The sheet metal industry has changed a great deal since the first issue of SNIPS Magazine went to the presses in April 1932, back when the magazine focused mostly on boilers, which the supplemental of our sister publication Engineered Systems, Today’s Boiler, now covers extensively.

Originally referred to as galvanized metal, or G.I., owing to the metal that made up their helmets during wartime, veterans returned to America after WWII and ignited a boom in residential ductwork installation that lingers to this day. SNIPS adapted to the times and acted quickly to cover the evolution of sheet metal shops across the country to meet this demand. As time has progressed, the trade has trended toward increasing efficiency in the manufacturing setting to cut down on time in the field.

SNIPS adapted to the times again during the COVID-19 crisis to cease print publication and go all online, but now that the dust has settled, we’re pleased to announce SNIPS is returning to print publication. Only this time, we’re becoming a six-times Special Section of the bi-weekly newspaper The ACHR News and rebranding to SNIPS NEWS.

“Like all of you, we have had to adapt to new technologies and economic conditions to maintain the highest level of quality for our product, and therefore our audience and advertisers,” says Group Publisher Mike Balzano.

The ACHR NEWS was BNP Media’s original brand, and has been following and leading the HVACR industry since its inception in 1926 as The Electric Refrigeration NEWS, when old ice box "systems" began to be replaced with more modern refrigeration technologies. Over time, forced air heating, air conditioning, ventilation and indoor air quality were added to the coverage and circulation, and eventually efficiency, software, and sustainability.

Adding SNIPS NEWS and its powerful sheet metal audience will now provide The ACHR NEWS with complete head-to-toe coverage of the HVAC market.

Unlike SNIPS and many trade magazines, The ACHR NEWS has the advantage of a paid circulation, which enables it to be published in a printed format. Current SNIPS subscribers will be able to read web stories and subscribe to its newsletter without having to pay for The ACHR News subscription. SNIPS will continue to publish content each month on the website and bimonthly eNewsletter. The first printed issue featuring SNIPS NEWS will be the February 2023 issue, our annual AHR Expo issue which also will be distributed at the show.

“This also marks the end of my time with SNIPS as both National Sales Manager and Publisher,” Balzano says, noting the former publisher of SNIPS and current publisher of The ACHR News Sarah Harding will be taking over.

“I want to personally thank you all for a heck of an 8-year run. When I took metal shop class in high school a million years ago, I never would have dreamed I would learn this much about sheet metal! Or that it would mean so much to me,” he concludes.