BDR - Experts & Thought Leaders

Business Development Resources (BDR), the training and business coaching authority for home services industry professionals, announces a new partnership with PPATEC, the technical education provider for the Pennsylvania Petroleum Association. The first results of the partnership will be a pair of hands-on courses, led by seasoned BDR coaches at PPATEC’s Grantville, Pennsylvania, training facility. The first of these courses, Managing & Growing Service Profitably, will be taught by Jennifer Shooshanian, BDR’s senior service coach and trainer. Built for business owners and service managers, the course outlines a proven framework to run a profitable services department through strategies and processes used by top-performing HVAC companies. The course is scheduled for Feb. 25-26, 2026. Customer communication skills A second course, Top Gun Technician Excellence, will be led by Shaun Weiss, a head coach and trainer with BDR. The course will help HVAC technicians improve their customer communication skills and establish a defined service delivery procedure, ultimately leading to fewer callbacks and more referrals. The course will take place March 31-April 1, 2026. “We’re excited to be partnering with PPATEC to deliver in-person training events for home service contractors,” said Matt MacArthur, senior vice president of training and marketing for BDR. “Both these classes have proven to be highly impactful and engaging experiences for all who attend, and are backed by real-world results, equipping HVAC teams to level up in the new year.” Opportunities for service and installation departments PPATEC’s training center provides a state-of-the-art setting for HVAC training, offering not only modern classrooms but also realistic lab environments. The facility regularly hosts students looking to enter the HVAC field, as well as established technicians and contractors looking to elevate their skills. “It is our goal to be a full-service training provider for the home service industry,” said Ted Harris, executive vice president of PPATEC. “The core competency of our school is centered around hands-on training solutions for service and installation technicians. The collaboration with BDR will extend beyond our technical training program and add valuable educational opportunities for service and installation departments, particularly focusing on profitability and customer communication skills. This partnership adds more value to our members and industry stakeholders who trust PPATEC as a training partner.”

Business Development Resources (BDR), the training and business coaching authority for home services industry professionals, announces its upcoming first-quarter 2026 schedule of BDRU (BDR University) courses. These interactive training sessions are designed for HVAC, plumbing, electrical and other home services contractors looking to sharpen their team’s skillset, strengthen their financial acumen and accelerate business growth. Real-world insights and actionable tools “The start of a new year is the ideal time for business owners and their teams to build momentum and set the foundation for exceeding their annual goals,” said Matt MacArthur, senior vice president of training and marketing at BDR. “Our upcoming classes brings together field-tested strategies, real-world insights and actionable tools that drive results for contractors at every level.” Highlights of BDRU’s first-quarter schedule Top Gun Technician Excellence (Jan. 22-23): By elevating their customer service skills, technicians can reduce callbacks, improve revenue generation and increase their overall value to the company. How to Read Your Profit & Loss (Jan. 29): Participants in this class will demystify the profit-and-loss statement, turning financial data into decision-making power. Top Gun Sales Excellence (Feb. 5-6): This class gives retail sales professionals and owners a fresh look at a proven sales process to close more jobs by educating the customer, without using high-pressure tactics. Generating Work: Practical Strategies to Get More Leads (Feb. 17): Focusing on low-cost, high-impact lead generation strategies for service and installation, attendees will learn how to execute marketing tactics that can fill an empty service or install schedule. Service Dispatch University (Mar. 2-6): Dispatchers in this class will learn the proven techniques to reduce drive time and improve their dispatching skills, leading to more profitable results in the service department. BDRU+ training program These courses are open to home service business owners, managers, technicians, sales teams and service pioneers seeking to increase their competitive edge. Each is delivered by seasoned industry trainers and backed by BDR’s proven legacy of helping thousands of contractors build high-performance companies. Registration for these and other Q1 courses is now open on the website. Registering through the BDRU+ training program provides industry-pioneering workforce development options that can fit into any company's training budget, offering scalable learning for teams of all sizes. 

Business Development Resources (BDR), the training and business coaching authority for home services industry professionals, has announced its fall schedule of BDR University (BDRU) courses, designed to equip contractors with the tools and strategies they need to operate their businesses more efficiently and profitably. These live, interactive virtual training courses are open to business owners and managers as well as installers, sales teams, technicians and dispatchers from the HVAC, plumbing and electrical industries. Each course is developed and led by a seasoned trainer with real-world experience and success in the trades, and is backed by BDR’s 27+ year proven track record of delivering effective training and instruction. High-value learning opportunity “The fall season is a critical time of year for home service business owners and managers to invest in their teams and build on the skills that will drive better results,” said Matt MacArthur, senior vice president of training and marketing at BDR. “BDRU courses are designed with that in mind and carefully developed to provide the kind of high-value learning opportunity that businesses need to drive profits and scale.” Some standout selections from the fall BDRU lineup include: How to Read Your Balance Sheet (Sept. 25): Walkthrough the elements that make up the balance sheet, turning it into a powerful tool for owners in managing the business. Top Gun Sales Excellence (Oct. 2-3): Implement a proven sales process to drive more revenue and higher closing rates - all based on educating the customer, not high-pressure tactics. Creating the Next Generation of Company Managers (Oct. 9): Discover the leadership tools necessary for employees to successfully transition into management roles. Top Gun Installer Excellence (Oct. 16): Equip installers with process and communication skills to complete successful installations that generate better reviews and more referrals. Customer Experience University (Oct. 22-23): Learn skills to improve communication and service quality, building trust with both internal and external customers. Registration Registration for these and other fall courses is now open at http://www.bdrco.com/upcoming-bdr-events. Registering through the BDRU+ training program provides industry-pioneering workforce development options that can fit into any company's training budget, offering flexible, scalable learning for teams of all sizes. More information is available at http://www.bdrco.com/bdr-university-plus/. For additional details about BDR, visit http://www.bdrco.com.

The 486,805 square feet of exhibit space at AHR Expo 2023 in Atlanta provided clear evidence of how technology innovation in HVAC has accelerated in the last decade. Change and progress were everywhere among the 1,779 exhibitors, including 425 international exhibits. HVAC systems on display New electronic tools, cloud-based solutions, higher efficiency ratings, mini-split systems, new regulations, and new control strategies are driving product development enabling HVAC systems to deliver new solutions for customers. The 42,794 attendees at AHR Expo 2023 took notice. Heat pumps continue to lead product innovation, with many systems targeting better performance in colder climates. Combination systems that incorporate water heating along with ambient heating and cooling are also more common. solutions rather than equipment More than one exhibitor at AHR Expo 2023 noted that their emphasis this year is on “solutions rather than equipment.” It’s no longer just about products, or even about how things work. Rather, it’s about how they work together, and what problem(s) they can solve. Digital systems Digital systems are higher-profile this year than ever, somewhat supplanting the dominance of large equipment displays of years past. Instead of showing the big equipment, some exhibitors embraced schematics and animated simulations to demonstrate their operation on a video screen. Virtual displays also highlighted the operation of electronic control systems and other digital elements of the latest HVAC systems. Regulations, positive economic winds Regulations are ensuring a continuing demand for new equipment, and tax incentives are creating new business growth An economic slowdown is a possibility later in 2023, according to economists, but there was little concern evident at AHR Expo. Exemplifying an industry in the process of reinventing itself, the show reflected positive economic winds that will make HVAC more lucrative than ever in the coming years. Regulations are ensuring a continuing demand for new equipment, and tax incentives (such as those in the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act) are creating new business growth. Several exhibitors helpfully highlighted which of their products are eligible for tax incentives. new sustainable HVAC technologies As part of the broader trend of digital transformation in the built environment, HVAC is interfacing with building systems in new ways. As a major player in decarbonization, new HVAC technologies will lead the way to a more sustainable future. IAQ and decarbonization HVAC is also at the center of concerns about indoor air quality (IAQ) that follow a worldwide pandemic. “IAQ and decarbonization are the two most important trends in the built environment and will remain so for decades to come,” says David Budzinski, President, of Global Residential & Light Commercial at Johnson Controls.   electronic offerings An integration tool called NODE-Red enables various IoT sensors to be configured virtually into the system An example of electronic offerings at AHR was Delta Controls’ Red5 room controller which combines HVAC controls with Internet of Things (IoT) capabilities, enabling more devices to interoperate and communicate in a building system. An integration tool called NODE-Red enables various IoT sensors to be configured virtually into the system. Also, the O3 sensor detects motion to assess the number of room occupants without using video (less intrusive); it also measures humidity, temperature, sound, light intensity, etc. AIM Act With Jan. 1, 2025, looming for compliance with the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act to phase out the use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), there is still a lot of work to do. A proposed rule prohibits the manufacture of equipment containing HFCs by Jan. 1, 2025.   Energy transition “If all of our work together, whether manufacturers, contractors, or distributors, we can keep this conversation front and center and be ready for the transition,” says Brandon Marshall, Chemours’ North American Marketing Manager for Thermal & Specialized Solutions. “If we work together, we can navigate the change, and training is a key piece of it.” Best practices Becoming better informed enables everyone to understand and get comfortable with the solutions" Some new refrigerants are rated “mildly flammable.” Although this is a consideration, it should not be a major concern, says Marshall.  “Best practices can ensure you are managing the product safely, and becoming better informed enables everyone to understand and get comfortable with the solutions.” awareness Chemours conducts webinars, publishes documents, and makes updates available about the refrigerant transition. “We have to pay attention to the regulatory environment,” says Marshall. “Jan. 1, 2025, is coming fast.” More awareness is needed as the industry works toward the deadline. Contractors should also beware of low-quality or counterfeit refrigerant products, says Marshall. skilled labor shortage The skilled labor shortage in HVAC and other trades was another theme at AHR 2023. The labor shortage increases the need for training. “If you want to grow your business 20 to 30%, you should grow your people that much both the number of people and the knowledge of staff,” says Dan Clapper, Market Director, Interplay Learning. He adds that a company should devote up to 10% per week to training. Interplay Learning’s interactive, 3D simulation-based training platform is “as close to on-the-job training as you can get.” In effect, the simulations provide “before-the-job training.” Training investments Another training company, BDR (Business Development Resources), notes that their clients demonstrate 38% higher revenue per employee and 81% higher gross profit per employee. Revenue per service truck increases to $40,000 from the industry average of $12,000 after investments in training, says BDR, which provides in-person classes. Another exhibitor, XOi Technologies offers a smartphone app that provides expertise to lesser-trained HVAC installers. Their slogan is “We’re your journeyman on every job.” Journeyman is the brand name of the helpful app.