There have long been cries from the business community that excessive federal regulation can strangle a company’s ability to compete and thrive in the market. But lately lawmakers actually seem to be paying attention. HVAC is a heavily regulated industry, and each facet of the industry is engaging with government in different ways to alleviate the effects of regulation.
Heating, Airconditioning, Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) held its fourth annual legislative fly-in in mid-May. According to Talbot Gee, executive vice president and COO of HARDI, the 2011 fly-in was HARDI’s largest, with more than 60 members attending nearly 200 meetings on Capitol Hill in one day.
With the weather heating up, the no-cool calls are pouring in, and the long hours are beginning. And, because it’s summer, those long hours can often be required in sweltering conditions. So during this time of year, it’s especially important to make sure every employee is educated on the hazards of working in the sun and heat.
HVACR instructors are facing a host of challenges these days, from teaching with new technologies to recruiting for full enrollment to dealing with funding cuts. Yet many are rising to meet these challenges with success and are optimistic about the future.
While many in the industry still use the term votech, or vocational/technical, to describe the educational programs that prepare individuals to enter the HVAC trade, that term is being increasingly discarded. Instead of votech, educators and administrators are using the phrase Career and Technical Education, or CTE.
I just returned from the annual HARDI fly-in in
Washington, D.C. Distributors from around the country converged on Capitol Hill
for a jam-packed day of lobbying on behalf of their businesses.
In late March, instructors from around the country gathered at the annual HVACR & Mechanical Instructor Workshop. At the three-day annual event, which was hosted by the Air Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), they shared their experiences and brushed up on industry knowledge and skills.
On April 14, President Obama signed into law House Resolution 4 (H.R. 4), which repealed an unpopular provision of the new health care law that would have created a paperwork burden for many small businesses. The passage of H.R. 4, which repealed the 1099 reporting requirement, was the culmination of months of effort by small businesses across many industries.
There are many stereotypes about stodgy old HVAC contractors who completely ignore social media. But there are progressive contractors who are using online social tools to grow their businesses. Here are three contractors I’ve stumbled across who have impressed me with their mad skills in social media.
Extended warranties have long been considered another potential source of revenue for contractors, but many companies that offered these programs in the past have not succeeded in the market. Nowadays there’s a new player seeking to change the extended warranty market.