My Humble Offering to Hotel Logistics

I was stopping in to speak with a potential client last week, a beautiful hotel here in Richmond, and spent some time chatting with a gentleman at the front desk.  We both happened to be on the same page about numerous issues: love of the city (him-Fan, me-Church Hill), Richmond's great restaurants, and the disdain for people who do not follow simple rules.  The latter topic came about while we were on the issue of parking, or lack thereof, in the Fan.  I told him a situation I encountered that previous weekend of a less-than-conscientious driver in my beautiful neighborhood while I was on a morning walk with the dog.  As Morgan and I are walking Colt down Broad street, we pass Captain Buzzy's (highly recommended for coffee lovers) just as someone pulls into an empty spot along the curb right in front of the shop.  For starters, this is a no-parking zone and there was a perfectly legal spot directly across the street. Secondly, he was facing the wrong direction(!!!!).... I am not one that understands or grasps the mindset of being above the law or common rules of humanity, so this situation slightly infuriated me...and on such a beautiful day! In case you are wondering, no he was not the President, Pope, or God (I would have loved to back a tow truck up to his car and move to the other side of the street, but I do not have such resources).  This rolled back in the folks who feel that rules simply do not apply to them.  I inquired if that came into play while doing his job, and while he was more than professional and politically correct by deflecting a question that would put his guests in poor lighting, it got me thinking about the logistics of a hotel....and how I probably could not deal with that if it were my job.

Just think for a minute about what has to go into a full scale, happening hotel on a day to day basis.  The amount of people checking in and out, the rooms that need to be cleaned, the food served, the amount of drinks consumed at the bar, shuttles taking people to and fro (not sure if that is still an acceptable phrase these days).  Every hotel has check in and check out times, but who really wants to wait until 3pm right?! I guarantee if you managed a hotel, or had the privilege of fielding the questions such as "Why do I make a reservation if my room isn't even ready!?" (5 hours before check in time) you would never ask that question at a hotel again.  My point being-hotels HAVE to be an efficient, well oiled machine to keep their guests satisfied and coming back.  (And the hotel I am speaking of does that amazingly).

This thought process, once I had some coffee, started to swirl and lead me to think what I could do to assist a hotel in achieving operational perfection.  I cannot, nor do I want to, handle those questions from customers.  But I can directly impact a customer's stay at the hotel, as well as assist the hotel staff and management in streamlining hotel processes.  What we do, in the maintenance contract world, is create a plan to achieve a goal.  I am expending much energy getting the topic of mechanical equipment and operation into the discussion of "a means to achieve a goal" so to speak.  There is endless amounts of money poured into poorly operating HVAC equipment.  Money that could find its way down to the bottom line as PROFIT instead of being paid to energy utilities, repair work, parts, etc.  In addition to the back end of this, I can also affect the front end-comfort conditions.  If I help develop a plan that has the equipment operating effectively and efficiently then guests will reap the benefits of simply being comfortable, and that goes an incredibly long way.

This entry was more about my personal observations and opinions as opposed to hard data, but I look at this topic as my responsibility and my "masterpiece".  The recommendations I propose to potential clients are carefully thought out and crafted with a focus on detail that makes the finished proposal essentially my work of art.  If I can affect, positively, an operation with my recommendations and plans then I have succeeded and that gives more satisfaction than anything else.

Luke

Begin With the End in Mind

One of the main ideologies or themes that is ever-present when I am working with clients is planning.  Planning is the foundation of progress and achieving operational and financial goals.  Merriam Webster defines a plan as a "method for achieving an end." For a plan to be effective, it must include looking into the future, or the end, and preparing for what may be encountered or decisions that will need to be made.  If you are making a plan to take the vacation of a lifetime, you need to know what that looks like so that you can save money, book lodging, travel, or getting a lay of the land.  If your plan is to get in shape, you need to have a visual of what that is so that you select a workout and diet regimen that will allow you to achieve the goal.  Without visualizing or understanding you want the future to look like, you will not be doing the things needed today to step off of the plane for that vacation or to see yourself transformed.

In the realm of HVAC systems, the "future" is the visual of a crane replacing a rooftop unit.  Meaning, the things we do are to extend the equipment replacement date as far into the future as we can AND prepare for the day that it does.  Both of these are exceptionally vital to the long-term planning of any organization with responsibility of their facility's HVAC equipment.  This equipment, like any piece of mechanical equipment, does not last forever-and it should not be pushed past it's useful life.  Let's look at a loosely-similar analogy, of an old car that has been have recurring issues of shutting off randomly.  You may have some sentimental emotions of the car, so you get it repaired once, maybe twice, but it is continuing to happen.  Luckily it has not happened to shut off while driving down the interstate...yet.  By this point, many of us will look at replacing that car with a new one before we hurt ourselves, someone else, or our wallets. An HVAC unit that is in operation past its useful life, can result in some of the same consequences.  Poor indoor air qualify (IAQ), decreased comfort conditions, and increasing repair costs are all potential issues caused by an old unit. 

The American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers have conducted a great deal of research that has produced helpful data on the service life of HVAC equipment.  I have supplied this information here for you to give you an idea of how long, on average, this equipment is expected to last.  Does this mean you must replace every unit you have that is over the listed age? Absolutely not, this should be used as a point of reference and education.  I have seen quite a few units around town that have far surpassed this life expectancy.  However, going too far past a unit's life expectancy can result in a reactive decision once that unit goes down, not to mention dealing with poorly operating equipment.  This information should be used to plan budgets, determine future capital expenditures, and to develop a plan so that you are not caught in a reactive state.

There are some things that can be done to extend the life of the equipment, and I will give you a hint to what that is: It's everything that I write about on this blog!  My entire job is developed around extended the life of the equipment and to help it operate more efficiently in the process.

Now, as promised, here is a chart giving  you the Life Expectancy of the equipment that you may have at your facility.

 

 

 

On an unrelated, but very important, note: There are a few more days of Restaurant Week in Richmond left! Go experience the great restaurants we have in the city, and support local business at the same time!

 

-Luke

Why "Let's Go With the Lowest Price" Doesn't Always Translate to the Least Expensive Program

We see it everywhere: "Lowest Price in Town!", "50% OFF!","HUGE SALE!!", "We Are the Low Price Vendor!"

The low-cost selection is so pervasive in our culture today that it seems price is the number one factor in many peoples' buying decision process.  I'll admit, that I have bought a good/service based on lowest price as I am sure everyone who reads this has.  While this is perfectly logical when it comes to small purchase of like items, it is not the most effective buying process for many things, especially those that have a significant impact on our lives.  Today, I want to look at this issue in the HVAC maintenance contracts arena and the impacts that it has.  I truly feel it is in the best interest of the clients that we, as contractors, serve to move away from this sales and marketing angle.  I will start off by saying selecting the lowest-cost vendor is absolutely not going to translate to the least expensive maintenance program.

I understand that may seem like a biased statement, based on the fact that I spend a majority of my awake hours selling contracts. However, I see my role and responsibility as more of an educator than a sales person; more of a partner than an transaction agent.  As an educator or partner, I want what is best for the party that I am assisting, and that means securing a program that will produce the best results over an extended period of time-not just at the time of signing the contract.

I feel the following phrase has been uttered by someone around us at some point in time: "You get what you pay for."  If you have not heard it before, I think it makes sense.  How about another phrase to further simplify: "Good Products/Services are not cheap, and Cheap Products/Services are not good"  If or when you are in the process of getting quotes on maintenance contracts and one contract is significantly lower than the other, ask why.  I have been in numerous conversations where I am the higher-priced vendor, and I have been asked why I am higher than the other contractor.  I, in turn, have asked why they are lower.  The work needed to correctly service the equipment is the same regardless of who is performing it.  So, how can it be done so much cheaper? When deciding based solely on cost, something is typically left suffering.  It has been my experience that maintenance is not performed to the needed level, which leads to a whole host of complications (and expensive complications at that).  Be sure to compare the scope of work on the contract proposal. 

When the maintenance is not performed to the needed level, the aforementioned complications are three-fold: increased repair, decreased comfort conditions, and decreased equipment life.  The increased repair calls are due to the lack of proactive maintenance, that could typically catch the issues prior to it becoming a large problem.  When a contract is the lowest-priced, the contractor simply cannot afford to perform the amount of maintenance needed.  They are in business to make money, plain and simple.  Another reason, and perhaps more controversial, is the practice of selling an extremely low-priced maintenance agreement and then "making it up" on repair billing.  Again, with reduced maintenance comes reduced performance.  Inconsistent heating/cooling, poor Indoor Air Quality, and downtime due to equipment breakdown are potential consequences of the low-cost contract. Finally, HVAC equipment has an absolute finite life just as any other piece of mechanical equipment.  With proper maintenance we can extend the life of that equipment, but without it we can severely limit how long we can claim that equipment as an asset.  Think about your car, and how much longer it will last if the oil is changed, tires are rotated, etc.  We can expect hundreds of thousands of miles with service and maintenance.  However, if we slack on these relatively inexpensive tasks the engine could seize up, or we could require very expensive repairs to keep the car of the road.

Instead of buying and selling based on the bottom dollar price, let's focus on the value we can bring.  Be sure that your contractor puts together a program that will help your organization reach its physical and financial goals.  Ask questions, be sure you understand what you are paying for.  The high price doesn't always mean the contractor is trying to "get one over on you" and the low price doesn't always mean the best "value" or the cheapest overall cost.  As the last post outlined, put a process in place to measure the effectiveness of the plan and keep it on track.  By acquiring this mindset, I can say with absolute certainty that the costs of your HVAC system will be reduced-and not because you selected your contract based on cost.  

The HVAC Success Equation: P+P=P

I am an organized guy, for the most part.  I look at a majority of tasks that I find myself faced with as a set of processes.  Take my workout regimen for example, at the beginning of each week I plan my workouts down to the exercise and route, develop a loose structure for my meals, and update with current information each day.  Throughout the course of the week, I am able to measure how I am performing with relation to my goals (that I have written out and try to read every day).  If I find myself veering off course I can implement the appropriate actions (or discipline....I like food) to steer the ship back in the right direction.  The point with this example being I find the key to reaching a goal is planning and measuring performance.

I take that same approach when working with my customers on developing a program for maintaining their HVAC systems. It is not effective for me to "propose" a program without having an understanding of what they need.  I would not reach my personal fitness goals if someone who had never met me emailed me a workout plan for a world strongman contender (they don't perform well in triathlons or marathons).  On that same hand, my customers will not benefit from this approach and frankly I would not enjoy my job if I went about it that way (where is the fun in that approach?).  I take pride in my approach, because I know that at the end of the day the customer has all of the information necessary to make the best decision for their company. 

That leads us to the "equation":

Plan+Put into Practice=Progress

The term equation may not be the most appropriate, as this is a continuous cycle not a set formula.  In this post, I will outline how I go about each one and the factors that I feel are important for companies and organizations to address with respect to their HVAC maintenance program.  I will harp on this in every single post:

The HVAC system of a business is more than just hot and cold-it is tied to financial performance, production, employee productivity, reputation, tenant satisfaction. Let's work together to maintain it, prepare for the future, and build on the success of Richmond business. -stepping down from soapbox-

The very foundation to the process is PLAN.  This is where the roadmap is formally drawn, so that when the rubber meets the road we head in the right direction.  In this stage, the following factors are addressed:

• Budget
• General Business Goals (Where do we want to be, how does that look for us)
• Facility Goals (Improvements to be made to the property in the near future, moving, expanding, etc.)
• Establish benchmarks for measuring performance (How we will keep ourselves on track, and so that we know if we need to alter our course)
• Reporting and analysis tools/resources
• What type of equipment do we have? (How does it need to be serviced, are there any changes coming in the future that will affect this equipment?---more on this later)
• Life Cycle Cost of the Equipment (Understanding the capital expense of future equipment replacement)

Simply put this stage addresses where we are and where we want to be. Through doing this, everyone is on the same page with what needs to be done and the ability to be ahead of the curve is established.  Speaking of being ahead of the curve, it is important to stay up to date on laws and regulations surrounding HVAC equipment (i.e: refrigerant restrictions and changeover-this will be a whole blog post in itself at some point). 

Once a plan is in place, it is time to PUT INTO PRACTICE.  We have the roadmap, and it is time to accelerate forward.  This is where the plan that was created is played out, the systems are maintained, serviced, replaced, and the program is constantly analyzed for execution.  When I say constantly analyzed or monitored, I do not mean there is someone designated to do nothing except stand and watch the systems.  If done correctly, this is a limited-effort task.  Resources such as tasking reports from the contractor display the maintenance performed on specific visits, and electronic service tickets detail work done on a service call (the e-mailed tickets allow for more convenient, and "green", filing).  Both exceptionally simple tasks that make an extraordinary difference when it comes to staying on course.

If a plan is not created at the start and followed throughout the day to day operations, everything is in a reactive state.  From my perspective, reactive operations are not efficient and effective operations and more importantly-are not performing at their financial peak.  With the benchmarks we can plan out equipment replacement so that it falls within the budget period we designated, we monitor equipment to ensure it is operating efficiently, and we keep track of energy usage, repair costs, which units are requiring more service calls, which zones are experiencing more issues than others, etc.  Yes, the plans I work with organizations to create are centered around maintenance and the mechanical operation of the equipment.  However, I focus on how that impacts the business on a macro level. 

To this point we have the Plan and we have Put into Practice.  This will lead to Progress, the summation of the first two P's.  With the first two done correctly, progress is inevitable-it has to lead to this.  It is simple, we defined our goals and our operations were guided by those goals-leading us closer to those goals.  At this point, typically at the end of the contract year, we will review the past year taking a look at the whole picture.  Having resources that can put that review on paper are priceless, allowing for everyone to understand where we are on the roadmap (think YOU ARE HERE).  This gives the chance to revise goals if needed, adjust the direction, and continue with a plan that addresses the needs of the organization at that point in time.

I emphatically believe that this process works, and in my mind is quite logical.  Logical is the way I prefer to work, and I have seen success in every aspect of my life when implemented-not just HVAC maintenance.

Cooling Season Can Burn up Your Cash

"Yes! It's FINALLY getting warm out!"  This was my first thought, as well as the first thing out of my mouth, when I checked the forecast for today.  I am completely over cold weather, and I have a feeling I am not alone in that sentiment.  I am looking forward to walking the dog in the mornings and not being chilled to the bone, sitting outside in the evenings, and enjoying the beautiful sunsets from Libby Hill.  Point being-I am looking forward to the warm weather.  While I will take a stab in the dark and say many of you are as well, I will say your buildings, mechanical systems, and bottom lines are probably not sharing that elation.  Throughout this post we will take a look at why, and some of the steps that can be taken to make sure the warm weather keeps our spirits, and profits, up.

Commercial HVAC systems come in all shapes, sizes, designs, and applications.  However, they share similar features and equipment needed for the heating, cooling, and ventilation demands of the building.  It is important to understand they type of equipment that your facility relies on, but it is not necessary for you to know exactly how everything works together-that is why HVAC contractors and technicians exist.  I would like to educate you on one specific, and very important, aspect of your system: the coils.  The coils are the heat exchangers of the cycle providing the cool or warm conditions felt in the space.  On a basic knowledge level, there are condenser coils and evaporator coils.  When I began to learn about the workings of HVAC systems, the following schematic helped give me a basic understanding of what these pieces of equipment did. 

As the drawing indicates (it is a very basic visual of the cycle that only displays the function of each coil, not all parts of the cycle) the evaporator coil inside supplies the space with coil air while the condenser coil outside rejects the heat from the system.  Think of your home A/C system.  Many people have a condensing unit or two outside of the house somewhere.  When you hear that fan come on, the condenser is rejecting the heat, and condensing the refrigerant vapor to a cooled liquid state before sending it back through the system.  While commercial equipment is much more complex, the basic theory of operation still remains the same. 

 



 Now that we got the technical jargon out of the way, let's start to make "cents" of all of this (sorry, I had to).  You can imagine that equipment this focal in the heating and cooling process get its fair share of wear and tear.  Being outside, the condensing coils are subjected to weather, dirt, debris, among other elements.  This can produce a build up that inhibits the ability of the coil to transfer heat, making the system work harder to meet demand.  Think about going out for a long run in August, the heat and humidity at a peak.  Your body works harder than normal to maintain your core temperature, rejecting "heat" from your skin in the form of sweat.  Now picture going out for that same run while wearing a winter coat, long pants, and a gas mask.  Your body goes into overdrive trying to meet the demand you need to be comfortable.  However, it simply cannot keep up and you put your health in danger (do not attempt this, just visualize).  The same thing goes for your HVAC system.  When the coils are not cleaned they are essentially running with a gas mask on, reducing efficiency, increasing costs, increasing the likelihood of breakdown, and decreasing comfort conditions inside.

ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-Conditioning Engineers) conducted a study on the financial benefits of cleaning coils.  The article that shares the research and findings is called Study Verifies Coil Cleaning Saves Energy. As always, a link to the article is available at the conclusion of the post.  The title does not leave any mystery as to what the results of the study are.  However, since I realize many people need to see the backup for such a claim, I will give you the hard facts.  One of the first paragraphs in the article really hammer home the importance of proper coil maintenance, and sets the stage for the rest of the article.

"We believe we found a methodology and regimen that proves maintaining air handler components in a clean condition can save energy dollars and improve other building parameter changes and efficiencies such as improved dehumidification and comfort, along with less mold and bacteria.  Thus, we are encouraging IAQ environmental parameter improvements, better tenant satisfaction, and increased worker effectiveness"

 

The study was performed at a 34-story building in Times Square, New York and was conducted by essentially measuring performance of air handlers before and after coil cleaning.  Some of the findings from the research are as follows:

• Improvements that will lead to energy savings of up to $40,000 in the year of the study
• Increased thermal efficiency of coil by 25% with respect to ability to transfer its energy to its sensible loads
• Increased thermal efficiency of coil by 10% with respect to ability to transfer energy to its latent loads
• Good maintenance and operation practices can significantly improve energy efficiency and IAQ performance of HVAC systems in a building by 10%-15%

I'd like to share with you two photos before wrapping up this post.  The first photo below is what a clean condenser coil looks like.

 

 

This coil does show some signs of wear, but is overall clean and operating efficiently.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The coil to the right is extremely dirty and will not be operating efficiently. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To conclude, I hope the data and pictures speak for themselves.  A unit that is maintained properly is a unit that operates efficiently, and a unit that operates efficiently is one that operates at a reduced cost. With cooling season approaching quickly, make sure you building's "winter coat" so that it can breath and enjoy the warmth as well.

 

link to article: http://www.steril-aire.com/images/saveenergy.pdf

 

-Luke