SHOW NOTES Series 1

EPISODE 9 | Michael O'Neill | ServiceM8

Hi guys and welcome to another episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast! In this episode we were fortunate enough to speak with Michael O'Neill (Communications Manager) from ServiceM8, a job management app for Small businesses geared towards tradespeople. Here's a taste of some of the things we covered during our chat: > Who are ServiceM8 and what is their core business? (1:25) > How long have you been working at ServiceM8? (2:55) > Is your business a Global business? (3:20) > How do they manage their Support (3:35) > What differentiates ServiceM8 from its competitors? (4:10) > How do you set yourself up on ServiceM8's platform? (7:15) > What Accounting packages integrate with ServiceM8 (9:10) > What setup fees and ongoing fees can we expect (10:20) > Are you locked into a contract using your service? (11:05) > Where did ServicM8 start? (14:30) Here is a link to your free 14 day trial with ServiceM8 https://www.servicem8.com/au/register We'd like to thank Michael for offering his time to conduct the interview and we hope you enjoy the episode as much as we enjoyed recording it! As always, thanks again for listening and we'll catch ya on the next episode! Cheers.



EPISODE 8 | Rod Cumming | Australian Refrigeration Council | Arctick

What's up guys and welcome to another episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast! In this episode we invited into the studio a special guest from the Australian Refrigeration Council, Mr Rod Cumming. We sent out a post on Facebook asking for any burning questions you might have, be they positive or negative. Suffice to say we had a few :) and did our very best to get them answered however time got the better of us and we were unfortunately unable to squeeze them all in. That said however, we have invited Rod back for a Part 2 of this interview with Arctick so we can hopefully get through them all so make sure to look out for the second part of the interview in the near future. Here's just some of the stuff we covered: >What is the ARC (Australian Refrigeration Council) and Rod's position? (1:20) >Where did the ARC originate and how did it come about? (2:55) >What's the differnce between an RHL (Refrigeration handling License) and an RTA (Refrigeration trading authority)? (5:20) >What is the current fee for having an RHL and RTA? (7:20) >Where are the fees paid reinvested? (8:38) [Here is a link to the ARC Annual Report ] >Why is the Certificate 2 wall split installer course only a 2-3 day course? (10:30) >What's the difference between a Restricted License and a Full License? (19:25) >Why do we need to be so diligent when it comes to record keeping? (21:25) >What responsibilities do the large retailers and hardware stores have when it comes to selling precharged air conditioning equipment? (23:38) >What monetary penalties are in place for those who are unqualified and are installing split systems? (28:30) >How long has the Certificate 2 course been in place and what changes can we expect to see over time? (30:10) >Considering the dangers around flamable refrigerants, amount of restricted licenses and level of training received, what are your thoughts around upskilling restricted license holders to promote safety to the installer and end user? (32.50) .....and that's just a taste. The episode went for approximately 52 minutes so packed in as much as possible but rememeber, this is only Part 1 of 2. To learn more about the Australian Refrigeration Council (Arctick) you can check out their site right here www.arctick.org We appreciate your continued support and please let us know if there's someone you'd like us to interview on a future episode by contacting us at www.airconditioningpodcast.com.au/contact We'd like to take the opportunity to thank Rod Cumming for Joining us on The Air Conditioning Podcast and also thank YOU for listening and your continued support! Cheers.



EPISODE 7 | Louis Styles | Custom Air Solutions (SA)

Hi all! Here we are at episode 7...time flys when you're having fun. In this episode we're joined by Louis Styles, Co-Director of an Adelaide based air conditioning and refrigeration contracting business. Louis talks about how he transitioned from working with a large air conditioning and refrigeration company as a service manager to starting his own business. This episode includes the following: > How Louis (and Nick Widmer, Co-Director) transitioned away from the company they were working for and jumped into their own contracting business (3:00) > How did they source their first big contract? (7:30) > How do they avoid dissappointing their clients? (10.30) > Is the customer always right? (14:00) > What insurances, licences etc are required to carry out your day to day? (16.45) > How do they find and retain their clients? (17:40) > How do they deal with difficult clients? (20:05) > Who are better payers Residential or Commercial? (26:00) > Custom Air Solutions use Servicem8 for their scheduling, how do they find working with it? (28:10) And heaps more..... So get on board and download the episode. It was great to speak with Louis, learn more about his business and hear his insights on the industry. You can learn more about Custom Air Solutions by visiting their website at www.customairsolutions.com.au Btw, we'd love to have a chat with you and learn about your air conditioning business so please drop us a line at https://www.airconditioningpodcast.com/contact Thanks for listening and your continued support! Cheers.



EPISODE 6 | Shane Quinn | Panasonic Australia

G'day guys and welcome to EP06 of the Air Conditioning Podcast! In this episode we were chuffed to speak with the National Sales Manager of Panasonic Australia, Mr Shane Quinn! With eleven years of working with Panasonic under his belt, Shane shares with us a bit of background on Panasonic celebrating their 100 years, coming from humble beginnings and where they are heading into the future! This episode includes the following: > What bought Shane Quinn to Panasonic? (3:30) > What was the first Panasonic product ever produced? (4:30) > What would be Panasonic's most popular air conditioning product sold? (7:00) > Do you face challenges due to Panasonic being so diverse with its products? (7:30) > How is VRF different from your standard ducted system? (15:00) > Where does Panasonic see themselves in the market based on price when compared to its competitors? (18:55) All this amongst others..... If you'd like to get in touch with Panasonic Australia to explore not only their quality air conditioning products, locate a Panasonic air conditioning dealer or explore their extensive suite of other products on offer, visit Panasonic's website here We'd like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank Shane for his time to speak to us and hope you enjoyed the interview! Thanks to you also for listening and don't forget to stop by our social pages at Facebook Instagram Twitter Cheers!



EPISODE 5 | FAQ's [volume 2]

Hey guys and welcome back to EP05 of the Air Conditioning podcast! In this episode we address a few more of those frequently asked questions put to us by consumers in general. Given the first FAQ episode was relating more towards the residential ducted system, we figured we should aim this one more at the humble (residential) wall split system. This episode includes the following questions: > How do I know if my wall split system is big enough? (1:30) > How do I clean my filter and how often? (10:10) > What determines determines a reputable brand the efficiency of a unit? (14:50) > What's covered under warranty? (18:00) > Is it cheaper to operate a smaller unit? (20:00) > Why is there water coming out the bottom of my unit in Winter? (20:30) > What temperature should I operate my system at? (27:05) Amongst others....... We hope you enjoyed this episode and really appreciate your support! Don't forget to stop by our social pages as well: Facebook Instagram Twitter Cheers!



EPISODE 4 | Darren Cock | Air Wholesalers (SA)

In this episode we have a chat with a local Adelaide Wholesaler who sells directly to the trade in Air Conditioning and Refrigeration with everything from iZone temperature controlling systems (home automation) to Pair Coil refrigeration pipe and installation products, air conditioning units, cleaning products just to name a few and that's just air conditioning. They also cater for automotive, Chilled water, Display Refrigeration Cabinets, electrical, ice machines and more! Here is a taste of what you can expect from the episode: > Where and when did Air Wholesalers start? (1:38) > Who is a typical client (4:40) > Where do they see themselves on pricing in the market? (12:30) > Do you sell directly to the consumer? (13:57) > What sort of products do you typically sell? (16:40) > What is iZone? (17:00) > Where do you see your business heading moving forward? (21:30) > What excites you about the industry or what changes would you like to see? (24:00) To get in touch with Darren and the team at Air Wholesalers you can visit their website www.airwholesalers.com.au or contact Darren on 0409225773 Thanks for stopping by and for your continued support and don't forget to visit our social pages: Facebook Instagram Twitter Cheers!



EPISODE 3 | FAQ's

In this episode we address a number of frequently asked questions that are asked by consumers (mainly around the residential ducted system). Some of the questions are: > Why are we getting to much air in some rooms and not enough in others? (1:40) > How many zones can I have in a ducted system? (4:50) > Where is my system sensing the temperature from? (7:10) > Where is my filter, why do we have one and how often should it be cleaned? (14:10) > How many rooms can I have operating at one time? (21:00) > Do I need three phase power and is there any advantage of having it? (25:35) > How often should I get my system serviced? (30:10) Amongst others..... We hope you enjoy the episode and don't forget to stop by our Social pages: Facebook Instagram Twitter



EPISODE 2 | Our very first guest! | Justin Frost | Ductair (SA)

We were very fortunate to have our very first guest interviewee today, Mr Justin Frost from Ductair in Adelaide. Ductair is an air conditioning ducting and componentry manufacturer and supplier based in Gepps Cross in Adelaide (SA). Here's just a taste of what you can expect from this episode: > Justin talks a bit about the history of Ductair and where they originated over 30 years ago! > We discussed how they've managed to keep their staff so loyal for so many years (3:00) > How Ductair see and compare themselves to other suppliers in the same field (4:30) > Justin talks about their ducting and the various benefits and features of it (5:00) and that they had University SA formally test their Energy Smart ducting against other type of ducting and their findings (6:30). See also Ductair Energy Smart for more information. > Who does Ductair cater for? (10:30) >We discuss what Zone Motors they sell and the benefits of using them (12:00) * (Correction - the Siemens zone motors are made in Germany & the Belimo motors are Swiss.) > What would Ductair like to see changed in the industry? (19:30) > Justin talks about their DNA (Ductair Natural Air) disposable filters for ducted systems. What are they and what are the benefits? (22:10) > What type of ceiling diffusers are typically used in a residential home? What are benefits of a Premium supply vent? (24:20) New segment time! It's time for the first for "Keepin' It Cool In the Hot Seat!" We ask a series of as many questions as possible within a minute (or there abouts)...a bit of a chuckle. (26:30) Special thanks to Justin for coming in and all the guys at Ductair for their support. If you'd like to explore Ductair's extensive range of products please visit here Hope you enjoyed the episode and thanks for your listening and support! Don't forget to stop by our social pages as well... Facebook Instagram Twitter Cheers.



EPISODE 1 | Welcome to the First Episode!

In the first episode, we're doing a brief introduction about ourselves and why we took the plunge into the world of podcasting! Btw, go easy on us coz this is our first effort so our technique is by no means profesh ;) In brief, we've personally been listening to podcasts for a number of years for our own educational benefit and found them to be a convenient resourse for learning. Upon searching for a podcast directly related to the air conditioning industry, there wasn't a great deal of information available (dedicated podcasts relating directly to the air conditioning industry anyway), so figured the best way to fill a potential void was by having a crack at it ourselves! We're hoping to speak with many of the industry experts and manufacturers for the benefit of consumers and people working within the field. We'd also like to hear from you if you're already working in air conditioning, to hear about your experiences. Just drop us an email here >> Contact Page Cheers.



EPISODE 10 | Kim Limburg | ARMA | Australian Refrigeration Mechanics Association

Hi all, Thanks for joining us for another episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast! In this episode we were joined by the CEO of ARMA, (The Australian Refrigeration Mechanics Association), Kim Limburg. We'd also like to apologise for the Skype recording as there were issues at about the 4 minute mark where Kim's voice becomes very distorted. We're sorry for this, but it does improve after that moment. We covered a lot of ground but here's a sneak peak at what you can expect: > Who is ARMA (Australian Refrigeration Mechanics Association) and why was it introduced?(1:20) > Please note: the audio from approximately (3:30 - 3:45) is quite distorted...sorry (*sniff*) > What is the assocaition that ARMA has with the ARA (Australian Refrigeration Association) (4:10) Warning: distorted Skype audio (4:22 - 4:30) errgghhh! > What are the biggest challenges for ARMA (5:00) > Our industry requires a governing body, do you think this should be combined with the licensing? > Should the questions raised be directed at ARCtick or at the Federal Department for Environment? (9:37) > Why do you think the prosecution rate for incorrect refrigerant handling is allegedly at zero? (10:18) > What are your thoughts around madatory upskilling and further training all installers, particularly Cert 2 holders, for handling flammable refrigerants? (16:24) > What are your thoughts around random installation audits (by an independant) to ensure industry standards are adhered to? (19:20) > Do you think the ARC are doing enough and what would you like to see moving forward? (22:57) > As far as you are aware, are the RTO's (Registered Training Organisation's) audited for quality? (24:44) > How important are members to ARMA? (26:10) > Are there more members in some States than others and why do you think that is? (28:35) > What are the benefits of becoming an ARMA member? (29:23) > What is the process for someone becoming an ARMA member? (34:15) We'd like to sincerely thank Kim for joining us for episode 10 and look forward to speaking with her again! If you would like to become a member of ARMA you can do so by one of the following methods: Here is a link to the financial memberships page: https://www.arma.org.au/create-an-account/membership-levels/ You can also send an email to kim@arma.org.au or you can contact them during office hours on 0403680981 Thanks for listening people and we appreciate your continued support!



EPISODE 11 | Phill | Advantage Air

Hi guys, Thanks for joining us for another episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast! Been a while but we're back with another round and we got to chat with Phill from Advantage Air, a family owned Australian business who specialise in Smart Home Automation systems. Established in 1990 operating out of a humble garage in Perth, Advantage Air now has offices around Australia and South Africa with its original founders and owners still working within the business today! Here are some of the topics we discuss in the episode.... > Where it all began from humble beginnings (1:35) > What are "Exact Air Fittings" and what are the benefits? (2:40) > What are the benefits of MyAir compared with a similar competitor product? (5:00) > Do you think that Wifi compatiability is becoming more of an expectation or just a phase? (7:00) > What other functions aside from air conditioning can you have on the MyPlace tablet? (13:30) > Is MyAir only available for Reverse Cycle ducted systems or other types as well? (22:16) > What sort of product support is there available? (23:30) > Can you run more than one system of the same tablet? (27:30) > Where do you think things are heading in the future with home automation? (31:15) ....and plenty more so make sure to check it out. We'd like to thank Phill for coming on the show and to Advantage Air and if you'd like to check out their products you can go right here... www.advantageair.com.au



EPISODE 12 | Matt Curnow | Distinctive Air (SA)

G'day guys and welcome back to The Air Conditioning Podcast! I'd like to say that we've been in complete isolation lockdown due to COVID-19 since August 2019 and while that might be partially true, August to March is just due to being slack really... But we're back from hibernating and into it again so thanks for sticking with us!! A hellova lot of water has passed under the preverbial bridge in that time, the world has changed immensly and as we bring this episode to you, Australia is slowly coming out the other side of the Pandemic. But there's one thing that hasn't changed and that's the loyalty of our listeners...that means you, legend (*sniff). In this episode, we were joined in the studio by Matt Curnow from Distinctive Air. Matt is a self employed fully qualified Fridgy based in Adelaide, SA and talks us through his journey from a wee lad as an apprentice, through to working in the mines and eventually owning and operating his own HVAC&R business. Here are some of the topics we discuss in the episode.... > How it all came about (8:40) > How would you comare workinig as an employee versus an employer (self employed)? (13:12) > Is your business primarliy Residential, Commercial, or a bit of both? (14:26) > Are you fully qualified or Cert 2 trained? (16:27) > Matt shares his thoughts and views around Certificate 2 and is it a fair system. (17:15) > How do you compete when some of the cowboys are charging so little? (23:00) > How do you manage those problematic issues where you are unable to fix there and then? (27:00) > What do you see as your first steps in expanding your business? (32:50) ....and plenty more so make sure to check it out. BTW..... Keepin' it Cool in the Hotseat Segment is back as well!! We'd like to thank Matt for coming on the show and if you'd like to check out Distinctive Air and give his facebook page a Like here: https://www.facebook.com/distinctiveairconditioning/



EPISODE 13 | Phill Crawley & Davis | Smarter Air (QLD)

Hey guys! Welcome to Episode 13. We had our first returning guest to The Air Conditioning Podcast and that's Phill Crawley (formerly with Advantage Air), now joined forces with a collegue (Davis Row) to kick off their own Air Conditioning Company called Smarter Air. Although established in October 2019, despite being a young company, the lads have 22 years of experience in working in the Brisbane Air Conditioning market. Primarily, their focus is on providing quality ducted system solutions for their clients with Panasonic being one of their main unit brands. The boys are also no strangers to technology, having both accumulated skill and knowledge from their prior IT backgrounds as well as having worked with Advantage Air. With a solid tech background, they can also offer their clients all the bells and whistles when it comes to automation. Smarter Air not only offers their services to Brisbane, but Ipswich and the Gold Coast as well. Here's just some of the topics we covered in this episode: > Who are Smarter Air and how did it all come about? (3:20) > Are Smarter Air more providing sub contracting work or installing for themselves? (5:30) > How have you managed through COVID-19? (6:30) > Do you also do much Commercial? (7:20) > What is your strike (conversion) rate like on winning ducted installations? (9:20) > How do you achieve a high conversion rate? (10:00) > Do you have a lot of competition? (12:50) > Do you find yourselves fixing other installers mistakes? (ie less qualified installers) (13:50) > Have you aligned yourselves with a particular brand of unit? (16:00) > With an impressive online presence how ask your clients for reviews? (21:00) And that's just scratching the surface..we covered quite a bit of ground and highly recommend you check out the episode for yourself! We'd like to thank Phill and Davis for joining us on the Show and wish them every success in the future! To check out their impressive website and find out more about Smarter Air, you can visit them at smarterair.com.au During the episode we also mentioned that we've been fortunate enough to have made the Top 15 HVAC Podcasts to follow in 2020, kindly put together by the folks at Feed Spot! To check out their comprehensive list of HVAC podcasts, please check them out here www.feedspot.com You can now check the episode on Youtube here. Unitl the next episode guys, ciao for now.



EPISODE 14 | Justin Hotchkiss| LJ Refrigeration & Air Conditioning (SA)

Hey guys and gals, Another week done and another Episode down. In Episode 14, we got to speak with Justin from LJ Refrigeration and Air conditioing in Streaky Bay on the Eyre Peninsula of South Australia. Although based in Streaky Bay, they also have another office in Ceduna where approximately 80% of their work is. Justin and the team take care of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning for Residential, Commercial and Industrial properties. Here's just a glimpse of some of the topics we chatted about: > Who is LJ Refrigeration & Air Conditioning and how did it all come about? (3:00) > Where are you based? (4:15) > How far will go to service your clients (5:40) > What sort of Commercial work are you doing? (6:45) > Working in a regional area, who looks after your warranty work? (8:55) > Do you have much in the way of competition in your area? (13:22) > How important is word of mouth referral in a regional area? (14:09) > Do you have challenges working in regional where perhaps you wouldn't working in the city? (15:30) > How do you manage your day to day scheduling? (22:30) > Do you have much down time between sieasons? (23:00) > Did you see a change in demand when COVID-19 hit? (23:34) > How does your pricing compare to those in the city? (24:33) ...and this is just scratching the surface! We hope you enjoy the episode and we'd like to say a big thanks to Justin for joining us on the show and sharing his insights to his business and the industry. To get in touch with Justin and the team at LJ Refrigeration & Air Conditioning, you can reach them at ljrefrigerationandairconditioning.com.au. You can also visit their Facebook here. Until the next episode people...take it easy.



EPISODE 15 | Chris Hunter | ServiceTitan (Texas, USA)

Hi guys & girls and Welcome to Episode 15 of The Air Conditioning Podcast.

In this episode we were very fortunate to have our first International guest join us on the Show!

From Texas USA we chatted with Chris Hunter from ServiceTitan, the world’s leading all-in-one software for Commercial and Residential HVAC, Plumbing, Electrical and other field based service businesses.

We tried to cram as much information into the episode as possible (or as much as time would allow) and here’s just a taste of what to expect:

>What is ServiceTitan and what does it do? (2:40)

>What makes ServiceTitan so different from its competitors? (4:50)

>At what point does the employee talk about price when taking the initial call? (12:40)

>Tell us more about the call recording feature (13:40)

>ROI areas identified for various advertising and promotional platforms (18:30)

>Creating more loyalty with client memberships (22:00)

>Tell us more about real time dispatching (24:00)

>What sort of support does ServiceTitan offer? (26:40)

And by god there was so much more!

We’d like to sincerely thank Chris for giving up his time and joining us on the Show and hope that we can have ServiceTitan back on a future Episode!

To get in touch with the awesome team at ServiceTitan we highly recommend you check them out at servicetitan.com

EPISODE 16 | Mark Vender & Tony Gleeson | AIRAH (VIC)

Hey guys!

In this episode of the Mark Vender (Publishing and Strategic Communications) and Tony Gleeson (CEO) from AIRAH (Australian Institute of Refrigeration, Air Conditioning & Heating).

We covered quite a bit of ground and here’s just a snippet….

  • What is AIRAH all about? (4:50)
  • What is the purpose of AIRAH? (6:50)
  • Why doesn’t the Government back AIRAH financially? (8:00)
  • How important are members to AIRAH? (10:30)
  • Do you think there should be a Refrigeration Licence for buying, use and the carrying out of Refrigeration work? (12:20)
  • Do you find that your members are coming from a broad spectrum across the country or do you see smaller pockets? (16:20)
  • What are you hearing from members and others regarding their frustrations within the industry? (18:00)
  • Do you think that the Cert. 2 license was a good idea? (20:20)

We also asked the questions from our friends on Facebook, and so much more….

Jump on and have listen and let us know you feedback!

Please don’t forget to give us a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever possible as this helps us with our ranking and helps us become easier to find online! And let’s face it, we want to create the awareness and be heard so please do your bit to help with our discoverability 😊

To find out more about AIRAH and get in touch with them, please visit www.airah.org.au.

We’d also like to thank Mark and Tony for joining us on the show and hope to have them on in the future!

Until the next episode gang…..ta-ta!

EPISODE 17 | Alex McCann | Reload Media (QLD)

Howdy legends!

In Episode 17 of The Air Conditioning Podcast, we thought we would bring on a different type of guest to help us with some valuable information around Marketing and Promotion.

This is an area that not all of us are completely familiar or comfortable with, and in some cases, we just need the best bang for buck in order to bring in leads and reach out to an audience on a limited budget.

We were grateful for Alex McCann of Reload Media to join us on the show to give us some gold nuggets of information that we can all use to in getting our business name out there.

Although based in Brisbane (Qld), they service their clients globally.

We covered a number of different options, such as Google Pay Per Click, SEO, Social Pages, direct mail outs etc and hope you enjoy the episode. Here is a snippet of some of the topics we covered….

> Who is Reload Media and how can you offer marketing assistance? (4:45)

> With the onset of COVID and many of us turning to Online Meetings, how has this changed the face of your business? (6:50)

> What differentiates your business from your competitors? (9:00)

> Reload Media is a multi-award winning company in your field, what would you attribute to your success? (10:30)

> When most business owners think of marketing, they think of the expenses and assume it can be costly. What are your comments around this view? (12:00)

> Reload Media has worked with some large recognisable brands, do you also work with smaller businesses or even self-employed tradies? (15:35)

> If someone or a business was to approach you looking for assistance, how would you kick things off? 18:00)

And that’s just a taste…..

I’d recommend ripping out the note pad for this one coz there’s a ton of takeaways…

If you'd like to get in touch with Alex and the team at Reload Media, go to reloadmedia.com.au

*** BONUS ALERT ***

The team at Reload Media have put together an awesome deal, exclusively for our listeners (that’s you dude!), to carry out a FREE Health Check and personal audit of your business’s digital marketing! Don’t miss out coz it won’t be around forever, so click on the link at get onto it! Here’s the link: TAP17

EPISODE 18 | Sandra Rossi | Climate Control News (NSW)

Hi guys, in Episode 18 of The Air Conditioning Podcasrt, we got to chat with Editor of the Climate Control News (CCN), Sandra Rossi.

CCN is Australia’s only independent publication that services the Climate Control Industry and play an integral role in addressing the issues that affect the HVAC&R sector.

They provide a ton of information and the relevant tools and are another voice for our industry.

We learned more about what it takes to put together a publication and the great work that the CCN team do. Some of the topics covered include….

For those who’ve not had the opportunity to read the magazine, can you tell us more about it and where it started? (5:00)

How did you personally become involved Sandra? (6:45)

As a journo, how deep did you need to go into technician training side to feel comfortable in what you are reporting? (9:00)

How often is the publication released? (9:45)

Who funds the publication? (12:15)

Do you have subscribers? (14:00)

Do you have much to do with ARBS? (18:00)

How do you prioritise and decide which articles to run with> (19:30)

What do you think the biggest challenges are for this industry? (21:30)

Do you think we need a governing body for the industry? (22:30)

And a whole lot more!

We’d like to extend our thanks to Sandra and CCN for joining us on the Show and if you’d like to Subscribe to the Climate Control News, visit climatecontrolnews.com.au and until the next episode legends….Catcha.

EPISODE 19 | David & Marty Indursky | ENCON (New Jersey - USA)

Hey all and Welcome to Episode 19 of The Air Conditioning Podcast!

In this episode we were joined by another international guest!

We were so very fortunate to have chatted with Marty Indursky (Founder) and David Indursky (son of Marty and President) of US based company Encon.

Established in 1968, New Jersey’s premier building solutions firm ENCON is an award-winning, second-generation family business.

Marty is still working alongside David at the helm with ENCON being a successful company of over 50 years!

Together, along with their team, their business has been built on a legacy of trust, client care, collaboration, safety and industry leadership. Servicing Industrial and Commercial buildings, their core mission and guiding principles is to create systems that help buildings run more efficiently and more comfortably.

With limited time, we tried to jam as much into the episode as possible but hope we can catch up with them again in the future for an update.

Here’s some of what we chatted about…..

> With so much history, can you tell us a bit more about ENCON and how it started? (2:30)

> With limited it start-up capital, how did you get the business started? (4:20)

Can you share with our listeners where you’re at today in terms of scale and employees? (5:00)

>On average, how long do your employees stay with ENCON? (6:00)

> How do you go about creating such a great culture at your company? (7:10)

> It would appear that the hiring and firing of staff is a lot more straight forward than it is here in Australia, can you unpack that a bit further? (9:30)

> Do you place emphasis on training? (11:27)

> How important are having systems in your Company? (11:50)

> Are you guys working with a particular CRM? (15:40)

>How has COVID impacted your business? (16:30)

> The services your company offers is vast, can you tell us more about what you offer? (23:25)

And that’s not even half of what we covered!

We’d like to extend our sincere thanks to David and Marty for giving up their time to and joining us on the show (and to Lauren for organising the interview)!

They were the nicest blokes with so much history and experience to offer.

If you’d like to learn more about ENCON and their incredible company, you can visit their website at enconmech.com and we hope you enjoy the episode as much as we did bringing it to you!

EPISODE 20 | Doug Donovan | Interplay Learning (USA)

G’day guys and gals!

Welcome back to The Air Conditioning Podcast for another episode. This week we were pumped to have US based company Interplay Learning join us and chatted with CEO, Doug Donovan.

Interplay Learning have helped over 80k professionals advance their skills by enabling them to choose from dozens of interactive courses, led by industry experts in VR troubleshooting.

Here’s a taste of some of the questions we covered….

> Tell us more about Interplay and what you guys do (4:00)

> So can you talk us through how the Virtual Reality side works? (5:30)

> When it comes to the training and holding of tools, are you essentially holding nothing or do you hold a physical object to replicate holding a tool? (9:00)

> Do you have brand specific software to simulate the varying manufacturers? (11:00)

> Can you tell us more about your team? I noticed that your Chief Technology Officer had previously worked for Pixar Animations. How has this helped your business? (13:45)

> We don’t seem to be seeing the skills gap like you are in the USA, can you tell us more about that and how you guys are influencing? (15:30)

> Do you have any plans to, or are you already, looking to introduce Interplay Learning outside of the USA? (18:45)

> With the courses you offer, are you looking to take apprentices all the way through their apprenticeship or are you more of a complimentary course? (20:45)

And heaps more!

It was a fascinating discussion and a brilliant concept, and particularly helpful during difficult circumstances like the present COVID-19 and social distancing scenario, where visiting a particular venue in groups is not particularly desirable!

We look forward to them rolling it out completely in Australia and were grateful to Doug for his time and explaining about the cool stuff they are doing at Interplay Learning. (Thank you also to Ria for organising the interview!)

If you’d like to check out Interplay Learning further (and we suggest you do), you can visit them at interplaylearning.com

Thanks for joining us again guys, we hope you enjoy the episode and if you’re enjoying what we’re doing, we’d be grateful if you could give us a quick Review!

EPISODE 21 | Ryan Ardill | Ryan Ardill Air Conditioning & ARMA

G'day legends and welcome to another episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast!

In this episode we sat down and chewed the fat with Ryan Ardill from Ryan Ardill Air Conditioning and President of ARMA (Australian Refrigeration Mechanics Association).

Since its inception in 2008, Ryan has grown his business based on honesty, service and expertise, with their main focus on Air Conditioning repairs, maintenance, servicing and installation.

Here’s a snippet of what you can expect and we hope you enjoy the episode!

> For those who are perhaps not familiar with Ryan Ardill Air Conditioning, could you tell our listeners who you are and how your business started? (4:15)

> Having worked in sales previously, do you think it has been advantageous for you to learn both sides of the industry? (8.25)

> Was the decision to shift from an employee to become an employer an easy decision for you? (9:15)

> How many staff do you currently have working with you and are you looking to expand? (10:30)

> You mentioned team building, what sort of things are you doing help with team building? (11:30)

> Describe your typical day to day. (12:15)

> Do you do much in the way of marketing and if so, what methods are you using? (13:30)

> You mentioned that your reach for your clients is wide, from Victor Harbour to the Barossa Valley and Gumeracha. How do you manage any warranty issues or call backs? (17:45)

What unit manufacturer brands are you currently using and recommending? (18:30)

What’s your view regarding the Certificate 2 licencing? (25:15)

> Do you think we are heading in the right direction with licencing or do you think we’re no better than we were previously? (26:45)

> What do you think makes up a good fridgie? (29:15)

> How did you initially become involved with ARMA? (34:45)

And there was so much more covered!

We’d like to sincerely thank Ryan for joining us on the Show and were grateful for his time.

If you’d like to get in touch with Ryan Ardill, you can reach him at 1300 AIR PRO (247 776) or raac.com.au

To get in touch with ARMA you can reach out to them at:

Facebook or

Consumer Support for Air Conditioning Australia by ARMA

YouTube

LinkedIn

Instagram

Psst!

Hey guys, as mentioned in the episode, our personal business is looking to expand so if you’re an experienced fridgie who is enthusiastic, passionate about the trade and have exceptional diagnostic skills and workmanship please get in touch with us, we’d love to hear from you!

Please contact us at airconditioningpodcast@gmail.com

You must live in Adelaide (obviously) but also owning your own van (or similar) and tools is preferable, you must be fully qualified and have relevant licences! Cheers guys.

EPISODE 22 | Ryan Wijayasekera & Jamie Davies | Hitachi & Temperzone (SA)

Hey legends, Welcome to Episode 22 of The Air Conditioning Podcast!

In this episode we spoke with the State Manager, Ryan Wijayasekera and Senior Sales Engineer, Jamie Davis of Temperzone Australia.

We were very grateful for their time and had a great laugh with them on (and off) air!

Heres some of the bits we covered…

> Can you tell us more about Temperzone and Hitachi and how they came about? (2:30)

> Where is your Head Office based? (3:30)

> Are you more focused on Commercial or Residential or both? (3:45)

> When did the amalgamation between Hitachi and Temperzone happen and how did it come about? (5:00)

> What are the benefits you’ve seen since the amalgamation? (8:30)

> Can you tell us a bit more about some of the larger projects you’ve been involved with? (9:45)

> When you’re looking at the project work you do in more remote areas, like the mining projects, who handles the service and warranty work? (16:45)

> Both Temperzone and Hitachi do very well with your tendering and winning tenders, can you tell us what you attribute that success rate to? (22:00)

> Can you tell us about Hitachi’s new Wall Split range and more about the “Frost Wash” feature? (27:00)

And so much more!

Thanks again to Ryan and Jamie for joining us on the show today and if you’d like to get in touch with the boys, you can reach them at hitachiaircon.com or temperzone.com.

Hey guys, as mentioned in the episode, our personal business is looking to expand so if you’re an experienced fridgie who is enthusiastic, passionate about the trade and have exceptional diagnostic skills and workmanship please get in touch with us, we’d love to hear from you.

Please contact us at airconditioningpodcast@gmail.com

You must live in Adelaide (obviously) but also owning your own van (or similar) and tools is preferable, you must be fully qualified and have relevant licences! Cheers guys.

EPISODE 23 | Shane Walker | Walker Air Control (SA)

How goes it legends?! Welcome to Episode 23 of The Air Conditioning Podcast. In this episode we chatted with Shane Walker from Walker Air Control, based in Adelaide, South Australia.

Shane tells us about his HVAC journey from being an apprentice as an employee with a Large Service Company to working as a Daikin Service tech and then eventually branching out on his own. Shane kindly sat with us a bit longer than your average interview to provide as much Daikin Service tips as we could cram in to the episode. We’ll have him back again to dig a bit deeper into that side of things but hope you enjoy the episode!

Here’s a taste of what we covered…

> Can you tell us more about Walker Air and how it came about? (3:00)

> Where are you based and how far do you go to service your clients? (8:45)

> Were the companies that you worked for previously on wages, or incentive based or both? (10:15)

> Do you think you got given a hard time as an apprentice or was it in jest? (11.15)

> Can you tell us more about your time with Daikin, were there some more frequent issues that you can recall where you can offer any tips? (13:15)

> Is there any equipment you’re not really familiar with? (21:30)

> Do you think that techs with Daikin experience are better suited to be working on their equipment compared with those that haven’t? (22:15)

> We get down and dirty with unpacking some of the more common faults! (27:30)

> What was your thought process around leaving Daikin and branching out to start your own business? (39:00)

>

How do you generate your leads? (42:18)

And seriously, that is the tip of the iceberg! Jump on and have a listen there are plenty of gold nuggets in this episode.

Thanks heaps to Shane for joining us on the Show and we look forward to speaking with him again in the future for more of the same!

If you’d like to get in touch with Shane Walker and Walker Air Control, just visit www.walkeraircontrol.com.au or jump onto their facebook page here.

Until the next episode guys, “It’s good to see me!”

EPISODE 24 | Tommy Mello | Home Service Millionaire | USA

Hey guys, welcome to EP24 and boy did we bring home the bacon on this one. If you haven’t already heard of Tommy Mello and The Home Service Millionaire, you’ve gotta get on it. Tommy started out in a humble landscaping business and eventually started a Garage Home Service business in Pheonix, Arizona with some $50k in debt. Today, Tommy has turned his business into a very tidy $30 million dollar a year company with over 300 employees in 12 States of the US. Not only has Tommy excelled with his various businesses, but is also the host of a hugely successful podcast called The Home Service Expert (with some 25k downloads per month) and is Author of an exceptional read called The Home Service Millionaire. (Tip: If you’re not into reading books, get it on Audible and Tommy himself reads the book word for word. We were like the cat that ate the canary for this one guys so make sure you have a listen to the episode, subscribe to his podcast and get a hold of his book, you won’t regret it. Here is a taste of what we covered…. > Can you share with our audience where and how your journey began? (3:30) > What was the motivator that got you started? (5:15) > You are a great believer of running your company with a “turn key” approach, incorporating systems and procedures, for someone just starting to look at this approach, where would you recommend they start? (9:15) > How detailed are your manuals? (12:00) > How many employees are you recruiting on a regular basis? (17:00) > How do you find and keep high calibre employees? (20:00) > You mention in your podcast that you look to the HVAC industry to explore ways to scale up and grow your business is this the case? (22:15) > Do you still lean on your mentors for guidance? (24:00) > Being so successful in your business and having a bank full of coin, why do you continue to do this, why do you continue to help others when you could easily take your money and sit beneath a palm tree smashing Mai Tai’s? (25:30) > What are your thoughts around techs trying to win jobs on being the cheapest price? (29:15) > What was the main motivator behind writing your book? (33:45) And that was just a snippet of stuff we talked about. As usual we could have spoken to Tommy for days but unfortunately time constraints. Jump onto homeservicemillionaire.com for a ton of resources and info and don't forget to check out his Podcast, Home Service Expert. Thanks so much to Tommy and his team for joining us on the Show and we look forward to speaking with him again!



EPISODE 25 | Michael Steckler | Tradify (Aukland, New Zealand)

G’day guys and welcome to Episode 25 episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast.

In this episode we Zoomed with CEO, Michael Steckler of Job Management System, TRADIFY.

Based in New Zealand, Tradify is a one stop shop for Tradies who want to stay organised and being used by over 15k Tradies in Australia.

Tradify has been designed to benefit those not only working in HVAC&R but Electrical, Renovation and Maintenance, Plumbing, Construction, Security, Landscaping, flooring, Carpentry, Roofing, Painting, Concreting, Earthworks, Fencing & Decking and…..um….have we left anyone out?

With Tradify, you can easily track jobs from quote to invoice and everything in between, get paid faster with online payments, scheduling, professional quotes, timesheets, Profit & Loss analysis and it talks to the major accounting platforms.

Here’s some of the stuff we covered….

> Can you start by telling our audience more about Tradify and how it came about? (1:40)

> Being based in NZ, do you have many clients from Australia? (2:50)

> What sized businesses does Tradify cater to? (3:20)

> Besides the HVAC industry, what other industries would Tradify be suited to? (3:50)

> What differentiates Tradify from other similar platforms? (4:40)

> What does the average person need to do to get the platform set up and usable? (6:10)

> What devices and operating systems are compatible with Tradify? (7:15)

> Can you share with us some of the main features that a tradie might use on Tradify on a daily basis (8:10)

> What Accounting platforms is Tradify compatible with? (12:20)

> Is it difficult to connect Tradify to your Accounting Package and done by an Accountant or is it straight forward so that the tradie can set it up themselves? (13:30)

> How do you come up with the features? Is this via an online suggestion platform? (14:00)

> Job tracking is a feature, can you tell us more about it? (15:30)

> Do you come across many roadblocks in terms of features or technology and how do you prioritise in order to overcome them? (16:30)

> How often are you releasing updates with new or improved features? (18:00)

> How have you set up the pricing, is it paid per job created or on a monthly payment cycle? (19:10)

And we covered heaps more….

We’d like to thank Michael and Tradify for coming onto the Show (and Richie for arranging it!) and if you want to get in touch with the team, you can visit them at https://www.tradifyhq.com/au

And….Michael and the team at Tradify have kindly put together a special offer for our loyal Air Conditioning Podcast listeners!

When you sign up to Tradify, simply use the Discount Code “ACPODCAST” and you’ll receive a massive 50% off Tradify for 3 months! You must get onto Tradify and take advantage of this limited offer while you can, and until the next episode guys……catcha!

EPISODE 26 | Darren Hill & George Parashis | Actron Air (SA)

Howdy folks and welcome to Episode 26 of The Air Conditioning Podcast. This week, we sat down with Darren Hill (Business Development Executive) and George Parashis (Sales Account Executive) of Actron Air. Actron Air have been a household name in Australia when it comes to climate control in your home for many years and Darren and George helped us to understand a bit more about their product and their business. Here’s a sneaky peak of what we covered….. > Where and how did Actron start? (2:30) > How long have you both been working with Actron and where have you worked previously? (5:00) > Having worked with other Manufacturer’s we tend to become very passionate about the brands and advocates of their products, how did you go shifting your mindset from one brand to another? (8:50) > You mentioned being able to wind down the fan on your variable fan indoor ducted units so you can operate a single zone, does this apply to a specific control system? And does the compressor wind back as well? (10:15) > With the Inverter Technology that you’ve now adopted, can you see that you will be moving in that direction or are sticking with digital scroll compressors? (13:30) > Actron ducted outdoor units have traditionally been top discharge units, are you looking to introduce side discharge? (16:15) > Within your range, what unit capacities do you go up to? (17:40) > Can you tell us more about your Package units? (19:30) > Where is the technology developed? Is it here in South Australia or interstate? (22:15) > Actron seem to be doing great things with their wall controllers, do you think this is because you’re an Australian company that you are catering for what appeals to the Australian market? When compared to other international manufacturer’s they don’t seem to place as much emphasis on their controllers because it appears that they are not of great importance, would you agree? (26:00) > Can you control your zoning through the wall controller? (30:10) And much more. We’d like to thank Darren and George for joining us on the Show and if you want to get in touch with the team at Actron Air, you can visit their website actronair.com.au and check out their sleek looking “NEO” wall controller. Until the next episode peeps….ta ta.



EPISODE 27 | Al Levi | The 7 Power Contractor (USA)

Hey guys! Welcome to Episode 27 of The Air Conditioning Podcast and wasn’t it a beauty! This week we were up bright and early to Welcome Author of The 7-Power Contractor, business and life coach and all round nice guy, Mr Al Levi.

If you haven’t already heard of Al Levi, you need to. Based in Phoenix, Arizona, Al started out working in a family HVAC & Plumbing business before eventually selling his shares of the company to his brothers and heading out in to the big wide world on his own.

Fast forwarding to current day, Al Levi has gone on to become one of the most successful mentors to some of the biggest names in the Home Service industry, including Tommy Mello. We had a blast speaking with Al and tried to cram as much of his Gold Nuggets into the episode as time would allow! But don’t despair, we didn’t get to cover anywhere near as much as we’d hoped to, so Al has kindly offered to join us on the Show again in the future for Round 2. (Ring-a-Ding-Ding!)

We hope you enjoy the episode as much as we did bringing it to you and be sure to grab a copy of his incredible book The 7-Power Contractor, available on Amazon, Audible and where ever else you get your hands on it!

Here’s a snippet to whet your appetite…..

> Al, can you take us back to where it all began and share with our audience how you got started? (3:00)

> Running a company as you did with some 70 odd employees, how difficult was it to introduce systems? Were you met with much resistance from your staff? (7:00)

> For someone just learning about systems and starting out, it can be very overwhelming. What would your advice be around exactly where and how to get started? (14:00)

> In your book you cover the 7 power points for a successful business, can you expand on those briefly to give our audience a taste of what you cover? (19:00)

> You refer to marketing and advertising as being two different things, can you elaborate? (27:00)

> When it comes to hiring good staff and then retaining them, can you tell us how you went about doing that? (31:00)

>

When it comes to handing over the operation manual to a specific staff member for a specific task, do you just hand it to them and they go through it at their own pace or do you coach them through it? (35:00)

And guys that was just the tip of the ice berg!

You must get yourselves a copy of The 7-Power Contractor, even if you’re not keen on reading, its sharp and to the point. More gold than Kalgoorlie and what’s more is available on Audible so you can listen on your way to and from work, between jobs and mowing the lawn!

We’d like to sincerely thank Al for joining us as our guest on the show and are already looking forward to speaking with him again.

To get in touch with Al, you can reach him at al@7powercontractor.com or hit his website at https://7powercontractor.com/.

Until the next Episode folks…Catcha!

EPISODE 28 | Jennifer Steger | Trade Risk Insurance (QLD)

Howdy legends! Welcome to Episode 28 of The Air Conditioning Podcast. In this episode we zoomed with Broker of the Year State Finalist, Jennifer Steger from Trade Risk Insurance. Since their inception over 10 years ago, Trade Risk Insurance has been assisting over 10k trade businesses with their insurance needs. From humble beginnings starting out in a home office in Brisbane, they’ve grown to become an award winning business with thousands of clients in all states and territories within Australia. Here’s a snippet of what we covered….. > Can you begin by sharing with our audience how Trade Risk Insurance started? (2:25) > What Trades to you look after (3:30) > Does much of your work come from referrals? (4:30) > What insurance companies do you use as under writers? (5:30) > Often dealing with Insurance work we see how generous or tight insurers can be, what’s been your experience? (6:30) > What are some of the more common claims that you see? (7:30) > What different types of insurance do you offer? (9:00) > For anyone just starting out with their business, what types of cover would be the bare minimum that you would be recommending? (10:00) >What amount of cover would you recommend for Public Liability in our industry? (11:15) > How does tool insurance work and is it expensive? (12:00) > Scenario (1): Tech is in someone’s roof cavity and they step on a timber, tech falls through ceiling and hurts themselves or someone living within the house. Who is responsible and who needs to make the insurance claim? (16:30) > Scenario (2): Tech visits a clients home and their dog bites them on the leg. Who is responsible and who needs to make the claim? (22:00) > Are the insurance policies mentioned, a tax deduction? (23:45) > Do you often come across clients who are potentially attempting claim for more than they should be? EG Van is broken into and some tools are stolen, however the claimant is suggesting they had more power tools in their van at the time of the incident than what they actually had? (24:45) And there was a heap more we got through. We’d like to thank Jen for coming onto the show today and sharing her knowledge and discussing the products that Trade Risk Insurance Offers. To get in touch with Jen and the team, you can visit them at www.traderisk.com.au or you can contact Jen direct on 0438 837 917. Until the next episode lads and lass’s…bye for now!



EPISODE 30 | Andy & Angela Smith | Lifestyle Tradie (NSW)

Howdy legends! In this episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast we were thrilled to have a chat with Angie and Andy Smith from Lifestyle Tradie and authors of Start Up, Scale Up, Sell Up. A profitable business starts with a rock-solid foundation and after hitting rock bottom in business themselves, co-founders of Lifestyle Tradie, Andy and Angela Smith have been teaching tradies in business how to start up, scale up and sell up their businesses with a proven step-by-step formula. Here’s a snippet of some of the stuff we covered… > Can you take us back to the beginning and how Lifestyle Tradie started and how it all came about? (3:00) > How and where did you get your motivation from to flip your negative situation with your business and turn it positive? (6:15) > How quickly did your business grow? (8:30) > Aside from HVAC, what other industries does your coaching and systems cover? (11.30) > Do you run Dr Drip and Lifestyle Tradie independent of one another? (12:15) > It must take guts to stand up in front of a room full of people at your seminars, can you talk us through that? (12:40) > Can you give us a brief overview of what our listeners can expect from your book “Start Up, Scale Up, Sell Up”? (18:30) > When you have individuals coming to you for help when they are potentially on their knees with there business and you are able to turn things around for them, how does that make you feel? (26:30) > Did you have any mentors that guided you through when you first started to turn your business around? (28:30) > What would be your strongest tips you could offer anyone struggling with their business right now? (31:50) And there was heaps more and so many gold nuggets…. We’d like to sincerely thank both Andy and Angela for joining us on the show and sharing with us their personal experience and knowledge. To get in touch with them you can visit www.lifestyletradie.com.au and make sure you download their book “Start Up, Scale Up, Sell Up” (for FREE, yes $0, nothing, nada) right here: www.lifestyletradie.com.au/book/ Hope you enjoy the episode guys and until the next episode…..bye bye.



EPISODE 29 | Brad & Shane Rawson | Shane, Brad & Beers

Hey all! Welcome to Episode 29 of The Air Conditioning Podcast. For the first time in a long time we didn’t have a guest on with us! So rather than skip a week, Brad and I thought we would smash a couple of beers and reflect on some of our previous episodes, as well as look at what we have lined up for the rest of the year.

We also road tested a new segment instead of Keepin’ it Cool in the Hotseat at the end of the episode. We haven’t come up with a name for the segment yet, and a huge amount thought behind it, for this episode, we decided to call it… “Hotseat”….I know…brilliant.

Hope you enjoy the episode guys and I promise you, it’s 35 minutes of your life you’ll never get back.

Until the next normal episode guys, chow.



EPISODE 31 | Aaron Little | Aaron J Little Air Conditioning & Refrigeration (QLD)

Hi all, in this episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast, we chatted with Aaron from Aaron J Little Air Conditioning and Refrigeration based in sunny Cairns, Queensland. Aaron spoke openly about his business, what he does and why he got into the industry. Here’s a bit of what we covered…. > Can you start by sharing with our audience a bit of background about your business and how it all started? (2:30) > Where were you working prior to owning your own business? (3:00) > Can you tell us about when you first started thinking about starting your own business and how that came about? (4:00) > Did you already have work lined up for yourself before taking the plunge? (4:45) > Are you mainly working on Residential or do you do Commercial as well? (5:15) > What sort of stuff are you doing on the Refrigeration side of the business? (6:00) > Do you get into the “split cleaning” work up there or do you leave it to others? (7:15) > You mention that wall splits are very common in Cairns, are they mainly single splits or do are there as many multi head units? (8:00) > How far are you happy to travel for your clients? (8:30) > You mentioned that you are a warranty agent. Which brand is it and do they treat you well? (8:45) > Who are your biggest competitors, and do you see many Cert.2’s in Cairns? (10:00) > Are you looking to take on an apprentice at any stage and looking to expand? (11:00) > Working for yourself, do you manage all of your reports and invoicing yourself, or do you get some help on that front? (11:45) > Do you use a Job Management and Accounting system? (12:30) > How do you manage your quoting, is it done there on the spot or do you have other systems in place? (14:15) > Do you do advertising and what platforms do you prefer? (15:00) > Do you track how your clients are finding your business and if so, how? (15:30) > Do you utilise Google Reviews and if so, do you actively seek them out? (16:30) > Do you have many difficult clients and how do you manage them? (18:00) > How did you go when COVID hit, did it impact your business and how? (21:30) And that’s just a sniff of what we covered. We hope you guys enjoy the episode and if you’d like to join us on the Show, please get in touch with us at airconditioningpodcast.com. To get in touch with Aaron, you can reach him at www.ajlairandfridge.com.au or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ajlairandfridge/ So until the next episode people….Catcha!



EPISODE 32 | Erica Leonor | Women in HVAC (USA)

G’day folks! Welcome to another episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast! In this episode, we zoomed with Erica Leonor from Women in HVAC, USA. Women in HVACR, was organized exclusively for educational purposes to further the growth and development of women in all areas of the HVACR industry, including technical sales, management, and ownership. It is their goal to provide their members with a variety of opportunities to network and develop in a professional environment. It was great to chat with Erica and were so grateful for her time. Here’s a taste of what was covered…… > Can you share with our audience what is Women in HVAC and how it got started? (4:00) > Looking at your substantial team and the vast amounts of experience, are they volunteers in the organisation? (5:15) > How many active members do you currently have? (6:15) > Are your members predominantly HVAC or are they dual trade? (7:15) > Do you have any statistics on how many members you have outside of the US? (8:00) > How has COVID changed the organisation and how you conduct business? (9:00) > What sort of topics and themes do you cover in your online meetings and seminars? (10:30) > There seems to be a larger population of women in the US that are interested in becoming an HVAC tech and (from my knowledge) there doesn’t seem to be the attraction to females here in Australia, why do you think that is? (11:45) > What attributes do you think a female brings to the trade over a male? (15:00) > With so much negativity in the media and the perception that is perceived about tradies, do you think that females bring a strong element of trust? (16:45) > If someone is considering becoming a member, how do they go about doing that? (22:15) > Can you tell us more about your Ambassador program? (24:00) > Are you aware of any solely female owned and operated HVAC businesses who have all female techs? (25:35) > Do you see the element of sexist remarks or behaviours from customers expecting to see a male tech? (28:00) > What excites you about the industry and where can you see it heading? (32:20) And then some….. We’d like to sincerely thank Erica for giving up her time to join us on the Show and for being such a great person to chat with. If you’d like to get in touch with the team at Women in HVAC, you can jump on their website at www.womeninhvacr.org or you can contact Elenor direct at erica@powersellingpros.com. Thanks again Elenor and we’d love to have you back on the show again in the future! But until the next episode guys………See ya!



EPISODE 33 | Josh Van Greunsven | Mojo Air

What is up guys? In Episode 33 of the Air Conditioning Podcast we had a good chat with Josh Van Greunsven from Mojo Air based in Sydney NSW.

For over 10 years the team at Mojo Air has been servicing Sydney and its surrounding suburbs, delivering first class installation, service and maintenance with customer focus being their priority.

Mojo Air specialise in domestic, Commercial and Industrial solutions

Here’s a bit of what we covered…….

Can you tell us a bit about Mojo Air and how it all got started? (3:45)

How many do you have in your team? (4:45)

How did you grow your team? (5:30)

Do you focus mostly on air conditioning or do you also get into Refrigeration? (6:45)

Where are you based exactly? (8:00)

Do you do much regional work? (8:30)

How did COVID affect your business? (9:20)

Did your Commercial side of the business drop of during this period? (11:00)

Tell us about your competitors. (13:30)

Do you think the average consumer takes more notice of a company with a bigger presence, online presence etc than perhaps a single guy working out the back of a van? (14:00)

Do you advertise and market your business and if so how? (15:00)

What brands do you guys predominantly work with? (17:45)

Do you do your own warranty work or do you leave to the manufacturer? (19:00)

Do favour any particular brand when it comes to Residential vs Commercial? (19:30)

Do you do many package units Commercially? (21:30)

Do you have a specified team member who concentrates on your tenders? (22:15)

When you win the tenders, are they generally smooth sailing or are there hurdles? (25:00)

What sort of percentage of tenders do you think you would be successful? (25:15)

What sort of Job Management systems do you use? (27:15)

And heaps more…..

We’d like to sincerely thank Josh for giving up his time and joining us on the show. If you want to reach out to Josh and the team at Mojo Air, you can visit their website here: https://mojoair.com.au/

Until the next episode legends……bye for now.

EPISODE 34 | Ellen Rohr |  The Business Makeover Expert (USA)

Howdy guys and gals! In this episode of The Air Conditioning Podcast, we were very fortunate to have zoomed with Ellen Rohr, based in the USA.

Having struggled in their own family Plumbing business, out of desperation, Ellen figured out how to turn the business around and make it extremely profitable. Since then, Ellen has inspired thousands, in workshops, presentations and online, to make business un-complicated and successful.

As a successful franchisor, Ellen has launched a plumbing franchise to 47 locations and $40 million in sales in under 2 years. She is a columnist for Huffington Post, PHC News, Springfield Business Journal and an “in the trenches” contributor to many business and trade magazines. She has made many TV appearances been on over 150 news programs, encouraging people to make their own money.

She’s been labelled the Plumber’s wife but is indeed so much more than that!!

Ellen is the author of four un-fussy business books: Where Did the Money Go?, How Much Should I Charge?, The Bare Bones Biz Plan and The Weekend Biz Plan.

Ellen had so much information but here’s just a snippet…..

Where, when and how did all of the chaos begin? (4:30)

How important is it to have mentors and do you still have your own mentors? (14:40)

Why do many business owners tend to overcomplicate business? (17:10)

For anyone just starting out on their own, what would your advice be around managing money? (20:35)

Al Levi is very passionate about implementing systems into any business, do you feel the same? (28:00)

Can you give us a brief overview of the books you’ve written? (31:00)

And so much more…….

Guys, we just want to send a sincere thanks to Ellen for giving up her time to join us on the show and we are looking forward to speaking with her again in the future. A truly awesome person with so much to give.

To get in touch with Ellen and download her book “Where did the money go?” for FREE, head to https://ellenrohr.com/

A massive thanks to you all for your continued support as well!

Until the next episode (and final one for the year), CATCHA!



EPISODE 35 |  Gil Cavey  |  HVAC Uncensored Podcast (USA)

G’day all and welcome to EP35 of The Air Conditioning Podcast and in the final episode for the year we saved the best til last…we chatted with Gil Cavey from HVAC Uncensored Podcast.

With Gil having been born into the trade with his Dad being a HVAC tech and Kelly marrying into the trade with his father-in-law being a HVAC tradie, they met from Kelly being a guest on a different Podcast that Gil was co-hosting previously.

After a fall out, Gil went out on his own and Kelly reached out and thought it would be a cool idea to start a new podcast together…….and the trumpets sounded, the seas parted, the heavens opened, unicorns appeared, and the HVAC Uncensored Podcast was born.

Here’s a sneaky peak at what we chatted about…..

Can you take us back to the start, how did the HVAC Uncensored Podcast come about? (3:45)

Have you always been a Fridgie and where did it start for you? (5:15)

Kellys’ story about how he got into HVAC was a little different to yours, can you tell us more about that? (6:45)

We discussed the Seasonal differences with Gil and also what is more common with the types of air conditioning used (11:00)

Can you share with us how many downloads you are achieving on average per episode? (21:30)

How do you find your guests, do you actively contact them or are they finding you organically and contacting you? (24:00)

Out of all of the guests you’ve interviewed on your Show, are there any that really stood out for you? (25:15)

You’re now doing Facebook Live Streams, can you tell us more about that and how it’s going? (30:50)

What Podcasts are you guys into? (33:00)

And heaps more….

We just want to say a huge thanks to Gil for joining us on the Show he was such a great bloke and could have chatted for hours…almost did in fact. We can’t wait to have both him and Kelly on again in the future.

To check out their awesome podcast, HVAC Uncensored, you can check it out here or to get in touch with the boys at HVAC Uncensored you can go to their Facebook page at facebook.com/hvacuncensored/ or their HVAC Uncensored Nation Facebook Group here.

Parting is such sweet sorrow, but we want to say a massive thankyou to YOU, the listener! We love seeing your comments and are so appreciative of your support throughout the year!

Brad and I will be taking a wee break over the Christmas/New Year period because as you well know, there just aren’t enough arms and legs during the Summer and we look forward to Season 2 starting in February 2021.

From all of us at The Air Conditioning Podcast we wish each and every one of you a safe and restful Christmas, make a ton of coin and we’ll catch you all in the new year….Peace!