Here are a few ideas that contractor can use to prime the marketing pump for this holiday.

It’s the contractor’s job to ensure consumers understand the functionality of smart thermostats without becoming overwhelmed by the features and data.

When homeowners purchase a Nest product, Google will connect the customers to a qualified installer, a “Nest Pro.”

As people spend more time at home due to the lingering effects of the pandemic, the buzzwords that come to mind are comfort and convenience. The influx of smart controls and thermostats can help fulfill these desires.

Smart thermostats offer preventive maintenance options and rebates for customers, but contractors should be sure to get educated — and educate homeowners — on utility rebates like demand-response programs.

When considering the multitude of HVAC thermostat options available on the market, who better to decipher the best from the rest than those responsible for their installation and operation?

Since HVAC contractors are usually the ones installing the systems, not to mention performing maintenance, when necessary, their opinions on comfort controls are not to be taken lightly

While government incentives, savings in utility bills, word-of-mouth, and increasing popularity have led to homeowner’s increased awareness of smart thermostats, there is still a lot of room in the market for growth.

A lot of refrigerant reclaimers aren’t charging for mixed refrigerants anymore, which may in turn, mean an opportunity for HVAC contractors to make more money.

ABC argues the rule could end up hurting legitimate contractors in the building trades, who are already strapped for workers.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church’s community center in the Tempe, Arizona suburb of Guadalupe now has state-of-the-art HVAC thanks to variable refrigerant flow equipment, accessories, and installation labor donations from RectorSeal, Panasonic Air Conditioning Group (a division of Panasonic Corp. of North America), and Woody’s Heating and Air Conditioning.

As HVACR technology advances, contractors often find themselves navigating new learning curves on a regular basis. VRF is no exception.

Over time, dirt, dust, pet dander, debris, and more accumulate in air ducts. And since the HVAC system works basically as a whole-home vacuum, all of that is recirculated through homes when the HVAC system runs, unless the ducts are cleaned out.

HVAC contractors should be prepared to sell geothermal to new customers regardless of any incentives.

Manufacturers and contractors are working to educate end users about the ways heat pumps work differently from traditional heat sources.

The moment for geothermal seemed to have arrived several times since the 1970s. A number of factors are forecasting wider use of this type of heating and cooling solution.

With the geothermal market enjoying an enormous surge in popularity due to financial incentives and its reputation for sustainability, now is the time for contractors to strike while the iron is hot and add geothermal to their offerings.

HVAC contractors could invest in all kinds of technology, ranging from tools to management systems, but often, the question lies with the payoff.

We asked our contractor advisory panel to weigh in on their most useful and effective tools used in the field. Here’s what they had to say.

Summer cooling season is in full gear, which means that both technicians and their tools are being kept extremely busy.

Selling products online is a whole new ball game. So, contractors will want to learn about their consumers buying journeys, and thoughtfully consider how to launch the online store, what products to sell, and how to market it.

Grocers are looking to their refrigeration contractor partners to be the experts and make suggestions about how they can transition smoothly to the new low-GWP refrigeration technologies.

Contractors who are embracing the technological advancements say ignoring a new neighborhood of home automation products could be a big mistake.

BIM technology has proven to be highly expedient for several HVAC plans, especially in terms of cost efficiency, time optimization, and effective planning.

Customer comfort is the top sales driver in the HVAC industry, or at least it should be.

How many of standard HVAC sales include add-ons like a humidifier, air cleaner, HRV/ERV, UV lights, or zoning?

What is the best approach to providing a holistic smart home experience for consumers?

Contractors and HVAC technicians can create a wealth of opportunities by adding residential HVAC zoning to their list of services.

For more HVAC contractors to sell zoning systems, they have to understand the benefits, challenges, know how to approach customers to even be able to sell it, and then comes the install.

His jacket was emblazoned with the logo of a manufacturer of high-performing heat pumps, but when I mentioned that we were thinking of getting one, the tech shot down the idea.

All-electric options have come a long way since their inception, and there’s never been a better time to get on board.

If contractors in colder climates focus on educating their customers on what new higher-efficiency furnaces bring to the table, often times the furnaces will sell themselves.

Due to a lack of training, time constraints, and numerous other reasons, many HVAC contracting companies are not performing combustion testing, potentially compromising customers’ safety.

Changeable software has been a goal of several technique in software engineering. Probably the most important is Refactoring, changing the code without changing the behaviour (or at least without breaking the tests). In this episode Eberhard talks with Martin Lippert about this technique. The episode covers a history of refactoring, a definition of code smells and how to actually do refactorings in your everyday work. Also some advanced topics - like the ROI of Refactoring or Refactoring in dynamic languages - are covered.

In the first episode on Refactoring we talked about the basic ideas behind refactoring and some base principles why refactoring is a key part of software engineering. Now we move on to more complicated refactorings and discuss three major situations, their problems and possible solutions: advanced refactorings in large projects that can hardly be finished in a few minutes or hours and refactoring in larger teams. Also covered are the refactoring of published APIs and how merciless refactoring could be aligned with backward compatibility of published APIs, and refactorings that affect more than just code like for example database schemas.

Joe Kutner, Software Architect for Heroku at Salesforce.com, spoke with host Kanchan Shringi about the 12-Factor App methodology, which aids development of modern apps that are portable, scalable, easy to test, and continuously deployable.

Jonathan Schneider, the cofounder of Moderne and the creator of OpenRewrite, talks with SE Radio's Gregory Kapfhammer about automated software maintenance. In addition to exploring the design and implementation of OpenRewrite, Schneider explains how the tool can automatically support software maintenance tasks such as framework migration and security fixes for programs implemented in languages like Java. The episode also explores how OpenRewrite uses the lossless semantic tree to support automated refactoring though the use of recipes. Brought to you by IEEE Computer Society and IEEE Software magazine.

Nowadays, if you do not consider harmonics distortion when designing a new network, you missed the whole point of the network design. Yes, really. The sooner you realize that harmonics problems are on the rise, the better. Modern power networks... Read more

The post Practical design knowledge in harmonics distortion and power factor correction (PFC) appeared first on EEP - Electrical Engineering Portal.

The majority of utilities are normally extremely well aware of the economic aspects and savings that can be obtained at all stages of the transformer’s life cycle. This is because the purchase of a transformer involves a very high capital... Read more

The post 11 factors that significantly influence the transformer price (Be careful when specifying) appeared first on EEP - Electrical Engineering Portal.

This technical article will try to shed some light on the main and auxiliary circuit diagrams of switching three-phase motors via contactor and switching directly. We’ll cover some fundamental schematics with an old-school explanations and logics on how they work.... Read more

The post Main and auxiliary circuit diagrams of switching three-phase motors via contactor and directly appeared first on EEP - Electrical Engineering Portal.

Why reactive power and power factor correction are so important? Well, for experienced engineers, this is not the question but the fact. For young students who meet this matter and terms for the first time, it’s important to explain the... Read more

The post Reactive power and power factor correction essentials to ALWAYS keep on mind appeared first on EEP - Electrical Engineering Portal.

Why are power engineers interested in plant power factor, what causes low power factor, and how can it be improved? The objectives of this article are to answer these questions briefly and to include handy application information for power-factor problems.... Read more

The post Why should plant engineers be worried about the power factor? What’s the catch? appeared first on EEP - Electrical Engineering Portal.

For the last sixty years, gas-insulated substation (GIS) has been used in applications related to substations all over the world, and this use of the technology is becoming an increasingly common asset for those who make use of substations. GIS... Read more

The post Choosing between AIS and GIS substation design: Factors you MUST take into consideration appeared first on EEP - Electrical Engineering Portal.

Just as you do on-boarding for your own employees, you should also be sure your subcontractors understand your policies and philosophies.

How to get free insurance from the vendors that work for you as well as tips on how to avoid becoming an insurance company of last resort.

Company culture is important for any business; we look at the crucial role it plays in the restoration and remediation industry. 

Explore essential insights from industry experts on training, market dynamics, and strategic considerations to help you navigate the franchise versus independent restoration business decisions.

Sinking terrain caused by the loss of ice and soil mass in permafrost is causing deeper thaw than previously thought and making vulnerable twice as much carbon as estimates that don’t account for this shifting ground.

The post Vulnerable carbon stores twice as high where permafrost subsidence is factored in, new research finds appeared first on GeoSpace.

The Global Packaging Group is growing in the South and Central Americas Region with a new hub of excellence for pressure sensitive labels, with plans for expansion into digital printing.