February 17, 2023 by Timberline
Two keys to successful interactions with an HVAC company are 1) that you trust the provider and 2) that they can meet the project requirements. Our recent engagement with a customer in Broomfield, Colorado, highlighted both of these elements, showing that if either is missing, the results can be frustrating, costly, or both.
Dissatisfaction Drives a Building Owner to Consider New Options
Commercial property owners understandably expect a lot from their HVAC service provider. That includes things like skill, experience, and product knowledge, of course. But they also want prompt replies when they have questions or concerns about their system.
That last requirement was the proverbial “straw that broke the camel’s back” for an owner who subsequently contacted Timberline about some urgent repairs. Their former service provider wasn’t impressing the customer with any of the other factors, either, but when they couldn’t be reached and didn’t respond to messages left for them, that was the end of the relationship. And our team’s prompt response got our relationship off to a great start.
Well-Executed Repairs Prompt Conversations About More Work
The customer was delighted with how attentive we were to their needs and pleased with the repairs we completed to get their equipment operational.
Our achieving that goal could have been the end of that brief engagement. But instead, the building owner wanted to know if we could install new units to replace the existing equipment, which was functional but very much starting to show its age as it approached its expected end-of-life.
The Challenge: Get New Equipment in Place by Year’s End
A history of delayed responses, which had already cost the previous vendor this account, would have been especially concerning to the customer given that the work to replace existing Trane Intellipak units with new equipment had to be completed by year end for financial reasons. Large-scale equipment replacements are stressful enough without any complicating factors. When your HVAC company has become unreliable and unresponsive, that’s trouble.
And this new task was no small feat. The replacement heating/cooling units are roughly 50 feet long by 10 feet wide by 8 feet high, weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of 20,000 pounds each, and produce 90 tons of cooling capacity.
As Trane describes the equipment on its website, its key features include:
- Industry-leading energy efficiency, lower operating costs
- Part-load efficiency compliance with new industry energy efficiency requirements
- Meets CEE’s advanced tier for energy efficiency (EER/IEER)
- Variable-speed eFlex Technology available across full capacity range
- One-stop shop customization for unmatched flexibility
- Design-build options for factory-level customization
- Integrated controls for built-in BMS/BAS connectivity
- Ready-to-go out of the box for lower installation costs
- AHRI certified with proven durability
In other words, these are advanced, heavy-duty rooftop units!
Getting large equipment like that to the installation site takes time, but that’s only one piece of the puzzle. There’s also a significant amount of planning and preparation that must be done even before the work begins. Then there’s disconnecting and safely removing the old equipment, getting the new units into place, hooking them up, and performing thorough testing and diagnostics to ensure they’re functioning at peak efficiency.
Adding to the sense of urgency was the fact that new regulations with a minor increase in efficiency standards going into effect at the start of the new year would require different equipment that could only be used if significant (and very costly) modifications were made to the building itself.
Holiday Happiness for an Anxious Customer
With the equipment on its way, it appeared that everything was aligning for the installation of the new units in the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Our team was excited about the challenge, and the client seemed to feel the same way, but you had to imagine they were fairly anxious on the inside.
Had anything gone sideways with this project, it could have been very expensive for them. But instead, they got to ring in the New Year with shiny, new rooftop units!
What a Difference a Few Days Makes
The units the customer had us install are state-of-the-art, high-efficiency equipment. And because they were in compliance with the regulations in place at the time of their installation, the client can use them as long as they continue to function. With proper care and maintenance, they could meet the building’s needs for 20 years or more.
However, if the timeline had shifted by even a few days, and the end-of-year deadline had been missed, it would have been a very different story—as in hundreds of thousands of dollars different.
The urgency in HVAC projects is more often a function of occupant comfort. When proper heating in the winter or cooling in the summer is interrupted, building occupants and owners want prompt repairs. However, this project proved there can also be financial implications to equipment replacement projects and negative repercussions to working with an HVAC company that isn’t responsive and eager to help you meet your goals.
Other Tasks and a Preventative Maintenance Contract
In addition to hiring us to install, test, and fine-tune the new Trane rooftop units, the customer had us perform a main control system retrofit. That work included updating the building automation system in anticipation of a new tenant moving in, after which work will be performed to mold the system to meet the company’s needs.
The customer also demonstrated their trust in our team by awarding us a contract for preventative maintenance on this property and another.
Find the Right HVAC Partner for Your Next Installation or Repair Project
If you have questions about our commercial and industrial HVAC services—chiller and boiler installation/service/repair, air conditioning installation/service/repair, special projects, etc.—don’t hesitate to contact Timberline Mechanical.
We’re happy to discuss your project, tell you how we’d handle it, and provide a quote. Customers up and down the Colorado Front Range rely on us for all their heating and cooling needs.