Despite being a well-known problem, the HVAC&R industry has yet to solve its technician shortage. From 2023 to 2033, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 42,000 openings annually for HVAC&R mechanics and installers, driven by the need to replace transferring or retiring technicians. In 2023, ACHR News reported that the HVAC industry alone faced a shortage of 110,000 technicians.
Morgan Vanzo, Senior Director of the North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC), called the technician shortage the “biggest challenge facing our industry today” during a presentation at the Food Industry Association (FMI) Energy and Store Development Conference, held September 23‒26 in Baltimore, Maryland,. “The solution to attract new talent and retain trained technicians requires everyone in the industry to engage,” she said.
In addition to the FMI Conference, the technician shortage was also a topic of discussion at the the 2024 Refrigerating Engineers and Technicians Association (RETA) Conference, held October 21‒24 in Grapevine, Texas. Presenters at both conferences shared strategies for addressing challenges related to technician recruitment, retention and training.
Recruit/train: NASRC, a non-profit organization, has implemented several recruitment initiatives and training opportunities after conducting surveys and interviews, which include its free technician training summits and R-Trade workforce development program for techs.
- Working with the ESCO Group, a developer of HVAC&R training resources, NASRC has developed a CO2 refrigeration curriculum for trade schools.
- With a grant from local natural gas provider SoCalGas, NASRC piloted a program in the summer of 2024 to train faculty from seven Southern California trade schools with established HVAC programs in supermarket refrigeration and CO2 systems. “Before the training, most participants were not interested in expanding their curriculum to include refrigeration,” Vanzo said. “After the five-week online course followed by two days of field training, 75% reported being extremely interested in adding refrigeration to their curriculum, with two schools actively pursuing it.”
- Given the financial challenges of a trade school owning and operating commercial equipment, NASRC plans to leverage its association with over 180 retail companies operating over 55,000 locations in a pilot program to provide students and faculty access to refrigeration systems.
Retention: Todd Ernest, Founder and CEO of Climate Pros, a nationwide commercial refrigeration and HVAC contractor, joined Vanzo in the FMI conference presentation. The company operates in over 40 states, with over 7,500 serviced locations and 1,600 employees.
- “We can reduce the workload on technicians by using technology to identify maintenance and prevent issues before they become weekend emergencies,” Ernest said.
- Capturing data helps with AI technology. However, the endless forms frustrate technicians, Ernest said, indicating that if the industry streamlined the process with an integrated information platform, it would reduce the time spent on paperwork.
- Ernest cited the pressure of the quick-build methods as one of the issues driving people out of the industry. “To allocate resources, we need to start considering projects two years in advance,” he advised. “The last-minute calls leave us scrambling and increase the workload on technicians.”
Untapped resource: In a presentation at the RETA conference, Jeff Sloan, Lead Instructor at Wagner-Meinert, an industrial refrigeration and food processing contractor, recommends finding new techs among the highly trained personnel exiting the military.
- Sloan, a retired Machinist Mate, listed several resources to locate qualified personnel exiting the military, including the Veterans Employment and Training Services, Recruit Military and the National Labor Exchange.
- RETA operates a Red, White and Cool program that provides retired military personnel three weeks of industrial refrigeration training and a Certified Assistant Refrigeration Operator (CARO) exam for certification.
Quotable: “The refrigeration industry is in the midst of a major shift, and we simply do not have enough technicians to meet the technology transition at the rate outlined by corporate goals,” Vanzo said. “As a group, we must align on industry best practices and guidance to meet the demand.”
“The solution to attract new talent and retain trained technicians requires everyone in the industry to engage.”
Morgan Vanzo, Senior Director of NASRC
