News you can use
There is a huge change coming in how air conditioning efficiency is rated after January 1, 2023, which will increase the prices consumers will pay for minimum efficiency air conditioner and heat pump replacements. Manufacturer prices have increased substantially since 2020 due to supply chain issues and inflation. Consumers may never pay less to replace HVAC equipment than they will the remainder of this year.
As currently written, HVAC contractors could be assessed stiff fines and an 800 number will be published that anyone (homeowners, competitors, ex-employees, etc.) can use to report a system that does not meet SEER2 rating standards. Effective January 1, 2023, contractors will not be able to risk installing equipment, although legal today, that fails to meet the minimums in 2023.
Learn more about the changes on the horizon and how to plan to thrive in the upcoming environment from Matt Michel and Jim Hinshaw at the 2022 AC Live Conference and Expo on October 27-28.
Texas Air Conditioning Contractors Association (TACCA) is pleased to again see a number of individuals from Texas, including two TACCA members, recognized by The ACHR NEWS in their 2022 Top 40 Under 40 HVACR Professionals list.
Congratulations to all of these outstanding individuals, and a special shout out to Dustin Neff with Triple A Air Conditioning in Flower Mound and Crystal Williams with Lemon Seed Marketing in Burke. Neff is the TACCA North Texas Chapter President and sits on the board of advisors for the HVAC program at his former high school, roles he served through the hot and busy Texas summer and the birth of his first little one earlier this year. Lemon Seed Marketing is a new associate member and Williams will be presenting on marketing at the 2022 AC Live Conference in October. About this industry recognition, Williams says, “Winning a place among such great talent in The Top 40 Under 40 is such an honor. There are so many wonderful contractors in our industry and to just be a small part of their success and growth for their businesses is truly humbling and inspiring. Marketing is nothing without operations and being a piece of the whole puzzle is so much fun!” Thank you both for the work you do for the HVACR industry in Texas!
There has been a rise in trade school enrollment because of the rising cost of attending a Community or 4-yr college. Attending a trade school seems enticing because of job openings and higher pay.
Trade schools provide specialized training and hands-on training for high-demand occupations. Trade schools can focus on specific industries and career paths.
Read more about the rise of trade school enrollment.
Manufacturer’s Warranties: Chapter 608 of the Texas Business & Commerce Code was amended during the 87th Legislature (Regular Session) to note that a manufacturer’s warranty on an air conditioning system transfers automatically to a new owner if the residential property is sold. House Bill 2110 became law on September 1, 2021.
What is a Geothermal Heat Pump? Geothermal systems provide both heating and air conditioning using renewable energy from the constant temperature below the surface. Fossil fuel-produced electricity is only necessary to run the fan and circulation pump on a true geothermal system, or takes the place of the air side heat exchanger on a water source heat pump.
New ACR Program Specialist:
Troy Smart comes to TDLR with more than 30 years of HVAC industry experience, and is a most welcome addition to the current ACR program staff.
Read more from On the Level by TDLR July edition.
Congratulations to TACCA associate member, Pepco Sales & Marketing!
Pepco Sales & Marketing Opens New 26,000 sq. ft. Warehouse
in San Marcos, TX
This month, Pepco Sales & Marketing, the manufacturer’s representative firm, is adding to its existing footprint in Texas with the opening of a newly constructed 26,000 square feet warehouse in San Marcos. Located at 1551 Clovis Barker Road, Suite 225, San Marcos, Texas 78666, this new facility will serve the Austin, San Antonio, and the Greater Central Texas Area.
This versatile brand-new warehouse will offer warehousing, order staging, will-call pick-up to regional customers, shipping and receiving, as well as a live-fire wet lab training room, conference space, office space and various other options for Pepco Sales & Marketing to provide even better service to HVAC/R, Plumbing, Irrigation, and Waterworks industry professionals.
Conveniently located near the IH-35 between Austin and San Antonio, this new warehouse operation in San Marcos is a most welcome announcement as the logistics industry continues to adapt to the impact of the pandemic and to actively respond to the ever-growing building industry in Texas.
Pepco Sales & Marketing is a manufacturer’s representative firm specializing in the Plumbing, HVAC/R, Irrigation, and Waterworks segments in the construction industry. The company covers Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Louisiana, and Arkansas with 3 warehouses strategically located across Texas.
Follow Pepco Sales & Marketing on LinkedIn.
MEMBERSHIP MINUTE
“I’m sorry, remind me your name again?” It can be an embarrassing question for both parties, but especially frustrating for the one asking. With the amount of information we take in every day, these little lapses are inevitable, right? Maybe not. When it comes to recall, it’s very much a case of ‘use it, don’t lose it’. Here are tips for how you can improve yours, at any age.
- Be sure to get enough sleep
- Make dates and events visual
- Think like a pianist
- Reframe your memory
- Use striking visual images
Read about these and more helpful tips in this article from The Guardian, How to Boost your Brain Power
Many home service companies received information that they do not qualify for the Employee Retention Credit (ERC), and as a result are not even applying for this large refundable credit…yikes! You CAN and SHOULD apply for the ERC before the window of opportunity closes. Learn more with TACCA Greater Houston, August 25th Webinar.
TACCA GREATER HOUSTON
Thursday, August 25, 2022 – 10:00 AM (CST)
The Texas Workforce Commission offers an Employer Initiative mailing list regarding workforce funding, grant opportunities, and other initiatives to benefit your business.
Sign up to subscribe.
We just hired our first remote employee. The employee will be completely remote and will be living and working in a different state than where our company is located. Which state laws apply to this employee—the laws of our company’s state or the laws of the employee’s state? What are some additional considerations we should be aware of?
Read the answer to the HR question of the month from independent HR professionals.
ADVOCACY
Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) – The Senate recently passed its landmark climate, tax, and health care measure. The passing of this bill followed an overnight amendment process that made additional tweaks to the package. Though it’s significantly smaller than the $3.5 trillion plan envisioned by the party a year ago, this legislation will have impact on contractors.
Read more to learn how this federal legislation will impact HVACR contractors
We’ve received several calls recently about what to do when the owner/license holder leaves the company or passes away and the HVACR company needs to continue to do business. We spoke with Bill Weatherly at Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) to get some answers.
Q: When a license holder leaves the company or passes away, what is the process/timeline for the company to obtain a new license holder, whether by hiring someone, or an heir or other partner getting licensed? Can they continue to do business as usual until the change is processed by TDLR? Is there a grace period for continuing to do HVAC work?
The next Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors Advisory Board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, August 24, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. The meeting will be held via videoconference and will be viewable on TDLR’s YouTube channel. Sharing of pre-recorded audio or video is not allowed during the public comment period. The agenda and staff reports are available online.
TRAINING & EDUCATION
Matt Michel presenting at the 2021 AC Live Conference
Last year’s conference saw 9 great speakers, 11 TDLR-approved sessions, 11 casino tables, 32 exhibiting vendor booths, 42 pounds of macaroni and cheese, and 147 registered vendors and attendees. The 2022 AC Live Conference is already on track to blow those numbers away. Join us for another event full of connecting with friends and industry representatives and great sessions like the timely and incredibly relevant session below:
Planning for Prosperity in 2023
Many changes are coming that will affect your business next year including supply chain issues, governmental mandates, and personnel challenges. Matt Michel and Jim Hinshaw with Service Nation will show you what the biggest changes are and give you tools to use to not only survive, but thrive in the upcoming economy.
- Federal government changes to testing standards and what that means to your business
- How to handle pricing and present solutions to customers
- What the future holds in terms of efficiency, product availability, and equipment shortages
Date: Thursday, August 18, 2022
Time: 1:00 PM CTSponsor: Fulcrum
Duration: 1 hour
Summary
Steel-toed boots and hard hats are only part of the story. To keep people safe, you need to make keen
observations of the workplace, whether with scheduled inspections or through real-time issue observation. But these moments in time become substantially more valuable if they can be aggregated to help you describe, justify, and make decisions about your safety program. Converting safety inspections, observations, and even everyday actions into high-quality data can provide the quantitative basis for safer outcomes and better decision-making.
This webinar will help you understand how digitizing safety inspections and standard operating procedures can generate hard data that you can harness for operational improvements, metrics that drive cultural change, and analytics that encourage continuous organization-wide improvement, including:
- Why many safety metrics don’t lead to improved outcomes
- Why digitization opens up possibilities that paper can’t manage
- How “leading metrics” can drive organizational change
- How to derive value from ordinary, day-to-day tasks
Speaker: Jake Freivald | Vice President of Product Marketing | Fulcrum
TACCA’s latest TDLR-approved continuing education course is free for members (in-person class) and covers the following topics:
Duct Systems for Zoning
- Fundamentals for Duct Design
- Single-Speed Refrigerant Delivery
- Unloading Refrigerant Delivery
- Inverter Variable Refrigerant Delivery
- Investigate Stand Alone Support
- Understanding Building Science
Texas Laws and Rules
This course is approved for eight (8) hours of ACR license renewal credit and NATE CE hours. Course #25767 / Provider #1126
REGISTER FOR A CE CLASS (IN PERSON) ($0 for members, $159 non-members)
ON-LINE SELF PACED CE CLASS AVAILABLE ($39 members, $59 non-members)
Discrimination/Harassment Prevention
60 minutes | Complimentary
Would your organization benefit from some simple tools to mitigate the risk of discrimination and harassment claims? Listen to the previously recorded webinar to learn more about key steps employers can take today to evaluate their commitment to the prevention and successful resolution of discrimination and harassment claims.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
Human Resources Professionals
Owners/Officers
Risk Managers
Operations Management
