A model for HVAC excellence
Chad Simpson, the owner of Simpson Heating & Cooling, knows the HVAC business inside and out. He built the model many of his peers in the industry are trying to emulate. For his part, he’s always been ready to share what he knows.
That’s a big reason why ACHR News named Simpson, 39, to its “Top 40 Under 40” this year.
While Simpson may be a name on the rise, his passion for the profession spans half his life.
After graduating with a technical degree from the Buckeye Career Center, he founded Simpson Heating & Cooling with his father in 1999. From day one, his dream was to forge an institution of higher learning so that others could follow in his footsteps and progress in their career paths.
This year he realized his dream when The Learning Lab, a 5,000-square-foot facility in Canton, was complete.
“It’s been a dream since he started in the industry to have a place to train 365 days a year in Northeast Ohio regardless of the weather. It’s hard to train techs on furnaces in the summer and air conditioners in the winter,” said Steve VanHorn, an operations manager at Simpson Heating & Cooling.
Success didn’t happen overnight. Along the way, he had some help from his better half.
“Lindsey was Chad’s high school sweetheart. She graduated from Strasburg, and he graduated from Dover,” VanHorn said. “They started this together, and there were many times they thought the business might not make it. Now they have the most successful HVAC company in Tuscarawas County, and maybe a few others, and two great kids, Jake, age 12 and Elliot, age 6.”
Simpson’s heart is in the community he’s lived in all his life.
“Simpson Heating & Cooling does everything from Toys for Tots to sponsoring tons of youth sports teams, and a lot of different school events, scholarships, you name it,” VanHorn said. “I was looking at the financials and asked Chad how come I don’t hear more about this. He said, ‘I don’t give the money for recognition. I give the money because there are people in need and I want to help.’”
Over the 20 years Simpson labored to build the business into its success today, acquiring five other HVAC companies along the way, he earned an education, working every role essential to its operations, from service tech to CEO. He even produced what some might call his master’s thesis.
“He has an operations book,” VanHorn said. “Every employee gets a career path plan that shows them their job and our expectations of where they need to be to increase their hourly rate. Our employees are proactive in continuing education. Chad leads by example in that area.”
A hallmark of a professional is the desire and discipline for continuous improvement. Likewise, the operations book is an evolving document of best practices that, as an innovator, Simpson endeavors daily to discover.
“He’s the first one in our industry that I know of who builds out inventories for every vehicle,” VanHorn said. “He created very detailed inventory lists, diagrams of where every specific part goes and schedules to ensure every truck has everything on it the tech might need the very first time they make a call. It’s an upfront cost to the company, but no one can afford to go without heat for an extended period when it’s 20 degrees outside.”
That promise to his customers is a competitive advantage Simpson is happy to share.
“He spent so much time developing these processes, hundreds of man-hours, but he’s happy to share them any time another company asks,” VanHorn said.
That’s what makes Simpson an industry leader and why, partnering with Refrigeration Sales Corp., he was able to see his dream realized.
“The Learning Lab’s got a 40-seat classroom, a 25-foot projection screen and a full metal fabrication shop,” VanHorn said. “When our techs want to continue their career progression, that’s where they go. There are companies all over the country looking to build similar facilities based on Chad’s model.”
Call 330-339-1177 to reach Simpson Heating & Cooling, located at 817 W. High Ave., New Philadelphia. To learn more, visit SimpsonHeating.com. This story has been underwritten by Simpson Heating & Cooling.