Never Too Old To Try New Technology: YELLOW JACKET ManTooth Enhances Customer Satisfaction
To David Weiss, HVAC is a calling. It’s about giving people more control over their environment. In some cases, it goes beyond comfort, but to creating a safe environment for those who are susceptible to too much heat.
“I like to make weather,” says Weiss. “That is, I like to make mechanical weather inside a home.”
“We’re certainly not meteorologists,” he jokes, “but at least I can guarantee our work. We improve the quality of life for people by helping them maintain control over their temperature and humidity in their homes. For some people, this is critical to leading healthy lives.”
As service manager at Burnside AC, located in McKinney, Texas, a suburb north of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Weiss oversees a team of 14 HVAC technicians and installers. He’s worked for 29 years in the HVAC industry, the past nine of which he’s worked with Burnside AC.
Weiss learned about the industry when he was in high school; having a propensity for science and tools helped him make his big career decision.
“I was in an auto body shop class, but I didn’t want to be a grease monkey,” Weiss says.
“Then, one day, a representative from an HVAC company came to our class to talk about careers in HVAC. I found it interesting, so I decided to attend a trade school right out of high school.”
Weiss attended Universal Technical Institute, a trade school in Houston. For his first job, he worked with a one-man HVAC contractor. From there, Weiss moved on to work for a restaurant franchise and residential service company, and then, onto Burnside AC.
Over the course of his career, he’s seen number of changes — the introduction of DC voltage, new refrigerants, and the introduction of digital technology to HVAC/R tools and gauges.
“For example, I’m seeing stricter standards regarding procedure codes and refrigerants, and I expect they will continue to get stricter because protecting the environment becomes fundamentally important to us,” Weiss says. “I think refrigerants like R410A have very limited life-spans. We don’t want to use chemicals that further harm the Earth.”
Though the Burnside operation is small, consisting of only 20 employees who work on residential service, replacement, and installation jobs, David spoke about how YELLOW JACKET has made the company mighty, and keeps the company updated on new technology.
“I’ve been using YELLOW JACKET tools right out of the gate,” said Weiss. “I started my career with the original YELLOW JACKET brass gauges. Because of their dependability, there are many YELLOW JACKET tools that we require of our service techs here at Burnside AC.”
ManTooth Enhances Customer Satisfaction
While Weiss clings to his 20-year-old brass gauge, that doesn’t mean that he’s not willing to try out new technology. Recently, Weiss got his first taste of how effective YELLOW JACKET’s new ManTooth wireless P/T gauge could be in satisfying a customer’s needs.
Obtaining a ManTooth Digital Wireless P/T Gauge through this wholesaler to test, Weiss asked one of his senior HVAC techs to put it through its paces.
One day, Weiss received a call from a customer whose central air system had been serviced, who wanted details about the work that had been performed.
At Burnside AC, all HVAC techs fill out a hand-written form that describes the customer’s problem and how it was solved. For this particular customer, Weiss noticed that a form had not been filled out. So he checked with the technician who referred him to the data that was collected with the ManTooth, which had been downloaded in Burnside AC’s computer system. Weiss pulled up the data report and then emailed it over to the customer.
“The customer was really impressed by the report,” says Weiss. “It not only had all of the digital information collected during the service call, it’s that the data was professionally presented. It really made us look good. That’s why I’m going to have all of our service techs start using the ManTooth.”
“I also really like the fact that YELLOW JACKET is made in America,” he adds. “That’s very important to us. YELLOW JACKET makes hard-working American products for hard-working Americans.”
Looking Forward: It’s About the Basics of Service
No matter how much change the HVAC industry may experience, Weiss remarks that regardless of what comes, it’s important to stick to the basics – focus on your customer’s needs and surround yourself with people and tools you can count on.
“I believe that you will always need a manifold. The answer is YELLOW JACKET for me,” he said. “A tool and its quality can be a matter of life and death. That’s why I shy away from off-brand equipment.”
“Your next most important tool is your ears,” he says. “It’s really important to slow down and take the time to really listen to your customers, and give them answers that solve their problems. That’s what this job is all about – improving the lives of people and their homes.”