Conditioned Air Takes Top Honors

Posted on March 7, 2010

ACCA’s “opening ceremonies” here in Tampa included recognition of the top residential contracting companies in the country. With three cutting-edge contenders as finalists, the 2010 Contractors of the Year residential award went to Conditioned Air Corp. of Naples, Fla.

There’s a lot to learn from the way Conditioned Air steers its ship. Sure, it’s an HVACR company, so it needs top-notch technical abilities, training programs and customer service approaches. But the company, under the leadership of Theo Etzel, also pays a lot of attention to the business of the business.

As an economist with a business background in other industries, Etzel believes in open-book management to promote employee buy-in and hiring the best people to fill various roles in the company. And the game plan is certainly working—since 1995, he has grown the company from $2.5 million in annual sales to about $17.5 million annually.

“This year’s revamped program brought in more applications than ever before,” said Paul Stalknecht, president and CEO, as he announced the residential winner at the opening general session of the 42nd Annual Conference. “We discovered a lot of outstanding contractors who are doing significant work in their communities. This made the judges’ job more difficult—and the honor even more special.”

“Right now, my fingerprints are on this trophy but many fingerprints... have shaped this company into what it is today,” said Etzel, as he accepted his company’s award in front of a full house.

Etzel also credited his ACCA MIX group as having fueled his company's success. "Become involved," he encouraged session attendees. "It will change you. It will change your company and only for the better."

And stay tuned, ladies and gentlemen. ACCA presents the commercial Contractors of the Year award in just a couple of days at the closing general session. The honoree remains a secret until Tuesday afternoon!