North American Technician Excellence (NATE) elected a new slate of officers to its executive committee as well as five new members to the board of trustees for the 2011-2012 term, at its biannual board of trustees meeting, Thursday, September 15, 2011, at NATE headquarters, Arlington, VA.

The NATE board of trustees named Don Frendberg, chairman, Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI), as chairman of the board.

Mitchell Cropp, president, CroppMetcalfe, Washington, DC — the 2008 Contracting Business.com Residential HVAC Contractor of the Year — and Chris Baker, president, Virginia Air Distributors, Richmond, VA, were  elected to vice chairman positions. David Swift, president/CEO of Goodman/Amana, was elected treasurer for the 2011-2012 term. Ray Isaac, president, Isaac Heating & Air Conditioning — the 2002 Contracting Business.com Residential HVAC Contractor of the Year — was named immediate past chairman.

Steve Yurek, president, Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), was selected as parliamentarian to the new executive committee.

 “Being named Chairman of the NATE Board of Trustees is a tremendous honor and a great responsibility. NATE is the true leader in certifying technician excellence for the HVACR industry, and I look forward to working with the exceptional NATE team and board to further its achievements,” Frendberg says.

The newly elected members to the NATE board of trustees include:

• Whit Perry, HVACR Technology Instructor, Northwest Mississippi Community College
• Bill Hainsworth, vice president/general manager, heating and cooling division, Rheem Manufacturing
• Wade Mayfield, president, Thermal Services
• Wayne R. Reedy, representative, ASHRAE
• John Conrad, publisher, ACHR News.

“I’m honored to congratulate the 2011-2012 slate of officers and welcome the new members of the NATE Board of Trustees,” says Peter Schwartz, NATE president/CEO. “With this dedicated team of brilliant industry professionals, NATE is well-poised for continued success, and I value the opportunity to work with each and every one of them.”

NATE is a leading certification organization for heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration technicians. NATE tests technicians while others train. Testing validates the technician's knowledge, and a training program's instruction. NATE-approved testing organizations throughout the U.S. and Canada offer NATE tests. Candidates can earn installation and/or service certification in nine specialty areas: air conditioning, air distribution, heat pumps, gas heating, oil heating, hydronic gas, hydronic oil, and commercial, light commercial refrigeration, and senior efficiency analyst. NATE also offers the International Ground Source Heat Pump test. natex.org