Nothing seems to eat up a contractor’s profits quicker than callbacks. That’s why contractor Brian Leech of Service Legends, Des Moines, Iowa, wanted to understand the complete and full cost of a callback. Perhaps more significantly, he also wanted his staff to understand it. The company started an intensive course to get to the heart of the company’s understanding of callbacks.
The elimination of R-22 HVAC systems for new installations and the changing of lines in general gives rise to the question of what to do with older systems that have suddenly become obsolete - or not too far from it. In this market, change creates opportunities for those who can see them. This is the case for companies like Lazco Corp.
Cleaning up after another “professional” can be frustrating in any line of work. Often you are cleaning up not only technical errors, but also customers’ perceptions of how your work is carried out, and the overall professionalism of your trade. We checked in with our contractor advisors to get their take on how much cleaning up they are doing these days, and how it affects business.
The portable cooling market has a lot of things in its favor. Up to the beginning of June, however, the weather was not one of them - and the weather is still a driver in the portable cooling market. Once the weather does set that part of the market in motion, there are a lot more opportunities on the horizon.
The way that the weather has been warming up leads to a lot of emergency calls for contractors, and they may see the increased workload as a good thing. At least the ring of the phones is comforting. But that nonstop ringing could also mean the customer is in need of regular maintenance, and could well welcome such a discussion.
As HVAC contractors get into the busy cooling season, many are hoping to gain financial ground. True professionals know that doesn’t always mean running as many calls as you can; rather, it means running as many calls as you can without creating callbacks, which can eat up profits quickly.
The trend towards quality control in HVAC installations might be opening up a new opportunity associated with the market, on both the residential side and the commercial-industrial side: the inspection professional.
Just when you thought our efficiency mandates were secure, the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 would gut the federal preemption provisions, effectively allowing “any jurisdiction in the nation to enact its own energy policy through the use of prescriptive building codes,” said Stephen Yurek, president of the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI).
Manufacturers have been caught up in a game of warranty one-upmanship for several years, with warranties getting longer and longer to make their systems more attractive to potential buyers. This can affect the amount of time and reimbursement a contractor receives for the callback, but there are still some time-based aspects of in-warranty callbacks that are not reimbursed.
Easier installations for contractors are the growing trend in zoning systems, with a special emphasis on reaching deeper into the replacement market. The technology adds to installation ease with airflow and duct-sizing applications.