Organization: MSCA

Interested in Plumbing Service? The PCA Roundtable Is Open for Registration

Commercial plumbing service offers a lot of benefits to contractors. Although it can be difficult to begin or optimize, it offers a lot of benefits including higher margins and reliable work flow. This roundtable is a one-day meeting intended for both established plumbing service operations and contractors interested in getting into plumbing service.

Located at the Loews Chicago O’Hare, it offers attendees the ability to fly in and out the same day or minimize the amount of time away from the operations.

Give Construction Workers Quick Access to Safety Information

Do your mechanical construction workers need a quick reference to help them work safely? MCAA’s Safety Manual for Mechanical Construction Workers provides critical information on everything from aerial lift safety to preventing overexposure to zinc. Members can download the manual free as a benefit of membership, or purchase print copies for their workers who prefer them.

Report Shows MCAA Members Don’t Invest Enough in Tech Budget and Manpower

In 2018, MCAA sponsored a JBKnowledge Construction Technology Report that surveyed over 2,800 professionals in the construction industry. In the newly released MCAA-Focused Report, the responses given by MCAA members were separated and compared to those of the rest of the construction industry.

While MCAA members are getting heavily involved in VDC and mobile technology, they are behind the rest of the industry when it comes to some aspects of R&D. As the report’s primary researcher, Liz Beechinor from JBKnowledge points out, “Our research is showing that the construction industry as a whole is behind on R&D spending compared to other industries, but when we take a look at MCAA members’ responses and compare that to the construction industry, they are even further behind. Fewer MCAA contractors have dedicated R&D budget and employees dedicated to R&D.”

According to a 2017 McKinsey Report, the construction industry as a whole spends less than 1% of their revenue on R&D. Compared to the auto industry, which spends 3.5%, and the aerospace industry, which spends 4.5%, this can seem relatively underfunded.

What is even more concerning is construction companies’ lack of any R&D budget. The 2018 MCAA-Focused Construction Technology Report showed that 56.8% of those surveyed had no budget for R&D, while 63.5% of MCAA members reported that they didn’t budget for R&D.

The same could be said for having employees dedicated to R&D. In the last few years, we have seen more MCAA and MSCA contractors dedicate manpower to technology research and implementation, but on average, they are still behind the rest of the industry.

Most respondents that identified as MCAA members reported that they had one or two people dedicated to R&D, while 37% do not have employees dedicated to R&D. During a presentation on the topic at MCAA19, MCAA’s Director, Construction Technology Sean McGuire explained, “While we are seeing more members take technology seriously, smaller companies are going to always be more limited on budget and manpower that they can dedicate towards research and implementation. Larger GCs and CMs can absorb these costs a little easier simply as a function of their size.”

Being bigger does not necessarily mean better though. As Sean notes, “While research and staff budgets can be absorbed by larger companies easier, the bigger you are, the harder implementation becomes. Small companies can adopt changes a lot faster because you can get less people pulling in the same direction faster. Large companies have to dedicate more resources to implementation and follow up.”

This lines up with another report question that asked what the most limiting factor was for adopting new technology. Not surprisingly, lack of staff and budget received the highest response rates and were concerns for nearly half of the MCAA respondents. The report provides further insight into these questions as well as BIM productivity and estimation and mobile device and hardware use.

PHC News Names J.C. Cannistraro Contractor of the Year

Congratulations to everyone at J.C. Cannistraro, LLC for being named PHC News magazine’s Contractor of the Year! The company, which is a member of MCAA and the New England MCA, was selected for its reputation as a leader in modular prefabrication and a very early adopter of construction technology.

Mechanical Inc. Featured at Autodesk’s Connect & Construct Summit

Each year, as part of Autodesk’s annual education conference, Autodesk University, there is an optional session the first day that is geared towards the AEC industry called Connect & Construct. It features Autodesk’s corporate leaders like the new Autodesk President and CEO Andrew Anagnost talking about products designed for the construction industry as well as some of the industry’s leading innovators.

One such innovator featured this year was Travis Voss, Mechanical Inc’s Director of Technology. Mr. Voss was part of the keynote address that included Dr. Peter Diamandis, a recent speaker at the MSCA Conference and MCAA Convention, and Lorien Barlow, the Documentary filmmaker behind a movie titled, Hard Hatted Woman.

During his keynote address, Travis spoke about Mechanical Inc.’s path to technology leadership, what his role as a Construction Technologist means and how collaboration and cooperation with other MCAA members through the Technology Committee has helped their company.

The video is available through Autodesk’s Online University through this link. Travis begins his presentation at the 45 minute mark.

Travis Voss will also be speaking at the MCAA Technology Conference in Tampa Bay, Florida on January 30- February 1. His presentation will be part of a session titled, Next Generation Workflows, in which he will demonstrate how Mechanical Inc. has begun using augmented reality on the job site.

EPA’s Proposed Change to Refrigerant Management Program — Your Assistance Requested

In November of 2016 the EPA updated the Section 608 Refrigerant Management program. This ruling phased in changes over a three-year period. On October 1, 2018 the EPA issued a new ruling that will revise refrigerant regulations, again.

One significant change is to rescind the refrigerant management requirements of subpart F, (sales restriction) from substitute refrigerants. The removal of this sales restriction would enable anyone (do-it-yourselfers “DIY”), to purchase substitute refrigerants. If these refrigerants could be purchased by anyone, they could also be sold by anyone, including big box retailers and online stores. This change would be detrimental for manufacturers, wholesalers and contractors.

The HVACR industry collaborated with the EPA for two years, to modernize the Section 608 Refrigerant Management Program. While no regulation is perfect, this regulation has always been good for business and the environment, and we should voice our opinions to keep it that way. You can view the ruling and comment here.

Please take the time to submit a comment to the EPA letting them know that such a change could be harmful to the public at large. Allowing anyone to purchase substitute refrigerants could result in unqualified individuals working on equipment and handing refrigerant in an unsafe manner. Comments due no later than November 15, 2018.

Col. Nicole Malachowski (USAF, Ret.) Shares How She Harnesses Headwinds

Col. Nicole Malachowski (USAF, Ret.) captivated the crowd at MSCA18 in Huntington Beach, CA, with her personal stories of how she harnessed the headwinds of change and overcame some incredible obstacles in her own life as she pursued her dream of being a Thunderbird pilot. Hitting home the importance of resurgence over resilience and not being afraid to dream big and do what it takes to make those dreams come true.

WATCH VIDEO HERE

This video will be available until 12/1/2018 and requires you to log-in with your member email and password to view.

MCAA’s Revised Injury/Illness Recordkeeping Guide is Now Available to Members

MCAA’s recently revised injury and illness recordkeeping guide is now available to MCAA and MSCA members for free as a benefit of membership. Several recent changes to OSHA’s recordkeeping regulation prompted the revisions, which include new work-related injury illness reporting requirements, electronic submission of injury and illness records, deadlines for reporting, etc. If you have any questions about this publication or any of OSHA’s recordkeeping requirements, please contact Pete Chaney at pchaney@mcaa.org or 301-990-2214.

2018—2019 MSCA Board of Managers

MSCA and its members welcome new chair of the MSCA Board of Managers, Kip Bagley. Kip is the Vice President of Service at MESA Energy/Emcor Services in Irvine, CA, overseeing HVACR service operations, production and recruiting in Mesa’s twelve offices. Kip supports the maintenance/repairs, automation, and energy needs of client facilities and assures a single line of communication for all multiple-site clients within Mesa’s national and regional service divisions.

Kip has 17 years of field experience after completing his apprentice training in Los Angeles. He holds an AA degree from Fullerton College and a bachelor’s degree from Cal State Fresno.

He has served as chairman of the MSCA Education Committee for the past six years. Kip began his term on the MSCA Board of Managers in 2013. He is also active on the local level both in southern and northern California.

We would like to extend a special welcome to all our new Board Members and officers.

2018—2019 MSCA Board of Managers

Kip Bagley, MESA Energy/Emcor Services, Irvine, CA, Chair

Steve Smith, ACCO Engineered Systems, Inc., Glendale, CA, Vice Chair

Michael Star, Lane Associates, Inc., Island Park, NY, Treasurer

Jaimi Lomas, A.O. Reed & Company, San Diego, CA, Past Chair

Kane Armistead, AMI Services, Inc., Waldwick, NJ

Mark Crockett, Crockett Facilities Services, Inc., Bowie, MD

Robert Dills, Western Allied Mechanical, Menlo Park, CA

Renee Fiorelli, Peterson Service Company Inc., Medford, NJ

Rich Happel, University Mechanical, Mukilteo, WA

Adam Wallenstein, Neptune Plumbing and Heating, Co., Cleveland, OH

2018 D.S. O’Brien Award of Excellence Presented to John Gentille, MCAA CEO

The D.S. O’Brien Award of Excellence was established in 2000 to recognize those individuals who exhibit extraordinary dedication and outstanding commitment to our industry, and to MSCA. This year’s recipient, John Gentille, CEO of MCAA, has been extremely instrumental in elevating MSCA and MCAA to new levels of excellence and providing extraordinary value to our members. The D.S. O’Brien was presented to John during the recent MSCA Education conference, held October 21—24 in Huntington Beach, CA.

Through his foresight, vision and leadership, John has ensured MSCA and MCAA are world class organizations providing all the tools and resources our member companies need to grow, succeed and compete. Through his guidance, MCAA has become THE education association, with over 400 resources available and free to every member.

John played a key role in the development of the Safety Excellence Initiative, Advanced Leadership Institute, Women in the Mechanical Industry Initiative, National Education Initiative, web-based Labor Estimating Manual and many of our other hands-on training programs. Early on, he recognized the impact technology played in association management and as a valuable tool for our members and introduced programs and resources, including a first-class website, to ensure the association and its membership are always on the cutting-edge of technological innovation.

John has been a great supporter of our student chapters and spearheaded the creation of a Career Development Initiative to help recruit talented young people into our members’ ranks.

As stated by MSCA Chair, Jaimi Lomas, A.O Reed, during the award presentation, “I can go on but just suffice it to say that since he began his tenure at MCAA, the association has taken giant steps forward and never looked back”.

MSCA Everyday Hero Awarded at Recent MSCA Conference

This year’s recipient of the MSCA Everyday Hero Award was Ted Stutz, Director of Quality Control for Emcor Services/MESA Energy Systems in Irvine, CA. Jaimi Lomas, MSCA Chair, announced the winner during the recent MSCA Education conference, held October 21—24 in Huntington Beach, CA. Four years ago, the Everyday Hero award was created to recognize an employee from one of MSCA’s member companies who, in their own extraordinary way, quietly gives of their time and skills to benefit others. These compassionate people lend a hand to others solely out of the goodness of their hearts and seek no recognition or compensation.

In addition to managing the facilities of MESA’s 12 offices, Ted serves on the Board of the Boys and Girls Clubs of North Orange County. Ted serves on numerous committees, raises money, volunteers his time and expertise. He is a committed advocate, making sure the Clubs are providing the very best for the youth in the community. Each Christmas, Ted supports and spearheads the Salvation Army’s Little Angels gift drive, collecting gifts for over 100 less fortunate families and children.

Although Ted does not have any of his own children on the teams, he coaches Pop Warner Football and Little League Baseball for local youth organizations. He has opened his home and his heart over the years to countless friends and family members in need. At one point in time the Stutz home housed seven family members in addition to Ted, his wife Rhonda and their 2 children. For the past ten years, his home has been the permanent home for his niece and nephew. He has graciously protected these children and is now their legal guardian.

As one of his nominators stated: “Until I met him, I had never met a hero or seen what they do first hand. He gives back quietly and without fanfare and is not looking for any kudos. He makes us all want to be a better person. We all have a long way to go to be like him.”

See What Happened at MSCA18

Couldn’t attend the conference? Here’s what you missed!

https://youtu.be/V8PY_bSe1W0

https://youtu.be/rxBBj90EJuM

https://youtu.be/Ljjc1NYa6E8

Mark your calendar and plan to join us for MSCA19. The conference takes place October 13 – October 16, 2019 in Colorado Springs, CO.

MSCA and Convoy of Hope Team Up and Do Some Good in CA

MSCA volunteers and the Convoy of Hope team up for the ninth year to give back in Orange County, CA, in conjunction with MSCA18. Over 50 volunteers performed a variety of projects including landscaping, painting, and construction that provided Share Our Selves, Costa Mesa with a face lift. In addition to 36 pallets of supplies were donated and unloaded. A special thank you to everyone who participated and donated to our project this year!

Get All the Details for MSCA18!

We are just weeks away from the 33^rd Annual MSCA Education Conference and have launched the MSCA18 phone App and digital program book, with access to all the details needed for a successful and inspiring experience at this year’s conference! Both the App and program book include detailed descriptions of the inspiring key note speeches, relevant peer group topics and powerful education sessions, as well as optional activities and extras that will be available throughout this information packed week.

With exclusive content and access to the conference attendee list, ability to directly message other conference attendees, download conference handouts and build personal conference schedules — the App is the perfect tool to navigate this year’s conference. It is available in the Apple and Google Play stores using keyword MSCA18.

We have a lot of exciting things in store for this year’s conference and we are excited to share them all with all participants in just a few more weeks!

MSCA Sales Masters Week 2

Sales Masters Program Overview

With a curriculum designed by MSCA in-the-field experts in partnership with sales specialists from the University of Houston Sales Excellence Institute, this two-week program is perfect for service sales employees who often find it difficult to get useful training for their level of expertise that is specific to the mechanical service industry. The program comprises Sales Masters Week 1 and Sales Masters Week 2. For more information, please download the Sales Masters Brochure.

Sales Masters II (Week 2)

In Sales Masters Week 2, the high level of training continues on the campus of the University of Houston’s Sales Excellence Institute. This week long-program will provide an unparalleled experience in a high-tech academic setting taught by acclaimed sales experts. Participants will be challenged to use inventive thinking to cultivate their talents and elevate their sales skills to ensure peak performance. Attendees will learn through industry-specific case studies, experiential role-play opportunities and a personalized post-training plan to ensure implementation of concepts and tools learned.

Sales Masters Week 2 Topics Include:

Advanced topics in verbal and non-verbal communication
Personal and organizational time management
Understanding complex decision centers
Developing strategic relationships
Managing with influence, not authority.

MSCA Sales Masters I

Sales Masters Program Overview

With a curriculum designed by MSCA in-the-field experts in partnership with sales specialists from the University of Houston Sales Excellence Institute, this two-week program is perfect for service sales employees who often find it difficult to get useful training for their level of expertise that is specific to the mechanical service industry. The program comprises Sales Masters I (Week 1) and Sales Masters II (Week 2). For more information, please download the Sales Masters Brochure.

Sales Masters I (Week 1)

The highly anticipated Sales Masters I is a new four-day program specific to the intermediate-level service sales employee. No longer new to the industry or perhaps even the company, this employee is a valuable member of the team with several years of experience that have refined his or her skills and abilities. But, these employees may be missing the tools and insights needed to really take their expertise to the next level. Sales Masters I will give these professionals the boost they need to become the go-to resource for their teams and customers.

Sales Masters I Topics Include:

Establishing a prospecting plan to build your portfolio and identify new opportunities
Enhancing your proposal writing and presentation skills to proactively identify needs before they arise and opportunities for add-on services
Understanding the art of financial selling to create more consultative partnerships with customer executives on your accounts

MSCA Sales Basecamp

Sales Basecamp Overview

Sales Basecamp is where it begins for entry-level service sales personnel. In this competitive and uncertain business landscape, the rules of sales and customer engagement have changed. This two-day program will prepare this recent hire with relevant skills for time management and confidently selling HVACR services. Closing the deal is demystified with this course.

Sales Basecamp Topics Include:

Building trust with potential customers and dimensions for building relationships
Successfully maneuvering through the prospecting process and accurately profiling customers
Avoiding traps in proposal development, and effectively linking features with needs

Pre-requisites to attend this course: Completion of MSCA’s HVAC 101 online course and completion of your company’s onboarding activities so that you have an understanding of your company’s value proposition and core competencies

Please note: The Sales Leadership Symposium does not have to be completed in order for sales personnel to attend this course. Sales Basecamp is open to all member companies, and is an optional training.

MSCA Sales Basecamp

Sales Basecamp Overview

Sales Basecamp Topics Include:

Building trust with potential customers and dimensions for building relationships
Successfully maneuvering through the prospecting process and accurately profiling customers
Avoiding traps in proposal development, and effectively linking features with needs

Sales Leadership Symposium

Sales Leadership Symposium Overview:

The Sales Leadership Symposium is a “must” attend for anyone who manages or supervises sales personnel and is responsible for recruiting, hiring, training, on-boarding and coaching. Presented by in-the-field industry experts, this program will teach sales leaders how to drive revenue growth and enhance profitability through a structured sales approach as well as enhance sales team productivity and ensure employee retention. This course is a pre-requisite for any company considering sending a sales employee to the MSCA Sales Masters program.

MCAA 2022 Annual Convention

MCAA’s premier event provides you with an opportunity to learn, get involved and renew relationships with fellow MCAA members while enjoying exceptional educational workshops, riveting special sessions, outstanding exhibits, heartwarming major events, and social functions that never fail to amaze and delight. An extensive menu of educational sessions will help you see new possibilities and opportunities in your professional and personal life, and will enrich the quality of both.

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