ACCA Show Returns, With a Lively, Live Event

From ACCA Press Release

In a return to an in-person conference setting, Air Conditioning Contractors of America hosted a successful event at the St. Louis Union Station Hotel. The 2022 ACCA Conference & Expo featured more than 30 hours of dynamic programming focused on the most pressing issues facing HVACR contractors today.

“After nearly three years, it was great to see so many members of the ACCA family gathering together again at ACCA 2022 to discuss the challenges and opportunities affecting America’s leading HVACR contractors,” said Barton James, ACCA president and CEO. “We are especially grateful for the leadership of ACCA’s Board of Directors, who have been led by Brian Stack, president of Stack Heating, Cooling, and Electric, whose dedication to our organization and the industry helped ensure this even was a success. We look forward to the leadership of our new Chairman, Keith Paton, vice president of service at Ivey Mechanical, LLC., as the 2022-2023 Board of Directors take over.”

Show attendees devoted more than 30 hours to sessions during the three-day event. For amusement, there were tours of sites around St. Louis.

The ACCA Town Hall – Contractors Lead the Way general session allowed members to share their thoughts and insights on ACCA’s advocacy activities, helping to shape key initiatives and future priorities.

At the Manufacturer Leadership Forum, top manufacturing industry leaders took the stage, allowing for an open conversation about issues affecting the HVACR industry. Representatives from Carrier Corporation, Emerson Climate Technologies, Goodman Manufacturing Company, Johnson Controls and Rheem Manufacturing joined together to support attendees and answer their questions.

Contractor Forum Live: Ask the Experts brought ACCA’s popular online Contractor Forum to the stage, where a panel of ACCA members shared their unique perspectives on the surge of private equity investments sweeping the industry. Panelists included Lee Rosenberg, Rosenberg Indoor Comfort; Ken Goodrich, Goettl Air Conditioning & Plumbing; Chris Hoffman, Hoffman Brothers; Ryan Kletz, Classic Air's One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning; and Brioan Bovio, Bovio Rubino Service. The forum was moderated by Chris Yano, CEO of RYNO Strategic Solutions.

A morning session to cover Refrigerant Cylinder Ban Implications on Your Business focused on how the EPA’s cylinder ban will affect costs, time, safety, and product availability, along with what contractors can do to stop it.

Social events for attendees included The ACCA MIX Group® Speed Networking and Reception, sponsored by Scorpion, which allowed current and prospective MIX Group members to network with each other fast and efficiently, and the Emerson Celebration, which marked 100 years of Copeland’s industry leadership and acknowledge the 10-year ACCA/Emerson partnership.

Throughout the conference, ACCA honored the 2021 award winners for the ACCA Residential Contractor of the Year, Dr. Cool & Professor Heat; the ACCA Commercial Contractor of the Year, Howell's Heating & Air, the Federated Insurance-ACCA Super S.T.A.R. Award, to Hartley's Climate Control, the ACCA Distinguished Service Award, to Ryan Kletz; the ACCA Spirit of Independence Award, to the late Jack Rise; the ACCA Community Leadership Award, to Lanny Huffman; Rosenberg Indoor Comfort, San Antonio, Tex., received the 2022 ACCA Skip Snyder Humanitarian Award. Five categories of winners received ACCA Marketing Masters Awards.

The closing general session, Lessons in Leadership, featured the current and outgoing Board Chairs and taught attendees to take what they learned over the past three days, and to break it down into workable tasks, and put it to work for their businesses.

“ACCA 2022 was a great success, and we are honored that so many industry members came out to join us in St. Louis,” said Kimya Cajchun, ACCA director of events and benchmarking. “This conference was a long time coming but was well worth the wait. We look forward to seeing contractors and our industry partners again this fall at The Solar Forum in Phoenix, Ariz.; ACCA's 2022 Fall Meetings in Baltimore, Md; and the 2023 Conference & Expo in New Orleans, La.

ACCA 2022-2023 Board of Directors

ACCA’s 2022-2023 Board of Directors were announced during the 2022 ACCA Conference.  

Keith Paton, Ivey Mechanical LLC., Kosciusko, Miss., board chair 
Brian Stack, Stack Heating & Cooling, Avon, Ohio, immediate past chair
Stephen Pape, Pape Service Co., Desoto, Tex., senior vice chair
Martin Hoover, Empire Heating and Air Conditioning, Inc., Decatur, Ga., secretary/treasurer
Eddie McFarlane, HomeX, Lititz, Pa., vice chair
Tim Cropp, Cropp-Metcalfe Services, Fairfax, Va., vice chair.

Directors
Craig Elliot, Nice Home Services, Springfield, Va.
Vince Gillette, Gillette Air Conditioning Company, Inc., San Antonio, Tx.
Kurt Hudson, LC Anderson, LLC., Boston, Ma. 
Ryan Kletz, Classic Air’s One Hour Heating and Air Conditioning, Virginia Beach, Va.
Matt Marsiglio, Flame Furnace, Warren, Mich.
Cody Novini, SoCal Airflow Pros, Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.
Jennifer Pierce, Clay’s Climate Control, Linwood, N.J.