How Commercial HVAC Data in a Scorecard Adds Value to Contractors’ Business

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Digital transformation permeates every industry and process on the planet at an accelerated pace these days. To that end, commercial HVAC contractors and service providers have a unique opportunity to leverage commercial HVAC data to achieve digital transformation in an industry that has traditionally relied on analog, anecdotal, manual, schedule-overbearing processes. Furthermore, economic uncertainty and instability in the market have forced facility managers and small business owners to dramatically rethink their existing plans for repairing or replacing HVAC units. It is simply too much information for the typical facility manager or multi-unit small business owner to handle. HVAC service contractors can rise to the occasion by leveraging and partnering with these customers to deploy smart commercial HVAC data analytics. They can use that data and their solutions, such as the HYLTH-E scorecard, to add value to contractors’ businesses. 

A Scorecard Makes Contractors Valuable vs. Seen as a Commodity 

The biggest opportunity for improvement within a commercial HVAC business lies in creating a scorecard that actively provides a roadmap for performing commercial HVAC maintenance without the smoke-and-mirrors approach of traditional planned, scheduled, or preventative maintenance strategies. In fact, when you lead with data, you gain your customers’ trust. 

Instead of simply saying, “this unit is 12 years old and needs to be replaced,” business owners and facility managers are more likely to trust the HVAC contractor that offers insight into why and when the unit may stop working altogether. Instead of seeing you as a commodity that is easily replaceable by a cheaper bid, you and your HVAC contracting business become a true partner with that company. The scorecard creates a sense of comfort to the budget-cautious customer.  

Commercial HVAC data within the scorecard ensures maintenance is performed as needed instead of on a schedule. It reduces the number of total truck rolls, further reducing business costs, and allows the contractor and manager to have proactive conversations around data and not an endless, principles’ office visit on why you need to replace the unit now or find a different contractor. As a result, the contractor who leads with commercial HVAC data builds a true strategic partnership with their customers who no longer sees the contractor as a replaceable commodity.   

Data-Driven Scorecards Allow Contractors to Get More Life out of Each Unit for their Customers 

Data-driven scorecards allow contractors to get more life out of all units and keep HVAC spend under control for your end customers by transforming the complex “how is my unit doing?” questions into an easy to understand score. For example, the HYLTH-E Card involves the creation of the unit’s annual score on a scale of 1 to 100 that is based on more than a million annual data points of the unit’s performance, runtime, and age. Using sensors connected to the unit, the HYLTH-E Card also considers the average occupied setpoint, the average unoccupied set time point, the average cooling Delta T, which refers to the change in temperature of both the air supply and “conditioned” air. Furthermore, this information reveals the actual demand on the unit and tracking performance metrics of that unit, such as runtime, providing a predictive approach of when it’s time to replace the filter or otherwise service the unit. In some cases, older units may need less maintenance if they run less.  

As further explained by IoTWorldToday, “if better data collection leads to greater efficiency, the service history function is a boon to this product’s efficiency allowing technicians to browse data from previous service sessions and build a history for each unit serviced over a period of years. This access to past work history can help alert contractors to patterns in the units the service on a large or small scale.” The combined value of data within the scorecard allows for service contractors to predict the number of possible visits within the upcoming year, allowing facility managers to focus more on their budgets, and building the trust between the servicer and the manager. 

The Scorecard Transforms Contractors into Strategic Partners in Capital Budgeting 

Contractors can use commercial HVAC data and the HYLTH- E Card to empower a data-driven conversation between facilities managers, financial people, and business owners.  

In those meetings, armed with data and knowledge from the HVAC contractor, the facility manager is now seen as the hero who brings reduced operating expenses and smarter capital planning to their bosses instead of a reactive manager who is seen simply only driving up costs. In many instances, there may not be a formal Facility Manager or anyone else with the time to focus on the issues which make the data-driven solution Contractor all the more valuable. C-Suite Executives and Small Business Owners learn to lean on the information provided by contractors for strategic advice on capital budgeting and how to get the most value from each unit. For example, with data as the guide, the business decision-makers keep HVAC maintenance and unit replacements within the budget. In turn, those decision-makers will continue to give that contractor more business throughout the years, increasing the lifetime revenue of each customer for the contractor. 

Put the Power of the Commercial HVAC Data Powered HYLTH E-Card to Work Now 

The value of data in promoting efficiency and proper, when-you-actually-need-it maintenance lies in getting access to data sooner rather than later. It’s time to become a data-driven technician and avoid the commoditization of HVAC maintenance. Find out how to get started by visiting Hytech online today.