent survey conducted by Em-erson Climate Technologies, Ohio is ranked num-ber one when it comes to which states are the best to work in the HVACR trades.Ohio tops the Emerson list with more than 1,400 certified technicians employed and earn-ing a competitive median salary. The state also has around 9,000 job openings in HVACR, and is home to eight accredited trade schools. This is what helped put Ohio at the top.This is great stuff, right? But it still might not be enough.In the July issue of this magazine I wrote a col-umn entitled, “Where Have All the HVAC Techni-cians Gone” (ncilink.com/TechShortage), which addressed the severe shortage of young peo-ple , especially women, coming into the field. In mid-August, Emerson released results from their fourth annual consumer survey which revealed some more interesting facts.This survey, which went to more than 2,000 people, found that two out of five Americans be-lieve the shortage of people involved in the sci-ence, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields is at a crisis level. This is despite a national focus on STEM over the past 10 years. Although the survey found students today are twice as likely to study STEM fields compared to their parents, the number of roles requiring STEM expertise is growing at a rate that exceeds current workforce capacity.STEM and the Performance-Based HVAC Contracting IndustryMike Weil is editor- in-chief and director of communications and publications at National Comfort Institute, Inc. He can be reached at mikew@ncihvac.com.TODAY’S WORDBy Mike Weil8 SEPTEMBER 2018HIGH PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAYSCOTT JOHNSON RECEIVES LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD National Comfort Institute, Inc. recently recognized trainer Scott Johnson for his lifelong contributions to the HVAC Industry, by presenting him with the organi-zation’s Lifetime Achievement Award. The award recognizes Scott’s ever-growing legacy as the knowledge he imparts journeys from one of his students to the next. It flows across the industry inspir-ing the hearts, minds, and hands of those affected by his unselfish quest to educate others. Scott is recognized with this award for his ongoing role as a legendary teacher, leader, pioneer, and vision-ary. His immeasurable contribution will long withstand the test of time.Congratulations to Scott Johnson.arship Program will expand to include awards in other industry vocations, in-cluding solar PV, plumbing, home perfor-mance, and more. School administrators, educators, and contractors interested in the scholarship can visit www.EGIA- Foundation.org.To learn more about the EGIA Founda-tion Scholarship Program, and its com-mitment to improving the national labor market by developing the next genera-tion of home services industry workers, visit EGIAFoundation.org/Scholarship.COOLING TOWER ON WHEELS BEGINS COUNTRY-WIDE TOUREVAPCO’s new eco-Air demo trailer has begun a voyage across the USA, be-ginning in Los Angeles, CA. The travel-ing, working demo unit is designed to give building owners, manufacturer’s reps, mechanical contractors, and others a look at the operation and efficiency of the coolers. On one side, the demonstration unit features an adiabatic cooler; on the other, NEMA fan motor/EC fan motors, and eco-Air control panel with automat-ed PLC for BAS Integration. The unit also has a piped water-distribution system for adiabatic pads and nitrogen-charged stainless steel coils with aluminum fins. For more information: http://ncilink.com/evapcoTourThe EGIA Foundation announced re-cently the first-ever winners of its HVAC scholarship program. Twenty selected stu-dents, all pursuing an HVAC-related course of study during the 2018-19 academic year, will each receive an award of $2,500. These scholarships will help with the costs of specialized education and training. This includes accredited or otherwise ap-proved community colleges, universities, or vocational/technical schools. During its first year, the EGIA Foundation Scholarship Program reached over 1,000 interested stu-dents from 39 states across the U.S.“The HVAC industry needs more young adults and professionals entering the workforce,” said Bruce Matulich, EGIA Foundation Chairman and CEO. “The EGIA Foundation Scholarship Program is our way of bringing visibili-ty to the industry and building aware-ness and interest with those who may not have otherwise considered a career in HVAC.”The Foundation plans to award an-other class of students with its 2019 Scholarship Program. Applications will be accepted starting in the fall of 2018, with awards counting toward the 2019-20 academic year. As the foundation grows, the Schol-HIGH-PERFORMANCE NEWSEGIA Foundation Awards $50,000 in HVAC ScholarshipsSEPTEMBER 2018 9HVACTODAY.COMClarity3 follows standards, yet is cus-tomizable and scalable to all build-ing types. For more information go to ncilink.com/Clarity3.FUJITSU INTRODUCES MINI-SPLIT ALEXA COMPATIBILITYFujitsu General America announces new mini-split compatibility with Ama-zon Alexa. The company’s Halcyon line of heat-ing and cooling products now features voice-activated control through an Am-azon Echo device, if the mini-split has built-in Wi-Fi, or if Fujitsu’s Wi-Fi device is installed.After setting up the Fujitsu FGLAir app, your customer has 13 Alexa com-mands including on/off operation, in-crease and decrease temperature, changing operating modes, requesting current temperature setting, and more.For more information, please visit this website: ncilink.com/FujitsuAlexa.CONNECTORS FROM SOUTHWIRESouthwire has enhanced its EZ-In™ Mini-Split cable offering with connectors and tools created to make mini-split in-stallations faster and easier.Connectors are liquid-tight and steel- and zinc-plated. Tools include a rota-ry cutter, compact jacket cutter/con-duit scorer with a reamer blade, and heavy-duty, stainless steel wire strippers.Visit ncilink.com/SW for more info.NEW BAS FROM TACOTaco Comfort Solutions recently in-troduced their Clarity3 turnkey building automation system (BAS). The Clarity3 takes the guesswork out of optimizing equipment operation and energy savings by establishing an intelli-gent framework for connectivity. It uses BACnet to provide a flexible, simple, and fully pro-grammable BAS. Clarity3 is based on a find/learn/act approach. The “find” theme narrows the features focus on easy navigation, searching, and bookmarking. The “learn” function gathers insights: dashboards, reports, and graphics that ease learning. “Act” restores order with command fea-tures and notifications if problems arise. HIGH-PERFORMANCE PRODUCTSUpcoming 2018 NCI Training ScheduleVisit NCIlink.com/ClassSchedule to view the latest schedule of NCI Training eventsCombustion Performance & Carbon Monoxide Safety Certification Program Sept 5-7: South Plainfield, NJSept 11-13: Richmond, VASept 18-20: Pittsburgh, PASept 25-27: Emmetsburg, IAOct 2-4: Boston, MAResidential HVAC System Performance & Air Balancing Certification Program Sept 5-7: Baltimore, MDSept 11-13: Salt Lake City, UTOct 16-18: Las Vegas, NVCommercial HVAC System Performance Certification ProgramSept 11-12: Los Alamitos, CA*Optimize Economizer Performance with CertificationSept 13: Los Alamitos, CADuct System Optimization & Residential Air Balancing Certification ProgramSept 18-20: Columbus, OHSept 18-20: Los Alamitos, CA*Sept 25-27: Charlotte, NCOct 9-11: Omaha, NECommercial Air Balancing Certification Program Sept 25-27: San Antonio, TXOct 2-4: White Plains, NYOct 9-11: Landover, MDOct 9-11: Los Alamitos, CA*National Balancing Council Commercial Balancing with CertificationOct 15-19: Cleveland, OHIntroduction to Hydronic Testing, Adjusting, & BalancingOct 23-25: Los Alamitos, CA**Subsidized NCI training offered by Southern California Edison.Next >