for the HVAC Industry hvactoday.comMAY 2024 HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAY TM If You Don’t Measure, You’re Just Guessing! ™ ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: • Marketing Analytics for the HVAC Industry: Turn Numbers Into Insights • Tech Talk Doesn’t Close More Sales • Make Better Choices When Renovating a Duct SystemMAY 2024 VOLUME 8 NUMBER 5 HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAY TM DIGITAL MARKETING: Marketing Analytics: Turn Numbers into Insights Measuring and testing is NOT just the domain of HVAC diagnostics: it is also essential for your digital marketing. DEPARTMENTS Today’s Word .........................................................................................4 High-Performance Product Review ...............................................5 Contractor Spotlight: Progressive Heating, Air, & Plumbing ...........................................................................6 NCI Update .........................................................................................23 HVAC Smart Mart ...............................................................................24 Ad Index ................................................................................................25 One More Thing ................................................................................26 1013 TECHNICAL: Make Better Choices When Renovating a Duct System NCI Instructor John Puryear provides tips to help your duct renovation process decision-making. SALES: Tech Talk Doesn’t Close More Sales What better way to bore a customer than by using jargon to explain comfort issues. Will Horner, Canco ClimateCare, explains how they close more sales without technospeak. 19 Visual Sales Aids MAY 2024 3HVACTODAY.COMpotential. As an industry, we are champs at meet- ing this need. Today, with growing concerns about climate change and energy consumption, there’s an in- creasing emphasis on making HVAC systems even more energy-efficient and environmentally friend- ly. This involves developing and implementing technologies that reduce energy usage, such as so- lar energy, high-efficiency heat pumps, smart ther- mostats, and advanced control systems. TECH ADVANCEMENTS AND ADAPTATION The HVAC industry continues evolving with advancements in technology, including smart HVAC systems, Internet of Things (IoT) integra- tion, and digital controls. While these innovations offer benefits like im- proved performance, energy savings, and remote monitoring, they also present challenges such as the need for specialized training and expertise among HVAC professionals. Then there are the compatibility and interoperability issues between different systems and devices. WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT Though not specifically environmental, the skilled labor shortage is a pressing issue. As expe- rienced technicians retire and fewer young peo- ple pursue HVAC careers, there’s a growing gap between supply and demand for qualified profes- sionals. Addressing this requires initiatives to at- tract and train new talent (See Today’s Word, April 2024). What we’ve learned over the years is that these often over-blown calls for change have led to op- portunities, especially for companies focused on system performance and sustainability. The HVAC Industry remains poised to continue doing its part. As I see it, that is our role. A s I write this column, the world is observing what has become known as Earth Week. It began on April 22, 1970 as Earth Day and has mobilized more than a billion individuals in more than 192 coun- tries. It led to the creation of the U.S. Environ- mental Protection Agency (EPA). In 2024, the overreaching theme is “Planet vs. Plastics” and according to the Earth Day web- site, the idea is to push a worldwide “unwavering commitment to call for the end of plastics for the sake of human and planetary health.” They are calling for a 60% reduction in the production of plastics by 2040 with an ultimate goal of “build- ing a plastic-free future for generations to come.” Is this reasonable? What are the consequences of such actions? Throughout the lifespan of the environmental movement, many goals have been big and per- haps unreasonable. They have had unforeseen and unintended consequences. For the HVAC Industry, the green movement led to the outlawing of CFC-based refrigerants and subsequently almost all of the replacement chemicals. That drove up the price for service and products. Extremists went as far as to call for the abolishment of air conditioning to save the planet from the ozone hole and global warming! That unreasonable, and maybe even danger- ous, battle cry was answered by our industry with speedy refrigerant replacements and a willing- ness to work rationally to the benefit of our coun- try and our communities. That practice needs to continue. With that in mind, here are three key trends and challenges facing the HVAC Industry: ENERGY AND SUSTAINABILITY It seems there will always be a push towards al- ternative refrigerants with lower global warming 4 MAY 2024HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAY Earth Week and the Role of the HVAC Industry TODAY’S WORD By Mike Weil Mike Weil is editor- in-chief and director of communications and publications at National Comfort Institute, Inc. Contact him at ncilink. com/ContactMe.MAY 2024 5HVACTODAY.COM a series of questions that will help estab- lish a baseline for the building materials in the home. This feature can save quite a bit of time and can also help guide you if you are new to doing load calculations. The room scanning feature works ex- tremely well. As you scan each room, the app assembles a 3D image of the home on the screen. The scan measures and re- cords the surface areas, windows, and door sizes. The app allows you to easily edit walls and add or remove details as necessary. Over the past several years, I have spent a substantial amount of time learning different load calculation soft- ware, and so far, Conduit is very intuitive and requires the little training. The app contains internal instructional videos that are easy to follow, which makes the learning process seamless. The process from start to finish for an 1,800-sq.ft. home takes about 15 min- utes. When you complete a job, Conduit generates a professional looking report which can be easily shared with your customer. For more information, go to https:// getconduit.com . — Adam Mufich, NCI Instructor Conduit Load Calculation Software As a residential HVAC contractor, find- ing an accurate and easy-to-use load cal- culation software program has always been a priority. Last year, I met Shelby Breger at an industry conference in Las Vegas. Shelby told me about some software she was developing that uses Lidar tech- nology to scan a home to perform a load calculation quickly and efficiently. It is called Conduit and I was intrigued and immediately volunteered to Beta test the software. First and foremost, let’s talk about ease of use. When you create a new job, there is a feature that I really like called “Job Wizard.” Job wizard guides you through HIGH-PERFORMANCE PRODUCT Written by HVAC Professionals for HVAC Professionalsand training. He doesn’t remember exactly when he was introduced to the concepts behind system performance, but he did and joined National Com- fort Institute (NCI) in 2014. And that changed everything. In our original Spotlight, Wallace says they were in the process of turn- ing Progressive around and focusing on testing and measuring airflow, stat- ic pressures, and more on nearly every system they encountered. To do that, he sent his entire service and installa- tion team through NCI classes and got them certified. It wasn’t easy. But Wallace was per- sistent, consistent, and focused. He saw what system performance did for his customers and his bottom line. THE PROGRESSIVE EVOLUTION Seven years after that Spotlight story, Wallace says the company is celebrat- ing their 30th Anniversary and aims to hit $10.5 million in sales. It’s been a rough start this year (2024), but he sees them overcoming it and hitting close to home on that goal. “If you want to survive in this indus- try,” he says, “you can’t let things like a warm winter or other weather situ- ations rule your business. You must plan, prepare for it, and set yourself up for success.” He explains that he had to change his approach to internal and external systems as the company grew. He says that they now do air upgrades and duct renovation work on nearly ev- ery new installation project, which has positively impacted their profits. Today, the company has 38 employ- ees, nine service vans, one plumbing truck (he’s working on adding anoth- er soon), and four installation trucks. They built and now use a new train- ing room with working HVAC equip- ment and ductwork. He says, “We can N estled in the heart of Newnan, Georgia, Progres- sive Heating, Air, and Plumbing stands tall as a beacon of reliability and innovation in the realm of HVAC solutions. With a steadfast commitment to quality service and cutting-edge technology, this family-owned business has trans- formed how residents experience com- fort in their homes and businesses for three decades. We first shone our High-Perfor- mance HVAC™ spotlight on Pro- gressive in No- vember 2017, 23 years after owner Greg Wal- lace, with $1,000 and a pickup truck, first opened his doors as an independent contrac- tor. In 2017, Wallace began jumping on the High-Performance HVAC ap- proach to testing, measuring, and di- agnosing HVAC systems throughout his service area. At the time, the company was gross- ing around $5 million in residential and light commercial sales. Much of that revenue came from large custom home construction projects. From the beginning, Wallace says that staying on top of changing tech- nology and ahead of the changes in his marketplace was part of his strategy, which meant focusing on education 6 MAY 2024HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAY CONTRACTOR SPOTLIGHT By Mike Weil Jumping On the Progressive Heating and Air Evolution Greg Wallaceequipment. From a different perspec- tive, 20% of our projects are duct changeouts with no equipment in- stallation. We’ll turn the whole duct system out and redo it.” “Back in 2017, that wasn’t the case. We were still testing the waters. But I knew it was the right path and focused on getting us there.” THE PROGRESSIVE BRAND Wallace says that Progressive’s rep- utation and brand revolve around solving seemingly unsolvable custom- er comfort and efficiency problems. They often are called into a job where someone else has installed brand-new equipment, and the client is still un- comfortable in their home. “We come in and test everything, discover the problem (usually in the ductwork), and can generally close that repair sale at decent margins. “It’s important to note that I don’t push brands other than my own.” Wallace and his team bought an- other company before the start of the Summer 2023 season. A lot of that company’s installations didn’t include any duct upgrades. Wallace says that the acquired firm had 300 maintenance customers, so Progres- sive did all that work. “As we do the maintenance, we are finding many airflow issues, so the number of duct renovation projects has increased. We’re not touching the equipment because it is perfectly fine,” he says. “Our brand is based on correcting airflow and filtration issues, which are usually the biggest problems we find. By testing and measuring, we see that the return statics are too high, the house has bad returns, and so on. Of- ten, we just tear out the entire duct system and start over. “So buying that company was a bigger blessing than we originally thought.” CLOSING MORE SALES Since 2017, when we last spotlight- ed Progressive, it has seen solid busi- ness growth with more sales and much better closing ratios. Wallace says he learned a long time ago that not every customer is the same, and he can be pickier about who his company does business with. “For any contractor, especially for High-Performance HVAC contractors, it is essential to properly price your products and services. Progressive is not cheap. Some customers don’t like that. They don’t want to pay for that. So, they aren’t my customers any- more,” he explains. “Other customers are unsure. In my opinion, their uncertainty is our fault. If we didn’t explain it well enough, then it’s a training issue. We have scripts to help teach our guys how to explain things. If those scripts aren’t working, we need to revisit that. Or if the tech isn’t using them, we have to revisit that too.” He adds that a consultant he create situations and show the techs how to test, measure, and find the problems. Then they can go into the field and practice what they learn,” Wallace shares. “Our biggest change since 2017 is that the high-performance approach is now second nature to us. If anyone on our field team doesn’t understand ductwork performance and hasn’t trained in how we approach systems here at Progressive, they won’t be working on service and installations. We’ll let them do maintenance for ex- isting customers.” TRAINING HAS EVOLVED Wallace says he uses all NCI’s tools: Air Upgrade, AirMaxx Lite™ app, and high-performance selling techniques. “NCI has been a great help to us. Plus, we are all about hands-on train- ing, too. We recently finished build- ing a new training facility and had NCI do an onsite meeting there in Decem- ber of 2023 on high-performance duct work renovations,” he explains. “We had 10 or 11 of our technicians attend, and then we brought in eight more from other contractors. Train- ing guys from other contractors won’t hurt me. A rising tide raises all ships. The idea is that we all make more money together.” He says that doing so much train- ing makes them stand out from their competitors. Progressive does 80% of their air upgrade work on new equip- ment installations. “If you’re going to do the job cor- rectly, you’ll have to upgrade some- thing anyway. I’m not saying 80% of our jobs include ductwork, but 80% of our duct repairs and modifica- tions usually involve installing new MAY 2024 7HVACTODAY.COMsuccesses would have happened if it hadn’t been for all the training he pur- sued over the years. “But you have to be careful, Wallace warns. “The secret is that you don’t need to train everyone on everything — you need to pick out certain things that will make a big difference in your busi- ness. You should also look at HOW you train and WHO you train with. There are so many trainers now. It’s like going to the grocery store, where they put everything in the aisle so it catches your eye. “Choose your trainers carefully and then go for it. Don’t be afraid to invest the money. It will all come back to you in the end.” Progressive Heating, Air, and Plumbing’s journey from a small lo- cal business to a trusted industry lead- er is a testament to owner Greg Wal- lace’s unwavering commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction. As the company continues to inno- vate and serve the Newnan communi- ty, it stands poised to shape the future of comfort and convenience in homes and businesses across the region. For these and many other reasons, High-Performance HVAC Today magazine again shines its spotlight on Progressive Heating. Congrats to Greg Wallace and his team. 8 MAY 2024HIGH-PERFORMANCE HVAC TODAY CONTRACTOR SPOTLIGHT Training has always been a big part of Pro- gressive Heating, Air, and Plumbing’s culture. Today, with their new training room, they train even more. “And our success has mostly to do with the people that I hire.” FUTURE OUTLOOK Greg Wallace is at a crossroads to- day. The company he built from noth- ing is strong and growing. His son Hunter and stepson Josh are in the business as salespeople, and he pro- moted a longtime employee to general manager to run the daily operations. For him, the future looks bright. “I plan to pass the company down to the next generation,” he says. “I don’t plan to sell it. And I want to keep as many of the people here as possible. I still want my family involved.” As Wallace prepares for his even- tual retirement, he has raised long- term employees like Samantha Brazie to take over management. She is the company’s general manager today. “Samantha’s been here 13 years. She doesn’t plan on leaving any time soon,” he says. “With her organiza- tional skills and focus on process, she has helped Progressive operate more efficiently and freed things up so well that I don’t have to work at all.” He explains that Brazie original- ly joined the company to handle Pro- gressive’s advertising, especially the company’s website development. She accomplished that task and proved her abilities through her willingness to take on many different projects and learn everything she could about things she didn’t know. “We’ve grown together to trust each other. The problem is that I can’t let go. I can always find things to do, and I haven’t been able to relinquish control 100% yet. Samantha has 80 to 90% of the control. But that will happen.” He adds that none of Progressive’s worked with once told him that 10% of the people you encounter will only buy based on the lowest price. The consultant, Barry Burnett of BDR, also said that possibly 40% of the people will buy mid-level prod- ucts and services, the next 40% will buy above mid-level, and they will be good customers. Burnett then said the top 10% will buy the most expensive products you offer. “People only interested in price don’t want to pay for this. So I don’t want to work with them,” says Wallace. “We deserve to get paid for the value we provide. On new installations, we won’t take the job if the customer won’t up- grade the ductwork. “The truth is, as we got better at high-performance testing and diagnos- ing, not only did we close more sales, but the quality of people looking to work here also improved!” ATTRACTING QUALITY PEOPLE Wallace claims technicians work- ing for him today are the cream of the crop. He says that good techs are leav- ing other companies to work at Pro- gressive. “Twenty years ago, I struggled to find good people,” he explains. “It’s not like I had this epiphany of how to get good people. Word slowly made its way around town about the kind of work we do and the success we achieve. “Our High-Performance HVAC ap- proach of testing, measuring, and di- agnosing airflow and static pressure issues helps us deliver what we prom- ise. That is attractive to the best tech- nicians who want to learn more about it and then do it. And I’d be remiss if I didn’t say that a lot of that had to do with how NCI changed how we think.MAY 2024 9HVACTODAY.COMNext >