Tax credits and their effect on the HVACR distribution industry were at one time an increasingly hot topic. Concerns about tax credit expiration and what that would mean for the industry kept CEOs and business owners busy. While the industry did have to adjust to a drastically reduced federal tax credit in 2011, one source of funding to promote energy-efficient HVAC systems did not decline: rebates offered by energy-efficiency programs. A study commissioned by the HARDI Foundation and conducted by the Vermont Energy Investment Corp. (VEIC) found that HVAC distributors can play an extremely important role in the support of those programs.

Like many HVAC manufacturers, Heat Controller Inc. (HCI) is in the business of making customers comfortable, whether they are at home, work, or school. What sets Heat Controller apart, noted its executive vice president Lou Rasmussen, is the company's broad product line which is designed to meet the needs of just about any residential or commercial end user.

If Facebook users made up a country, it would be the world's third largest. An estimated 80 percent of companies use social media websites as a recruitment tool. More than 100 hours of video is uploaded to YouTube every four minutes.

Still think social media is a fad?

Colonial Commercial Corp. (Hawthorne, N.J.) announced the appointment of Peter Gasiewicz as its president and chief operating officer.

Comfort Supply teamed up with KB Watson Enterprises to provide contractors with a suite of cloud-based calculators. The platform of cloud-based Web apps - including residential load calculation, residential equipment selection, residential duct design and more - runs on any device with a Web browser.

HCFC-22 may not have been historically a refrigeration refrigerant, but it sure has been high on the minds of those wholesalers who deal with a lot of refrigeration products.

 

Positioning for growth is a challenge that most distributors share. Economic volatility, competition, and a range of industry advancements demand that distributors not merely expect to grow in the coming years, but that they plan and strategize for successful maturing. To help distributors analyze and prepare for uncertain business trends, Guy Blissett, wholesale distribution lead, IBM, in partnership with the National Association of Wholesalers (NAW) Institute for Distribution Excellence offers strategies based on industry research.

It seems that everybody complains about information overload these days. The nonstop ringing, buzzing, and vibrating of electronic devices is evidence of all the new messages and updates constantly being sent and received. But Heating, Airconditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) is tackling this challenge with a new marketing strategy that it hopes will help members quickly and easily find the information they are looking for.

Heating, Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) announced North American HVACR average distributor sales for November 2011 were down 1.7 percent  from the same month last year,  the first such decline since October of 2010.

Heating, Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) announced North American HVACR average distributor sales for November 2011 were down 1.7 percent  from the same month last year,  the first such decline since October of 2010.