Every new construction project starts with a plan — a detailed blue print to get from breaking ground to first-day occupancy. That plan will, of course, include many subsets focused on individual aspects of the build, including specs for a commercial HVAC system specified by an consulting engineer.
Still, as we all know, Murphy’s law means even the best-made plans hit hiccups along the way. Budget constraints are often the biggest one.
“The consulting engineer may have put together a gold-plate plan for the HVAC system with an initial budget in mind,” explains Tom Hersey, a sales engineer at Integrated Cooling Solutions (ICS). “As the plan is sent out for actual pricing of the components, it often comes in significantly over budget.”
To reel in costs, clients often deviate from the gold-plate plan. They ask for substitutions — less expensive HVAC units or components to better align with their project budget. The practice is known as value engineering.
The Value of Expertise
ICS offers the largest selection of scalable, state-of-the-art commercial HVAC solutions in Florida. The unmatched breadth of products, along with state-wide service coverage, means the company can meet the specific design, efficiency, and budget criteria of every project.
“We do have a vast line card that represents the latest technology from a wide variety of respected manufacturers,” Hersey affirms. “We have options. We’re not pigeon-holed to just one or a few product lines. Our line card allows us to best match equipment with the demands of the job. So if someone comes to me and says they want an air handler, they know we have a very good chilled-water air handler. We also have pumps. We have expansion tanks and all the companion parts. We can pick and choose because we have a choices. We can pick the best option, the best product because we’re independent. We’re not forced to sell a specific brand pump or air handler.”
Over the years, ICS has been entrusted with a lot of projects where precision performance is critical. “For example, with pharmaceutical labs it’s critical that we ensure consistent temperature and humidity levels are maintained at all times,” Hersey adds. “If the equipment we install doesn’t hit and maintain these specific requirements, medications can go bad, people get upset.”
Of course, it’s inevitable. Mechanical equipment does break at one time or another. How a client is supported during those critical times is another aspect of value engineering. ICS has addressed this by standing up a new state-wide parts distribution network.
The hub of the network is a 30,000 square-foot distribution center stocked with a deep and growing inventory of original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts in Plant City. The expansive warehouse is supported by three satellite warehouses with walk-in parts stores in Tampa, Orlando, and Jacksonville that stock additional inventory. The parts stores feature a customer service counter and showroom to display smaller, most in-demand air conditioning parts.
With the distribution center and satellite warehouses strategically located in metropolitan areas across Florida, ICS can deliver parts quickly to any area of the state. “Next-day turnaround is the norm for a wide variety of parts, and in many cases, even same-day delivery is available,” says Chase Choate, ICS parts manager.
The network is just the latest demonstrable proof of ICS’s laser focus of customer support.
“We are committed to above-and-beyond, cradle-to-grave service. We’re not going to go anywhere,” Grobbelaar asserts. “We’re going to help our customers through the ownership of their equipment, for its entire lifecycle.”
The Value of Trust
As one ICS veteran explains, “Trust equals truth. And building trust is expanding the circle.”
“Most of our consulting engineers know that we stand beside the product long after it’s sold,” says Chris Hudson, an ICS sales engineer. “It gives them comfort knowing that if something was to ever go wrong, they can trust us to cover it and help make it right long term.”
“Owners, engineers and contractors come to ICS because they understand we have a more knowledge, more experience. We see more critical jobs than other manufacturers and the people who work for them,” Hersey adds.
“We have long histories with the community and industry,” Egan reveals. “We know all the owner-operators, the design professionals hired by those owner-operators, and we know many of the actual contractors. We have these long-term relationships because we continually bring real value to each of them. We are invested, we have a stake in their success and the success of their project.”
