If you haven’t started applying lean construction techniques to your sheet metal shop, it’s not too late to start and get ahead of your competition. A few years ago, many ductwork fabrication shop owners wondered if lean manufacturing techniques actually could apply to job shops (high mix/low volume).

As president and CEO of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America, I speak with HVAC construction contractors and our industry partners every day, and it sounds like 2017 was a very busy and profitable year for our industry.

Measuring the electrical resistance (ohms) of motors, compressors, and other electrical devices in HVAC systems may seem straightforward. But when the measurements of zero (0) or “OL” (overload) come up in discussions, it becomes clear that there is quite a bit of confusion around this topic.

For too long, it seems careers that required working with your hands at a job site instead of at a desk have been looked down upon by many people  — including some of those who perform such work.

In a very competitive and low-margin industry like HVACR distribution, it is so crucial to keep tabs on your competitors. But in constantly trying to improve, HARDI members often find themselves asking which aspect of their business they should concentrate those efforts on.

It is no secret that Republican President Donald Trump faces potentially insuperable gridlock in the ostensibly friendly, GOP-controlled Congress. Democrats appear to be intractably opposed to the 45th president’s agenda, most recently evident in their resistance to repealing Obamacare.

Mistakes are powerful lesson builders. Email marketing inherently brings mistakes. That’s because it’s free and everyone who can push “send” can use it.

Many labor experts expect the National Labor Relations Board, which had been perceived by many as pro-union under former President Barack Obama, to shift its focus with Donald Trump in the White House.

For almost as long as I’ve been covering HVAC and sheet metal, there’s been handwringing about the industry’s aging workforce. 

On Dec. 1, 2016, new OSHA regulations aimed at “nudging” employers into creating safer workplaces went into effect. Of particular significance are the new anti-retaliation provisions, which may require changes to employers’ worksite safety incentive programs.