The global market for cooling towers is projected to reach $2.6 billion by the year 2018, driven by improving economic conditions and more stringent environmental regulations, according to new report by Global Industry Analysts Inc.
Barring any changes stemming from the pending lawsuit against the Department of Energy (DOE), the new regional efficiency standards for residential furnaces, air conditioners, and heat pumps are scheduled to become effective May 1, 2013. What does that mean for you?
As Benjamin Franklin once famously said, “In life, nothing is certain but death and taxes.” Many business owners might argue that “regulations” could have been added to that quote as well, given the large number of new rules imposed each year by local, state, and federal governments.
A recent
Department of Energy (DOE) announcement could leave millions of dollars of HVAC
inventory stranded in warehouses. The DOE announced on July 2 that residential
HVAC appliances regulated under the pending regional efficiency standards
(non-weatherized gas furnaces, mobile home gas furnaces, and non-weatherized
oil furnaces) must be installed no later than May 1, 2013. Weatherized gas
furnaces, central air conditioners, and heat pumps will follow the same rules,
with a Jan. 1, 2015 compliance date. What effect could this law have?
Amidst all the talk about refrigerants such as HCs, HFOs, and CO2, the vast majority of contractors are still working on HFC and HCFC systems. With that in mind, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, contractor Brian Baker of Custom Vac Ltd., offers some perspectives on the familiar refrigerants of R-410A and R-22.
The latest regulatory merry-go-round with the Department of Energy (DOE) could be considered a prime example of what is wrong with Washington. It’s not the conservatives, the progressives, the gridlock in Congress, or the lack of bi-partisanship. It is the endless expansion of regulatory agencies.
A minor change in wording by our bureaucratic friends at the DOE means manufacturers, distributors, and dealers in specific regions must start making supply and inventory decisions now.
When you arrive home after your 12-hour work day, take a moment with your young child or grandchild. While bouncing that child on your lap, explain to them the power of hard work and the American dream. Tell them if they work hard, are innovative, and have the intestinal fortitude to take a risk they could one day be the owner of a multimillion dollar business that helps employ hundreds of grateful people. I would wait until the child is older to explain that if they want to pass that business on to the next generation, the United States government will grab 55 percent of the pie.
Members of Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) strongly believe Congress should repeal the current estate tax. To get their message across, more than 80 HARDI members used their annual Fly-In event to conduct nearly 200 meetings with congressional leaders, sharing that an increase in the estate tax could jeopardize the future of their businesses. What were the results?
