This past week Chicago hosted the AHR Show, and the show was buzzing — great traffic and happy exhibitors is usually a great recipe for success. The numbers are still being measured but when it is all said and done, it could be the biggest show ever. This makes sense because the underlying sentiment moving into 2015 is that companies and customers alike are spending a little more money. The economy is growing, and what better stage to see new products and technology, network with industry professionals and get smarter with a multitude of seminars.
Speaking of seminars, the Mechanical Town Hall featuring Mark Eatherton, Bob ‘hot rod’ Rohr, Dave Yates, John Barba, Eric Aune, and moderated by John Mesenbrink, was held to a capacity crowd. The interactive seminar touched upon upselling energy efficiency, pump and water heating efficiency standards, and diversification of one’s business.
If you weren’t able to make the show this year, don’t worry, we got you covered. Here’s some of the things we took away from the show on Day 1:
• Taco presser — Taco CEO John White Jr. addressed the media and conveyed the fact that the company is looking toward future growth through organic, inorganic and global growth. “With Taco, it’s not just about pumps and valves, it’s about a community. We are in the business of making peoples’ lives better. When a customer buys a Taco product, they are buying into someone’s future, as well,” said White.
• Bell & Gossett’s Little Red Schoolhouse goes online — Bell & Gossett (B&G), a Xylem brand, introduces its Online Little Red Schoolhouse — an interactive, self-paced series of free educational courses — debuting at the 2015 AHR Expo. The launch of Bell & Gossett’s Online Little Red Schoolhouse marks the first time the brand’s pump systems training and educational programming will be available to a global audience via the internet. “Part of B&G’s legacy is to deliver the best hydronic system design training in the industry, regardless of product loyalty,” said Mark Handzel, Vice President of Product Regulatory Affairs and Director, HVAC & Commercial Buildings Business Unit Americas. “By adapting our proprietary Little Red Schoolhouse training and deep applications expertise to an online format, we are ensuring our systems solutions approach for HVAC and plumbing applications is accessible to all.”
• ROSCOPE® i2000 inspection cameras — ROTHENBERGER USA now offers the ROSCAN 150 Infrared camera with touchscreen WIFI capability that enables the thermal imager to make easy work of analysis of warm and cold sources. This new camera is the latest addition to the ROSCOPE® line of cameras offered by the world’s leading manufacturer of innovative, technologically advanced pipe tools and pipe machining machines used in the sanitary, heating, air-conditioning, refrigeration, gas and environmental technology sectors.
33 SEER Mini Splits with Low Temp Heating — Fujitsu has introduced ductless split systems, offering up to 33 SEER, now the world’s most efficient mini-splits to operate with optimal efficiency at ambient temperatures of -15°F. The new 9,000 (9RLS3H), 12,000 (12RLS3H) and 15,000 BTU (15RLS3H) inverter systems are available with these capabilities right off the shelf with no modifications needed for low ambient operation.
hilmor launches 90 new hand tools — hilmor® announced the introduction of 90 new hand tools at AHR. The additions build on the already robust collection of more than 170 HVAC/R products, and span five core technical categories including Pliers, Wrenches and Wire Strippers, Snips and Sheet Metal and Duct Tools, Screwdriving and Tool Storage and Transport.
“We added 20 products to our line of hand tools in 2014 to strong reviews, creating
even more efficient and effective tools for HVAC/R technicians,” said Rich Mathews,
Senior Vice President, Marketing, hilmor. “Now we are bringing 90 new hand tools to
our customers, underscoring our commitment to becoming the most complete tool
provider to the professional endeavors of the men and women of the HVAC/R industry.”
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