Xylem

By Norman Hall

A competitor recently asked how we can afford to spend so much time and money training our employees and our customers. My response is, “How can you afford not to train your people?” I would argue that education should be a prominent expense item for all contractors, wholesalers, and representatives in the HVAC and plumbing world. In this industry, where product and technical information can feel like a tsunami, customers rely on us to act as trusted advisors guiding them to the best solution. Our staff cannot simply exist as a walking, talking brochure. Arming our people with the knowledge and empowerment to think critically and to act with integrity has resulted in a thriving business and a dedicated customer base here at R.L. Deppmann.

“OK, Show Me the Boiler and I’ll Help you out.”

A few months ago, I was at lunch with a commercial mechanical contractor. By the way, it was a real lunch, not a Zoom meeting. The contractor started asking about the importance of the R. L. Deppmann seminar series for the winter season. He told me the story. Last fall he purchased some equipment for a project from a competitor. The equipment was installed and ran fine for a short time. In the spring he received a call from the owner. There were complaints of sporadic shutdowns of the boiler. The younger salesperson who took the original order was called out to the jobsite to assist in troubleshooting.

The rep stood in the mechanical room and asked the contractor to take him to the equipment with the trouble. The response was, “it’s right behind you.” Imagine the look on the contractor’s face. The young salesperson was embarrassed and the customer lost confidence. No one wants this to be a story in their company.

Starting in the Industry

Employees are valuable assets of any successful company. Today, it appears there are more positions available than people to fill them. The result is a younger work force that is changing jobs and careers. The person you are hiring may have little knowledge of the industry and certainly little knowledge of your company.

Exposing this new employee to knowledge about the company, the job, and the growth opportunities is paramount. The new employee will leave you or you may leave them if they are not successful in a short time. There is a roadmap to training if you are willing to invest in it.

The New Employee Education Road Map

Image Credit: Carbuyer

Our company, R. L. Deppmann, is a successful manufacturer’s representative of hydronic, steam, and plumbing products in Michigan and Ohio. Our customers call us to help them solve problems because we have, and teach, the knowledge they need. How does this happen? Our hiring pool on the sales and engineering end is no different than other companies, but the training program is.

1. Start with core values and what the company is all about. Our new employees are purposely exposed to the company business and culture three times in the first few weeks of their career. The HR department presents, the managing supervisor presents, and a senior manager describes the business and culture.
2. Know the team that supports you. Our customers are contractors, wholesalers, and owners. It is important for the new inside or outside salesperson to understand the various departments of support.
   1. The new sales rep spends a short time in the warehouse, learning, seeing, and touching the products. They also begin to learn the ERP and CRM systems.
   2. Next, they move into the startup and warranty (service) department. Here they begin to see installed products and how they are commissioned. With the Service Tech as their mentor, the employee will gather knowledge of the terms used in the industry, proper installation, and troubleshooting. There is also a chance to interface with customers.
   3. Customer service/inside sales is the next stop. Here they begin the process of satisfying customer requests. They learn product, parts, and our business systems. They work in a team with open conversation about the hundreds of different product types and customer issues. The employee learns to help the customer make a better decision about what they are asking for.
   4. We have a strong new construction business. The salesperson will learn the plans, specifications, proper selection and sizing, proper detailing to avoid issues, and pricing. Here there is the baseline process of speaking with contractors, wholesalers, engineers, and coordinating with other employees.
   5. By this time, the employee is well into their training period. They now go out on calls with a senior sales rep. They are prepared with some understanding of product, installation, troubleshooting, selection, and quoting. Daily discussions with the senior rep will fill in the features, benefit, and competitive landscape for company and individual success.
3. Now the employee is prepared to be a resource for their customer. They understand who knows what and the resources available to satisfy the customer’s needs. The new employee feels like they are part of a team. They may have developed a friendship with other employees. They feel like they belong.

Getting Started: How to Create a Training Program

This program may seem difficult to start. We developed this over many years. The departments a new employee is exposed to changes with their job. An accounting employee will go through the core ideology training. They may not experience the customer service department but warehouse experience in return goods or the purchasing process knowledge may help them do their job better.

Start with that core ideology process. Make sure the employee understands who you are, where you fit in the industry, and what to think about when making decisions. Next, just pick one support department for the job and list what they need to know about it. Communicate with all the department employees what the goal is and just try it out for a couple weeks. You will develop your own program.

Next quarter I’ll share the continuing training program we use once the employee is in the job full time.

Norman Hall is an engineer and leader at the R. L. Deppmann Company, a manufacturer’s representative, in Michigan and Ohio. Norm has assisted in the design and troubleshooting of hydronic and steam systems for 45 years.

Bell & Gossett announces its 2015 third quarter Little Red Schoolhouse seminar
schedule for in-person training. The training center’s seminars provide systems design training to engineers, wholesalers and contractors in the plumbing and hydronic heating and cooling industries.

Little Red Schoolhouse Opened in 1954, the Little Red Schoolhouse offers seminars covering a wide range of topics tailored to different occupations in the industry. Our Little Red Schoolhouse, a completely equipped learning center, has trained more than 60,000 engineers, contractors and installers in the proper design, installation and maintenance
of hydronic and steam systems.

Little Red Schoolhouse third quarter schedule
• Design & Application of Water Based HVAC Systems Seminar* September 28-30
• Service & Maintenance of Water Based HVAC Systems Seminar October 5-7
• Modern Hydronic Heating Systems- Basic Seminar* October 12-14
• Modern Hydronic Heating Systems- Advanced Seminar* October 19-21
• Design & Application of Water Based HVAC Systems Seminar* November 9-11
• Large Chilled Water System Design Seminar* November 16-18
• Steam System Design & Application Seminar December 7-9

*Seminar approved by GBCI to provide credit toward the credential maintenance requirements of the LEED Associate and LEED AP certifications

Online education

Bell & Gossett’s commitment to education continues with virtual curriculum. The Online Little Red Schoolhouse training and educational programming is available to a global audience. Programming begins with introductory courses on centrifugal pump fundamentals and piping systems. These courses are intended to complement the more in-depth, hands-on experience our students get through in-person courses.

For continuing education credit information, seminar descriptions, representative information and enrollment, visit www.bellgossett.com/training-education.
To sign up for seminars via the Online Little Red Schoolhouse, visit: http://training.bellgossett.com/.

Five employees from the Applied Water Systems (AWS) business unit of Xylem were recently recognized by the Hydraulic Institute (HI) for their longtime service to and involvement in HI, the largest association of pump industry manufacturers in North America. The recognition took place during the organization’s 2015 annual meeting in St. Petersburg, Florida.

From l to r: Mark Handzel, Paul Ruzicka, Mark Heiser, Jim Roberts

“Xylem has one of the greatest, if not the greatest, number of participants helping to shape the future of the pump and hydronic systems industry, including significant involvement in defining efficiency standards and government regulations,” said Dave Flinton, Vice President, Engineering and Marketing, AWS. “These awards highlight Xylem’s leadership in the industry, and the deep expertise our people have.”

Awards and the team members they were presented to are as follows:

• Mark Handzel, Vice President Product Regulatory Affairs and Director, HVAC Commercial Buildings, Americas – Industry leadership Award for U.S. Department of Energy pump efficiency regulations
• Mark Heiser, Test & Validation Manager – Industry Leadership Award for development of HI Standard 40.7 and recognition for completion of standard development for DOE pump efficiency regulations
• Paul Ruzicka, Chief Mechanical Engineer – Industry Leadership Award for development of HI Standard 40.6 and recognition for completion of standard development for DOE pump efficiency regulations
• Chris Johnson, Global Engineering Manager, Centrifugal Pumps – Recognition for contributions to HI standards development
• Jim Roberts, Associate Principal Mechanical Engineer – Recognition for 20 years of service to the development of HI standards

Morton Grove, Ill. — The second-quarter 2015 seminar schedule is now available for Bell & Gossett’s Little Red Schoolhouse in Morton Grove. The training center’s seminars provide systems design training to engineers, wholesalers and contractors in the plumbing and hydronic heating and cooling industries.

“Xylem is at the forefront of providing education to current and future engineers,” said Larry Konopacz, Manager, Training and Education, Little Red Schoolhouse, Xylem. “Little Red Schoolhouse seminars — whether taken online or in person — equip attendees with the knowledge and confidence to take a systems solutions approach for HVAC and plumbing applications. In an ever-changing industry, education is key to staying on top of new technologies and advancements.”

Online Little Red Schoolhouse

Bell & Gossett’s commitment to education continues with virtual curriculum. At the 2015 AHR Expo, the brand introduced the Online Little Red Schoolhouse — an interactive, self-paced series of free educational courses. This is the first time the iconic pump systems training and educational programming will be available to a global audience via the Internet.

Little Red Schoolhouse second quarter schedule

Modern Hydronic Heating Systems – Basic Seminar*                                         April 20-22

Design & Application of Water Based HVAC Systems Seminar*                        April 27-29

Service & Maintenance of Water Based HVAC Systems Seminar                     May 18-20

Modern Hydronic Heating Systems – Basic Seminar*                                         June 1-3

Design & Application of Water Based HVAC Systems Seminar*                        June 8-10

Large Chilled Water System Design Seminar*                                                     June 15-17

* Seminar approved by Green Building Certification Institute to provide credit toward the credential maintenance requirements of the LEED Green Associate and LEED AP certifications.

For continuing education credit information, seminar descriptions, representative information and enrollment, visit www.bellgossett.com/training-education.

To sign up for seminars via the Online Little Red Schoolhouse, visit: http://training.bellgossett.com/.