In 2004, Rob Falke, the late president and co-founder of National Comfort Institute (NCI), began the journey to add HVAC system performance testing and verification to NCI’s offerings. He knew our industry needed a better way to help people understand the difference between the HVAC equipment and the HVAC system. He called his approach a System Efficiency Ratio (SER). It was a simple procedure you could apply to a cooling or heating system to compare system delivered BTUs to manufacturer equipment rated BTUs.
As an example, let’s say you had a condensing gas furnace rated to deliver 54,000 BTUs output. On a perfect installation, you should get close to 54,000 BTUs of output into the building. Using the SER method, a contractor could measure delivered heating BTUs into the living space and compare them to the furnace BTU output rating. So, if the system measured 27,000 delivered BTUs, then the SER would be 50% (27,000 ¸ 54,000 = 50%).
Our family company was one of the beta testers for this new concept of measured system performance. During this time, I got to know Rob well because he was working closely with us and others in the testing group. Little did I know that those moments would lead Rob to use “BTU” as an acronym for how to inspire others.
I hope you enjoy a few lessons from someone who taught me there was more to HVAC than just replacing and fixing equipment. Rob not only knew how to get HVAC systems to perform their best, he knew how to inspire people to do the same.
Build Others Up
One of the first projects where we measured system performance was one of our company’s new installations. We designed this system from scratch and expected it to do well, but didn’t expect it to do as well as it did. This was a dual fuel system with all ducts insulated and in a conditioned basement. When we finished taking our test measurements and tallied up the results, we found the system performing over 100% of its laboratory-rated efficiency. I knew this couldn’t be right because it is physically impossible.
AIRFLOW: Delivered airflow into the living space is the core test in measuring delivered Btus. David Richardson from 20 years ago measures airflow from a supply register for demonstration purposes. (Courtesy of David Richardson
I called Rob to see if he had any ideas. As he listened to my concerns, he asked me questions to get a feel for what was happening. He kept probing until we found out my mistake was just a simple error. I had measured airflow correctly from the supply registers and return grilles, but my issue was with the enthalpy measurements. I learned that measuring too close to a cold coil causes a digital psychrometer to read differently from reality. It amplifies the readings.
Rob instructed me to get out of the coil’s line of sight and measure a bit downstream after the air mixes. We reran our numbers and suddenly everything looked different. The final SER result came in around 95%. I was embarrassed by my simple oversight, so I started to beat myself up. Rob quickly stopped me. He knew my confidence was down. I exclaimed, “I should have known better!” Rob reminded me I was learning, and mistakes were all part of learning the testing process.
Anytime you learn something new, you will probably be overwhelmed and stressed. You will also make mistakes you normally wouldn’t, which is exactly what I did. Rob understood this fact and used it as a teaching opportunity. As you train new and existing employees, how do you handle their mistakes? Do you encourage them and build them up, or do you criticize them and tear them down? It’s easier to tear others down, but it takes a lot of confidence to build them up. Sometimes people just need someone to believe in them.
Treat Others Like They Need to Be Treated
As Rob and I continued to discuss what happened, it was apparent I hadn’t used many of the testing procedures we were instructed to follow. This oversight led to other missteps on my end. Looking back now, many of the errors I made were basic, and I’m sure as Rob listened to me, he was thinking this as well. But he looked at the situation through the eyes of a teacher who was trying to help a student better understand what they needed to learn.
It’s easy to assume that people grasp a concept when it’s first introduced, but that’s not how we learn. Principles like measuring airflow, temperature, and enthalpy aren’t the easiest concepts to grasp. It takes a lot of repetition to get it right. However, before you get it consistently right, you’re probably going to make a lot of mistakes.
The challenge to anyone who has experience with testing is developing the ability to look through the eyes of a new installer and technician as they learn the principles of our trade. Putting yourself in their shoes helps you to better understand where they are in the learning process. Rob did that and treated me how I needed to be treated.
Sometimes teaching in this way means extending some mercy and grace as others make mistakes. It also means showing them how to prevent such mistakes in the future. Other times, teaching these concepts means using some tough love and challenging the individual. Each situation and person is different.
Understand the Other Person’s Viewpoint
As I hung up the phone with Rob that day, we wrapped up our testing and packed up. On the way back to the shop, it occurred to me how much time this process took. We spent an entire day measuring the performance of a system that should have only taken a few hours. Now I really doubted whether we could realistically implement system performance testing into our company.
After sitting on the idea for a few days, I called Rob back and told him about my concerns. I shared with him the time it took, which was well past what we estimated. If we wanted to follow this process, time would be an issue.
Rob agreed but reminded me we were still learning and our speed would improve with each job. He assured me we would only get better with time. Rob could have brushed off my concerns, but he didn’t. Instead, he put himself in my shoes and related to my concerns. He provided an alternative viewpoint instead of reacting to my ramped-up emotions. I told him we would keep trying.
As we continued to test, we did get faster and eventually met our estimated time expectations. The original problem: We set an unrealistic goal. We were impatient and forgot that we were still learning. I’m thankful we didn’t quit.
Instead of getting caught up in his role as the president of NCI and the testing expert, Rob put himself in my shoes, the role of a contractor (which he had once been, too). He listened to what I had to say so he could understand my viewpoint. He could relate to the situation and helped me see what I couldn’t.
It’s easy to get caught up in our own needs. If we shift our perspective and look at things differently, it’s amazing what can happen. Rob showed me the importance of seeing the other person’s viewpoint instead of only considering my own.
Measure Your Performance
Learning how to measure and rate HVAC system performance in the field taught me a lot more about myself and how to deal with people than it did about comfort. BTUs became a chance to better connect with customers as we taught them about their HVAC systems and strengthened our relationships with them.
How often do we miss opportunities to connect with people? This is like losing BTUs through a duct system. Once they are gone, you can’t recover them. Often, you only have one shot to connect with a person and make a difference.
BTUs are about comfort. If you aren’t comfortable around people, try working the three above-mentioned BTU principles into your day. Start with daily awareness of your thoughts, words, tone, and actions. Keeping a journal helps document your own performance. Remember NCI’s mantra: “If you don’t measure, you’re just guessing.” Find one area to focus on and look for ways to build others up. Treat them like they need to be treated, and understand their viewpoint.
I’m thankful for Rob’s continued guidance and influence as he worked with me and showed us how to deliver measured performance to our customers. It changed how we positioned ourselves in our local HVAC market.
Rob passed away on May 3, 2022. In his honor, those of us at NCI named this day “National Airhead Day.” It’s a special day for those in our industry who look beyond the equipment to the issues affecting installed system performance.
Rob had a dream to elevate the HVAC industry from low-paid laborers to well-paid craftsmen. He knew good HVAC companies needed a way to prove their superior work and get paid well for doing it.
SER served as the foundation for the current ASHRAE Standard 221 for measuring field-installed HVAC system performance. It was Rob’s gift to the industry for those who do exceptional installations and can show the results. All that’s missing is for you to commit yourself to installing HVAC systems that truly perform and then prove it through measurements.