Unlike so many people in our local HVAC and plumbing community, I’m not a third or fourth generation contractor. My first experience in our industry came as an HVAC equipment supplier. When I was a senior at Purdue University, I was fortunate that The Trane Company wanted to interview me for an HVAC equipment sales position.
My meeting with Trane was my very first interview, and it turned out to be the only interview request that I ever needed to accept. I enjoyed several years with their team, and I’ll cherish the many relationships that I built during that season for the rest of my life. I’ve been so blessed to be around countless talented individuals and companies over the years, and the mentoring and training that I’ve received has been tremendous.
I can laugh about it now, but when I initially received the interview request from Trane, I had no idea what HVAC stood for. I had taken a couple of Thermodynamics classes and a Heat and Mass Transfer class at Purdue, but I didn’t recognize this acronym. Al Gore hadn’t created the internet yet, so I had to go to our campus library to determine what HVAC stood for…. Therefore, since I’ve been in a bit of a learning mode going back to my first days in our industry, I’ve always tried to avoid taking anything for granted.
However, I have to admit that I was caught off guard the first time that I realized that there are firms that are great mechanical contractors that don’t ever weld pipe. Up to that point, I simply assumed that every mechanical contractor welds pipe, in some form or fashion. I’m not sure what the exact percentage is, but I estimate that approximately 70% to 80% of the HVAC contractors in the North Texas area don’t offer welding services.
However, our team does offer welding and pipe-fitting services, and I think our end product is exceptional (I am slightly biased….). So, the next time you’re involved with a project that involves welded pipe, please don’t automatically assume that your only option is to go to one of the mega-contractors in our area. We believe our H&G Systems team offers the same capabilities as those mega-contractors, but with the delivery that you enjoy with the smaller, family-oriented firms that you know and love.
So, if your friendly neighborhood piping team can ever assist you with anything, please let us know. Make it a great day!
Grant Yaney – President
H&G Systems