If you are one of the contractors still affected by disruption from the storm or want to help, visit www.flopro.taco-hvac.com.
Cranston, R.I.-based
Taco Inc. has
been assisting victims of Hurricane Sandy since October when the company was
just missed by the worst of the superstorm.
“It looked at first
like we were the bulls eye, but as fate would have it, we missed the worst of
the assault,” said
Johnny White, Taco’s president and
CEO.
“The next day, it was clear to us that we
had a mandate,” added White. “We were spared by the storm’s worst, but there
are huge areas, especially to our south and west that took the hurricane’s full
hit, and they’ve still not recovered. Shortly after the storm, we met as groups
within the company, and with our reps and wholesalers. It was immediately apparent
that - because Sandy hit hard in hydronics country - we’d have to work hard to
keep up with replacement orders.”
Among those eager to join forces with
Taco to help with recovery and supply efforts was
Greg Talbot,
VP of sales for
Wales-Darby Inc., an Islandia,
NY-based manufacturer’s rep firm.
Taco’s
Steven Pearson,
VP, OEM sales, and
Ken
Anderson, VP of sales, Northeast region, joined a group of industry
representatives and contractors at Wales-Darby’s location in Islandia for a
meeting hosted by
Kevin Rooney, CEO,
Oilheat
Institute of Long Island. Attendees included representatives from several oil
heating companies and
Hunter Botto,
New
York state PHCC president.
“It was a big meeting with a real sense
of urgency and a lot of unanswered questions,” said Pearson. “The key items
were: ‘How many homes are affected?’, ‘How many boilers need to be replaced?’
and ‘What’s the time-frame?’”
“We learned, among other things, that
recovery efforts are now just the tip of the iceberg, and that more than 40,000
homes will require new heating systems - most of them hydronic. The meeting was
helpful, but there were still big questions about how best to pitch in with the
recovery,” said Talbot.
“Obstacles are inevitable; our key task is to lessen their
effect. Among the complications: there simply aren’t enough contractors, and
homes need to be certified before they can be re-inhabited.”
“Our focus at Taco is to eliminate any
bottlenecks in the pipeline,” said Anderson. “The focus is filling orders as
quickly as we possibly can and to coordinate assistance wherever possible. The
replacement work in Sandy’s wake has become a giant need, especially
considering that winter is right around the corner.”
At Taco,
the manufacturer’s employees are working overtime, and with overlapping shifts
to meet the need for replacement products. Also, vendors were asked to expedite
material and component shipments to meet the need.
The FloPro Team Neighborhood
We set up a task force that meets daily to
streamline the delivery of products into areas affected by the storm,”
explained
Todd Facey, Taco Sr. VP of Sales and Marketing. “We’re
also working with many of our OEM partners to help them ramp up boiler
production and shipments.”
Taco has also set a
group on their FloPro Team Neighborhood to connect contractors affected by
Sandy with other contractors around the country that are willing to provide
assistance. Check it out at
www.flopro.taco-hvac.com.
“The FloPro
Neighborhood is all about one hydronic professional helping another hydronic
“neighbor” - with education, practical answers or, in the case of the Sandy
aftermath, with equipment, or offering to lend a hand,” concluded Facey.
If you are one of the
contractors still affected by disruption from the storm, are having challenges
meeting customer’s hydronic needs, or if you’re able to help others with needs
like these, please visit the Taco FloPro Neighborhood.
Source:
TacoLinks
