ARLINGTON, Va. - The Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) announced advance registrations are up 20 percent over last year for the 2011 ACCA Conference and Indoor Air Expo, scheduled for Feb. 15-17 in San Antonio, Texas.

“Talking to contractors, suppliers, and manufacturers from all over the country, everyone has expressed the same opinion that the HVAC contractor of the future will have to be educated in technologies as well as new ways to go to market in order to survive,” said John Sedine, 2010-2011 ACCA national chairman and president of Engineered Heating & Cooling in Michigan.

“The economy, political issues, and the move to green renewable energy are forcing us to think out of the box. When times are good, contractors don’t think they need as much help, but when things change, they realize they do. ACCA has always been the place to go for technical information as well as contractor networking opportunities, and now co-locating with Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA) and Radiant Professional Alliance (RPA) makes this conference bigger and better than ever. Contractors see the real value in the opportunities and information that are available in San Antonio, making it a ‘can’t miss event.’”

Early bird registration ended on Dec. 1 with the largest number of full conference registrations at that point in the event’s 43-year history. ACCA planned for a larger crowd at this year’s event, so there remains plenty of space, and registration remains open. HVACR professionals can save $100 if they sign up before January at www.accaconference.com or by calling 703-824-8856.

The ACCA conference, though presented by ACCA, is an industry-wide educational conference, and all in the industry are welcome; the conference is not limited to association members. The 2011 ACCA Conference will be held in conjunction with the Indoor Air Expo, one of the country’s largest showcases for the indoor environment and energy services contracting industry. The Indoor Air Expo is co-presented by ACCA, IAQA, and RPA.

The 2011 ACCA conference features a program of 35 Learning Labs, breakout workshops led by leading contractors and industry experts. There are seven tracks of Learning Labs planned over the three-day event, including Residential Excellence, Commercial Excellence, and Technical Excellence. New tracks this year include Business Fundamentals, focusing on business nuts-and-bolts for contracting business owners; Contracting Leadership, advanced sessions on management and leadership topics; and Refrigeration Excellence, a new track of workshops aimed at refrigeration contractors.

For more information, visit www.acca.org.

Publication date:12/27/210