Never a "Down Time" for Learning

I attended an RSES state association event over the weekend, the RSES Michigan State Assn.'s semi-annual meeting. The program, which was held at the Bavarian Inn hotel in Frankenmuth, MI, saw nearly 50 HVACR service professionals gather to hear four-hour presentations on refrigerant alternatives (presented by Garth Dennison, CMS) and ECMs (in a presentation given by Nick Reggi, CMS).

Michigan, perhaps even more than other manufacturing-dependent states, has been hit very hard by the economic downturn of the past two years. I spoke with several individuals who talked about the cutbacks going on, and even scarier, the fact that the eroding tax base (as a result of population migration out of the state in search for work elsewhere) is starting to mean a cut in services for schools, municipalities, etc. "Do more with less" is becoming a way of life for many in the public sector there.

But despite these difficulties, it was encouraging to see so many people still attend this event. They wanted to find out about the latest energy-efficient technologies. People were encouraged by the fact that some new projects, at least in the light-commercial sector, were starting to help buoy the economic instability. There is a long way to go, but the optimism was palatable.

In that light, I found it even more interesting when Judy Zehnder, who is the fourth generation of her family to run the Bavarian Inn, addressed our group personally at our lunch. She shared some intersting information about the history of the hotel, and her family's philosophy for "doing it the right way, the first time, all the time."

Perhaps most interesting in light of her discussion with us was the disclosure she made regarding the hotel's HVACR system. Unlike most all chain hotels, the Bavarian Inn has moved all of its heat pump units, which supply comfort to some four floors of hotel rooms spread over a huge space, to a fifth floor addition. The hotel, in essence, created a whole floor WITHOUT rooms just to provide the proper mechanical ventilation, space, etc. for the equipment. I was justifiably impressed (and I'm working on the RSES Journal having a chance to cover that story in an upcoming issue.

After she spoke, I talked with Judy for a bit about the hotel, the decision to add the separate floor and what that has done for the facility. As she stated simply, "If you are in this business to sell quickly, that (adding the mechanical room floor) was the worst thing you could do. But we believe in the long-term, and this will provide us benefits and payback for decades."

There are customers out there like that, and there are technicians and contractors who can service those individuals. By promoting education and training, even in slow economic times, those parties still can find ways to meet. And I even learned something in the process.