How HVAC and Power Plant Professionals Used LinkedIn in June

At this point in our collective cultural life, LinkedIn has become to the business and professional world what Facebook is to the social world: if not an absolute necessity, then just one step removed from it.  So this post is not about chiller tube cleaners, boiler tube cleaners, descaler systems, industrial vacuums, commercial pressure washers and other HVAC maintenance related equipment.  It’s about making you aware of some industry-related LinkedIn groups where experts and thought leaders share ideas, answer questions and provide valuable business insight.

How HVAC Professionals Used LinkedIn in June

There are a healthy number of groups on LinkedIn with a full or partial focus on HVAC. Of these, the most popular by far is HVAC Professionals, with a membership of more than 12,000. Created by David Spaeth, Vice President at Del-Monde, Inc., the group’s intended demographic is people “who are dedicated to the HVAC Industry and would like to expand their network with professionals within the various facets of this business.”

Popular conversations in this group in June centered around technical issues of HVAC technology and its operation, as well as “best practices” of both a technical and a business kind. These included:

• a conversation started by Bryan Brosseau, Online Marketing Manager at QualitySmith (@BryanBrosseau), to solicit opinions about an article at QualitySmith that looks at factors contributing to the cost of a central air-conditioning system. When Trish Holder, creator of Greenspiration Home (@Greenspiration), added a link to her article “Making Sure Your HVAC System Is Properly Sized,” the conversation turned into a roundtable on proper system design, installation, and maintenance.
• a conversation about whether HVAC pros use smartphones or iPads in the field. Quite a few group members said they do use iPads or other tablet computers. Even more said they use a smartphone, especially using the Android operating system. Clayton Plymill, Product Manager at Kele, Inc. (@cplymill) and a computer application developer, shared three iPhone/iPad apps that he wrote for HVAC control.
• a discussion started by LEED AP David Schurk about whether chillers ever operate at full load. The 60-odd responses collectively formed a virtual textbook about the ins and outs of chiller operation.

Refrigeration and Airconditioning Professionals Worldwide is another HVAC group on LinkedIn. It has 2,500 members and a stated goal of “connect[ing] refrigeration, airconditioning and HVAC professionals to share information and stimulate mutual business.” One of the most active conversations in June was started by Venkat Sundaram B., General Manager at VSmart Aircon Systems in Dubai. Four months ago he posted a question about spraying water or mist on air-cooled condenser coils to reduce their temperature and thus increase capacity and/or power consumption. This drew only a handful of responses over the next three months, but in June the conversation exploded, with a variety of group members adding more than 30 detailed and informative comments. Harold Stockton of Snow Leopard Productions in Austin and Russell McNeice of Energy Performance Solutions in Houston were particularly vocal, and their various agreements and disagreements led to a public exchange of useful and detailed information about operating procedures.

Other HVAC groups were not as active as these, but one of them, HVAC Specialist and Management, which is “For all HVAC – Cooling and Heating systems and Services specialists,” did have a very active conversation thread in which members shared their websites, social media links, and company descriptions.

How Power Plant Managers Used LinkedIn in June

In June, power plant managers used LinkedIn to share valuable information about technical aspects of plant management and operation. In the group Power Plant Operations & Maintenance (membership: 5,800), which “is dedicated to the free and open exchange of information and ideas related to managing all aspects of power plants,” this included high-participation conversations about:

• the function and workings of steam injectors
• options for sootblowing systems in coal-fired boilers
• the measurement of chloride in boiler feed water
• methods for finding boiler tube leakage
• definitions and examples of supercritical technology

Members also used this group for employment networking. Daniel Troublefield, for example, posted a number of notices about the need for plant engineers and managers in various locations, including Oklahoma and Toronto. Other employment calls appeared for maintenance managers, maintenance engineers, plant directors, project managers, and electrical engineers.

In another group, Power Plant Gurus (membership: 2,300), where people can “Share stories and experiences about your power plants, learn new technologies, and connect with other power plant professionals,” Surampalli Kishore, a senior engineer in the oil and energy industry (@isurampalli), received several informative responses to his question about what procedures to follow in order to shut down a plant safely if the display and monitoring system fails during a crisis. A number of members responded with concern or confusion to a question from another member about what would happen “if we reduce one stage of a multi stage HIGH PRESSURE pump like BOILER FEED PUMP?”

Next Steps

• Join these groups to engage with your peers and develop your professional network.
• Search for industry events in your area of expertise and begin engaging and networking in person.
• Subscribe to our blog to stay informed on the latest HVAC and Power Plant maintenance news and insight.