The ACCA will turn an NBC News “sting”
on dishonest HVAC contractors into a learning opportunity this fall.
The Air Conditioning Contractors of
America has scheduled “"Taking the ‘Sting’ Out of the
Media," as part of its fifth annual Service Managers Forum Oct. 11-12 in
Austin, Texas.
The session will feature Robert C. Ring, the president of New Jersey-based HVAC business
Meyer & Depew Co., who served as consultant for the segment that aired
on NBC-TV’s “Today Show” and “Dateline NBC” this summer. With a hidden camera
recording them, six contractors visited a New Jersey home to fix an
air-conditioning problem. Producers said they designed the problem to be an
easy, relatively inexpensive fix. But if the technicians misled the homeowners
about the situation or tried to sell them expensive, unnecessary equipment, a
reporter confronted them. All of the contractors wanted to perform work that
was not needed.
Ring will
explain why he decided to take part in the news story and how contractors can
learn from the segment.
"I
was glad to work with the NBC to help educate the public about what they should
look for in a quality contractor,” Ring said. “I was very disappointed by those
contractors who did not seem to be doing the right thing. However, now that the
segment has aired twice, contractors need to take advantage of it and use it to
ensure that their team members don't get caught in this type of situation.
During this special session, I will share some ideas for how contractors can
use this to train their team and open up the conversation for attendees to
share their ideas and ask their questions, so we can all grow as an
industry."
The
full meeting agenda is availablehere
.
