Here's a list of HVAC machinery products you can learn more about while at the AHR Expo in Las Vegas at the end of January. 

VacuFil high-vacuum extraction system from KEMPER in use at Aebi Schmidt Nederland B.V.

A nowhere near comprehensive list of sheet metal tools for the modern sheet metal worker. But it’s a start.  

New technology now has the potential to transform the HVAC industry by expediting business operations. But it can’t help you if you don’t know how to use it. The AEC BuildTech Conference & Expo is your opportunity to maximize your use of new hardware and software. 

On the fence about investing in a waterjet cutter? A Brooklyn, New York-based startup, WAZER, is making it affordable to dip a toe in the technology before diving in the deep end. Retailing around $7,499-$8,499, the company’s compact waterjet systems produce low volume prototyping and other end-user parts in a package that can comfortably fit on a tabletop. 

There are any number of good reasons NOT to upgrade your sheet metal machinery: timing, cost, confusion … cost. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” should never be one of them — especially after reading this issue of SNIPS.  

Look around you. The sheet metal machinery on your shop floor is the lifeblood of your business. But as an extension of your workforce, do you know what machines to recruit and what to retire?

In order to streamline your shop operations, we’re launching a special How-to section on SNIPSmag.com focusing on sheet metal fabrication, installation, transport and everything in between. To kick everything off, we asked some of our favorite contractors and companies to give us a few how-to tips on some frequently asked questions. Here’s what they said.

Many shop owners and managers know that it takes a well-equipped facility to be competitive in the HVAC construction and sheet metal forming market, but that’s only one requirement.

Either consciously or subconsciously, your sheet metal products business makes many decisions that preclude certain activities.