2014 was an interesting year for our industry. How many people had heard of a Polar Vortex? While I wasn’t too excited about shoveling all that snow, being in the furnace business made the winter a little more bearable. Then we had a mild summer in the Midwest and while the golf season was nice, the HVAC replacement season was a bit slow. Now we have wholesalers and OEMs stocking up on 13 SEER equipment ahead of changing regulations. In all, we saw the underlying HVAC market up mid single digits and as we head into this winter, next year is shaping up to be about the same.
From an economic standpoint, housing starts continue a slow recovery, inflation and interest rates are expected to be similar to last year, Gross Fixed Investment and unemployment rates continue to improve. The biggest wildcard this year will not be the economy.