The Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) awarded 11 recipients the 2006 Clifford H. "Ted" Rees Jr. Scholarship, which was established to encourage students to pursue higher education and a career as HVACR technicians.
For a while, it seemed simplicity of use was the driving factor behind residential thermostats. Now, welcome back to energy consciousness. Today's products strive to offer simplicity of use and energy-efficient functions, such as setback and two-stage operation. They also offer the flexibility of multiple applications.
To say that this was an interesting cooling season would be a big understatement for some contractors. It was a trifecta of prolonged heat across the country, rising energy costs, and a new minimum efficiency for cooling systems that made some installations more complicated.
It appears that different contractors took different approaches to the 13 SEER changeover. Some decided to stock up on 10-12 SEER units while others, did not. The NEWS conducted an informal poll of residential contractors to get a first-hand assessment of how the 13 SEER transition has actually affected the movement of old inventory in the market.
Abraham Lincoln is noted to have quipped, "Forty percent of the people don't like your idea before you have it." Thank goodness Lincoln found and focused on the 60 percent that had an open mind. And, so should you. Be a true leader who fosters new ideas.
In the author's opinion, the seeds of the problem - finding qualified employees - were sown in the mid-1980s. It was then that a fierce battle was waged over student funding at the postsecondary level.
It's incredible that distributors, many of whom are professional marketing organizations, never take the time to do the first and most basic marketing step. Knowing and selling what the customer wants is the first and most vital step.
It is truly ironic that air-cooled refrigeration and air conditioning systems perform at their worst when they are needed the most. The same system that produces 95 tons of cooling when the ambient temperature is 85°F, produces just 82 tons of cooling when the temperature is 115°, which is a 14 percent reduction in capacity.
In this Heating Showcase product review, The NEWS has rounded up information - from serviceability and noise-reduction features to unit warranties and manufacturer technical support phone numbers - on some of the latest residential heating products.
J.C. Higgins Corp., a subsidiary of EMCOR Group Inc., has been awarded the contract to install the shell-and-core HVAC mechanical work for the Center for Life Science Boston building located in the Longwood Medical area.
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