Plumbing & Mechanical Contractor

RSS

The choice between ∆T and ∆P operation of a circulator has, at times, been the subject of rather “heated” debates. It’s almost as if a few Yankee fans are disputing superior pitching or batting performance with a few Red Sox fans. There appears to be some strong opinions involved.

It’s not often that a 27-year-old decides to start his own contracting company, but in the case of Ryan Osterkamp, that’s exactly what happened.

On any given day inside a former K-6 schoolhouse in Elyria, Ohio, trade professionals can be found learning about the latest tools from RIDGID and how best to use them on the job site.

Best practices for designing and installing PEX to leverage the benefits of installation efficiencies, job-site safety and profitability potential.

The commercial water heating market has options for building owners and facility managers when it comes to selecting equipment for their facilities — tank or tankless, gas models or electric — even heat pump water heaters are seeing growth in this space. So which is the most popular? Well, it all depends on who you ask.

CPVC has been used for residential plumbing in the U.S. for more than 60 years and is unique among today’s plumbing materials. CPVC was specifically designed to be compatible with American drinking water and is impervious to chlorine. As a result, virtually all CPVC failures can be traced back to improper installation or servicing practices.

Just about every company claims to have a family culture, but not every company truly works hard to make it a fact. Harrell-Fish Inc. (HFI) is one of the good ones. With its vision statement, “We will relentlessly grow, develop and build our people, company and communities for a better future,” it’s clear HFI puts its employees first.

For those not directly connected to the field service industry, it might be surprising to learn that many technicians in this space do not have the tools or information available to make quotes on the spot and still struggle with finding transparent solutions for scheduling — resulting in delays and lost business.

During JP Morgan’s investor day, investors heard optimistic tones coming from JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who referred to our situation as “Strong economy, big storm clouds,” and went on to explain “I’m calling it storm clouds because they’re storm clouds. They may dissipate.” Dimon, who is known for his keen eye on the market, added that a recession is possible, but it would be unlike past downturns because of the unique mix of economic conditions we see ourselves in today.

All of my employees and I were sitting in our trucks eating lunch when the OSHA inspectors arrived on the commercial job site, which was a two-story addition to a nursing home. Talk about fear — the other trades and general contractor’s employees about had a coronary!