Every successful project starts with a framework. A vision statement. A blueprint. The staff of Engineered Systems is proud to present The Blueprint — a monthly Q&A interview with HVACR engineering’s leading voices. These one-on-one discussions examine the trade’s history, current industry trends, the factors shaping the sector’s future, and more.  
       In the most recent installment, Tim Kilgore, president of sales and marketing at Greenheck, discusses COVID-19’s impact on IAQ, how Greenheck’s products can help solve some of these concerns, what exciting innovations are coming down the pipeline, and more.
       Engineered Systems: The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every aspect of life. How did the Greenheck team respond to the pandemic?
       Kilgore: Our first and foremost concern was the safety and health of our employee teammates.  We quickly formed a COVID response team to determine and lead our internal action plans. We focused on communications to keep everyone aware of our plans, action steps, and response throughout the company. It was a team effort, and we were very successful in keeping our employees safe and our operations running to produce much-needed and critical HVAC products.
       Throughout the pandemic, we worked closely with engineers, contractors, and facility managers to manufacture and expedite delivery of our equipment to assist in renovating essential facilities to meet COVID-19 concerns. We’re proud to have provided critical contributions to many medical and health care facilities as they converted nontraditional spaces, such as parking garages, into COVID-19 units.
       The pandemic also forced us to switch gears internally as to how we offered training and education to our customers. Typically, our education center at our Schofield, Wisconsin, campus has about 2,000 guests visiting the building annually. With travel eliminated during the height of the pandemic, our team collaborated and came up with virtual, interactive solutions that were far beyond your average Zoom meetings. These new online trainings and HVAC University classes have been very well received in the engineering community with customer attendees doubling what our education center sees in person. Many of these attendees have never visited the campus, giving us an opportunity to reach new audiences we may never had the chance to interact with before. We plan to continue these online offerings in the future.
       Engineered Systems: The pandemic also brought an unprecedented level of awareness to indoor air quality. Can you tell us more about how Greenheck’s equipment is geared to minimize the spread of the virus?
       Kilgore: As a ventilation manufacturer coming up on our 75^th anniversary, our focus has always been on improving IAQ in commercial, institutional, and industrial buildings. Greenheck maintains its commitment to IAQ through engineering, certified third-party testing, and manufacturing a comprehensive line of ventilation products. Today, these products have an increased focus on decreasing the risk of disease transmission through the proper design, operation, and maintenance of HVAC systems. While there is no single way to eliminate viral transfer, we do know enhanced ventilation, humidity control, proper filtration, and air distribution can help mitigate the virus's spread.

Read the entire interview on Engineered Systems’ website.