Latest / The Refrigeration Mentor Podcast / Episode 190. Turning Mistakes Into Lessons and Accelerating Your Refrigeration Career with Andrew Freeburg

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Episode 190. Turning Mistakes Into Lessons and Accelerating Your Refrigeration Career with Andrew Freeburg · The Refrigeration Mentor Podcast

• 0:00
  Andrew: What I did was, when I called for help when I very first started, I started making a list of what they were asking me, and that's how I put my list together. So they're asking, superheat of the coil, amp draw of the compressor, what type of system is it, where are you at? I just started writing those questions that they were asking me down, so when I call, I could just start naming off what they're going to, you know, they're going to say, that's a good reference of how my career progressed, right? They're asking me the questions. I already had the answers.
• 0:01
  Trevor: Welcome to the Refrigeration Mentor Podcast. I'm your host Trevor Matthews. As a former technician turned entrepreneur, my goal is to really help train you, educate
• 0:02
  Andrew: you, and mentor you in the commercial refrigeration industry.
• 0:03
  Trevor: Each week, I'm going to have
• 0:04
  Andrew: top guests
• 0:05
  Trevor: from technicians.
• 0:06
  The manufacturers to experts around the world to really help us grow and learn together by sharing their knowledge in commercial refrigeration, commercial HVAC. And not only on the technical side, but really the professional and the personal development side as well. I'm really excited that you're here.
• 0:07
  Now let's get a conversation going. Hey, welcome to the refrigeration mentor podcast. I'm your host, Trevor Matthews. Today. I got a special guest, a good friend of mine, Andrew Freeberg. He's been in some of my trainings, but he's a true advocate for the industry. He loves sharing his knowledge. I've been watching his stuff on LinkedIn, continuing to share his knowledge on helping the other refrigeration professionals out in the field.
• 0:08
  This is what he's passionate about. And he had an amazing journey so far in the refrigeration industry. And he's just getting started. We're going to be diving into some of the things that he, how he helps other people, uh, how he has grown in the industry. Um, and I'm super excited to have Andrew here and we're going to be chatting about a lot of things that I love about the industry, Andrew, welcome to the refrigeration mentor podcast.
• 0:09
  How are you doing? Oh,
• 0:10
  Andrew: great, Trevor. Thank you. I appreciate, uh, being on top, uh, part of this podcast. I think what you're doing here is wonderful and I'm just super excited to be here with
• 0:11
  Trevor: you. Well, I'm so happy that you're taking the time to do this because I know you're, we're busy in our industry. We're super busy, but the thing is what you do is you take the time To help share your knowledge with other people on your own time.
• 0:12
  And even outside of work and inside work, which is amazing. And we need more people like you in industry, Andrew, why don't we talk a little bit about your journey? How did you get started in industry? Because everyone has their own journey, their own pathway into refrigeration, and it's not all the same to everyone.
• 0:13
  Let's I'd love to hear about how you get into the refrigeration industry.
• 0:14
  Andrew: Perfect. Yeah, I would love to start there. Trevor. Um, what really how I got started was back in high school getting ready to graduate. Um, my dad was always you got to do something. You got to do something. So he gets a lot of credit here.
• 0:15
  How I got into the refrigeration world. Um, so I didn't know what I was going to do. You know, a kid in high school. You just want to go and have fun all the time, right? And then reality starts to hit in and it's like, wow, I got to do something. Right. So I didn't know what to do. And well, um, my dad does supermarket refrigeration also.
• 0:16
  Uh, he's retired now. Uh, but I followed his footsteps and I tell you, I, I wouldn't look back for nothing. I, I absolutely love this trade. Got a huge passion for it. And I'm just super excited to be part of this and training and everything. So, but going on through my. As soon as I got out of high school, literally two weeks later, I'm in trade school.
• 0:17
  Um, I went to Perry Technical Institute and started my training right there, right there. So, two years go down the line, uh, It's just real basic refrigeration and electrical theory, getting in a little bit of the supermarket stuff. And then, but it's a mixture of everything at that program, which is great because then you kind of get to see what Avenue of the industry that you want to go into.
• 0:18
  But for me, of course, I went the supermarket route partially because my dad was in it and, you know, I really look up to the guy. So. Then heading out, I went, uh, into the supermarket field after that two years, and really, I started doing installs first. Uh, I was out in the field doing installs for a year, and that transitioned from school to Uh, the field work is just, it's incredibly different and you just get mentally exhausted by trying to figure out all that stuff that you learned in school, put it in real play.
• 0:19
  And now you got it customers ready to rock. You got your boss saying you need to do this, this, and this. So that transition was awesome. Was really tough to be honest, um, and I just would get mentally just exhausted. So that transition happened, but, you know, do an install was great because you got to learn to put cases together, build some walk ins, uh, lay the, um, the evaporators, you know, uh, start if there's anything electrical.
• 0:20
  So it was just a mixture of everything. And I'm so thankful for that because now I walk into a grocery store or, you know, a convenience store, I can't help, but look up and look at the pipe. Right. Uh, so you just, you just kind of get into that type of, uh, mental set and you just like, well, that looks good.
• 0:21
  Or like, man, I'll be proud to do that one. You know? Um, so yeah, uh, that's how that journey started. And then. A physician opened up for service, uh, this was about a year later. And for the most part, I've been doing service ever since just doing supermarket refrigeration. I love that. And I
• 0:22
  Trevor: like to go back, go back just to your experience in the construction.
• 0:23
  Cause I think that is key for supermarket technicians is to do some construction work. Cause that's what I started in. Um, it was a disadvantage when I was on call and I was thrown to the wolves for sure, but it gave me that outlook on how a system should be laid out. And I learned, uh, what to do and not to do because I put ball valves in places that I should not have did because I didn't understand the service side.
• 0:24
  So I went into the service, I did some service work, and then I did some more construction. I'm like, that was totally wrong. I should not have put it that ball valve thing. 14 feet in the air where you need to get a skyjack or a lift to get to it, or a 14 foot ladder, like I made those mistakes because I didn't know the difference.
• 0:25
  Right. And so doing that construction gave me a real good perspective on the service side and vice versa. Uh, and I highly recommend starting out if you can get some of that, you know, that breakthrough construction, because a lot of people, for me, I had to do construction to get into the supermarket. I couldn't just go into service.
• 0:26
  There was no service rolls available, lots of construction rolls. And, uh, when I did mine was the same as you. I did drains, I did putting the cases together. I did the piping, I did the cases, I did the walk in box. I did it all because I wanted to, to, you know what I mean? Even the insulation, it's, it wasn't fun.
• 0:27
  Doing insulation, coming home, hands full of glue and peeling off this glue where I should have been wearing gloves. Yeah. But I learned from that, you know, got those, those learning, you know, those on my belt, notching them off and just made me a better technician in the long run. Do you feel the same?
• 0:28
  Andrew: Oh, absolutely.
• 0:29
  Like there, there's so much knowledge just in the construction field that does transfer to the service side. And then if you jump back into the service, I can agree with you a hundred percent on that. Because they are definitely go hand in hand. And that's what makes a great partnership. If you have that, uh, that transition of those, those, uh, type of the field, you know, um, And having that transition just helps you even further down the, down in the field.
• 0:30
  You know what I mean? It's just, it's just, it's incredible how they correspond with each other. And some of the stuff, if you just do service or you just do install, you'll miss that you don't, you'll, it's not that you won't understand it. You just don't think about it. Right. And that's where that I highly recommend myself start off an insult so you can see why is it important for a slope?
• 0:31
  Right. Why do you have to p trap down at the bottom to go straight up and then you just You know, putting walk in panels together, cases together, all of that. It's just all important because now you're going to get how that's laid out. So if you do have a leak in a case, now you got that, what you're thinking when, when you're, when you're trying to fix a leak in the case or something.
• 0:32
  So, yes. And
• 0:33
  Trevor: I've talked to lots of people over the years. Um, even friends is like, well, I did construction, but all I did was burn pipe. Well, if you just want to burn pipe, you will just burn pipe. If you don't show any initiative. To want to do more because I've seen those guys, technicians come in and construction and all they did was put, uh, do pipe, that's it.
• 0:34
  But those guys who showed initiative and wanted to do more, they did the, they got the opportunity to replace stuff. Do you know, do you add satellite units? If they needed a satellite unit, uh, burn in the condenser, you know what I mean? Burning the racks, they're tying in all the racks, getting the responsibility to do the pressure test, the leak test, all these different things, test the controllers, things like that, or test the valve, set up the store afterwards.
• 0:35
  Because not only you do the install, then you can get in. If you were, you know, you're motivated and you ask, you can do the startup as well, you know, it's not going to happen all the time, but that's how you grow your knowledge. If you just burn pipe and you don't ask to do more, you'll just burn pipe.
• 0:36
  Andrew: Yeah, you're right. Uh, one of the big things that I learned throughout my career, Trevor was being comfortable, being uncomfortable. That makes sense. Putting yourself out there, even if you don't know it, we could learn it, right? That's the. Best part about this trade is, is there's so much you can learn. Um, and it just keeps that exciting and that whole piece of this, uh, trade, just moving forward, that's what really excites me because it's never the same, which I'm so thankful for.
• 0:37
  Trevor: Yeah. So you did that year of construction or install, and then you moved into service and you've been in the service pretty much ever since doing a few jobs, I'm sure here and there, let's talk about your service experience. You started out same as me. I'm sure after a year of construction, you go into service and you're like thrown to the wolves, it's like, You don't really understand what hot gas defrost is.
• 0:38
  You kind of understand the concept of it or cool gas defrost or working on EnviroGuards or whatever. So let's talk about the early, early years of being a service technician and the things that you did. That worked the things that you that didn't work and how you grew yourself over the years
• 0:39
  Andrew: Oh, that's that's uh, that's good question there.
• 0:40
  Uh, so Uh, when I first started getting into the service, they didn't throw me on racks right away Um, so it was more of the conventional systems, you know one on ones um and self contained type units or cases Uh, so that's where I kind of started my career. Um also on You You know, on this topic, uh, not only did I do refrigeration, I was also on the hot side, so I would be doing combi ovens, um, hot cases, mixer, grinders.
• 0:41
  I mean, you walk into a grocery store, I was taking care of it for the most part, all of it. I mean, it's been at one sweet career for me. I've learned a lot, uh, but. Uh, to answer that question. It was real basic stuff. So, you know, what, what does a headmaster do? You know, um, if it goes bad, what are the reaction?
• 0:42
  All that, I, you kind of briefly talk about in school, but for me, this was over a year later. Um, so I really was trying to get all that knowledge. You know, what is a PR, a potential relay? How does that act? Is there an importance of that bleed resistor, you know, so then all these things start coming into my mind.
• 0:43
  I'm like, what is all this? Um, so that you just have to start doing and, and kind of investing in yourself to know what you're, what you're doing, but with all that information just piling up, you know, you got call after call after call, it's just a lot to take over. Uh, so for me, starting off conventional systems was the way to go.
• 0:44
  You learn about time clocks, the importance of, uh, electric defrost, off cycle defrost, of course, hot gas, um, oh, ice machines. I was doing a bunch of ice machines. Um, so all that stuff is just thrown at you, you know, and trying to wrap your mind with it. Everything mechanical, electrical, there's just a lot going on.
• 0:45
  So, challenges was really just understanding every single component and the why behind it and how does it work. As soon as, as soon as you know your standard components that transition from the single systems to the rack system, it really makes a big difference. Trying to learn it all and trying to understand, I think that will be.
• 0:46
  Even more of a mental load on you, but I'm definitely thankful where they sent me on conventional systems, worry about charge filter dryers, what happens when they plug out. I mean, I, I made my fair mistakes to out there in the field. You hear these tricks, right? If you see a sight glasses, it's bubbling.
• 0:47
  Oh, it's low on charge. What do you do? You charge it up, right? Well, what about if that filter's plugged up, you know, right before that filter, or that side glass? You know, that was one of my biggest learning moments. Those, those things really helped, you know. Um, it was a mistake on my own, absolutely. Uh, but I learned from it, and that's part of this trade, right?
• 0:48
  That's where it gets exciting. And luckily, my boss wasn't upset, you know, when I did that. He understood, he was there too, so. That's cool. He's like, well, you're going to pull the charge. You're going to go find out what's really wrong because that receiver is only, you know, about this big and you think 30 pounds fit in that.
• 0:49
  I'm like, yeah, it doesn't make sense. Yeah,
• 0:50
  Trevor: exactly. No. And this is how you, what's great about this industry is that we learn and we grow, and as long as you, you learn from those mistakes, you can't just keep making those mistakes. And these are things that we'll never forget. I remember smashing my first compressor and I will never forget that because that was 100 percent my fault and it felt terrible.
• 0:51
  I felt terrible inside making that mistake. I knew it was mine. I was like, well, how do I. Explain this to the customer. You know what I mean? That's when you make a phone call to your service manager and you talk to them about What you got to do and good service managers like okay, we're gonna eat this We're gonna we gotta own this we made the mistake here And you got to explain that we got to go get another compressor And these are the things the processes that you need to do and take in place.
• 0:52
  How quickly can you get it up? You know what I mean? Absolutely and good coaches and mentors in your team You It's going to talk to you like that, not hiding stuff. When you make mistakes, you got to be honest with your team, your service manager, your boss, it's so, so important because mistakes do happen because they made those mistakes and you got to explain what happened, what you did, and hopefully they'll ask you, what did you learn from this too?
• 0:53
  You know, they're going to be pissed for sure. You know what I mean? It's just, but did you learn from that and grow?
• 0:54
  Andrew: Absolutely. And that's, that's like, like you've been saying, that's part of this trade is. Is making, honestly, you're going to make mistakes out there. That's, that's just how you learn part.
• 0:55
  And of course, you ideally is to learn from other people's mistakes, right? Uh, but you know, it is going to happen and I don't want that to discourage anybody. You know, that's the most important part there is that just, just because you make a mistake, don't beat yourself up, learn from it. And then you're good to go for the next next one and next
• 0:56
  Trevor: one and that's that's the big thing is that You got to keep trying what i've seen and i've even done it in the past where I spend way too much time Trying to troubleshoot something When if you're 30 40 minutes in and you don't have a clue what's happening You got to make that phone call.
• 0:57
  You don't wait to four or five hours in And I made that mistake a few times embarrassed to make that phone call. You know what I mean? Nervous that, you know, I'm a journeyman now and I can't figure this problem out. It doesn't matter if you're four or five years in, as long as you get your, that process in a place.
• 0:58
  And I think that's really where the game changed for me in the industry is when I really got some systems and processes in my own service. Um, because I was back and forth from construction to service for years, just doing different things. And then when I finally realized, you know, five, six years in that I needed some processes when I play it, put those processes in place, like different checklists, different assignments for myself, that's really when the game changed for you, was there a turning moment in your career, you know, cause you're, this is, we're talking about your starting and starting of your career.
• 0:59
  Was there like a turning point when your thing just started clicking for you?
• 1:00
  Andrew: Uh, yeah, so about two years, I would say, into the field, so I had a year into, um, uh, construction or install, and then a year later, I was in service, and they My boss saw my progression, how I was learning things, picking everything up, um, of course having some hard, very hard learning moments on the way, um, but as you learn from those and you progress, then I just remember about two years in, I'm like, man, I feel like I could fix almost keyword.
• 1:01
  It was almost anything, anything that they throw at me, I'm going to fix it. You know, uh, it might, it might take me a little longer, but I'm going to get it. You know, that was my mindset about two years into it. But the first two years I was mentally just exhausted. I just remember going home after the end of the day, after that last service call, cause you, you got up early, you worked late, you get home, you eat dinner and it's like, man, I got to go to bed, but you're just mentally exhausted.
• 1:02
  But, you know, that's just, that's, that's the fun part. And then after that two years, all of a sudden I was like, okay, I'm, I'm picking this up, I'm doing this call. Let, let get down those racks, just getting those things all lined up and working, but yeah, two years into it. I don't know. There's not like a, a job or anything.
• 1:03
  I just remember that two year mark. I felt like, okay, I'm really starting to understand that. No,
• 1:04
  Trevor: and that's good. And everyone's going to learn at a different, uh, progression path. And some people are going to pick. Things up quicker or not. And I think at the end of the day, it's how motivated are you to Become better than you were yesterday And I think that's where the changing point for a lot of people are is that you know when you start Thinking about this as a career not just a job.
• 1:05
  You're gonna start to love it more. There's gonna be not fun days For sure. There's lots of not fun days, especially when you make those mistakes or make a, uh, don't, don't finish something on time or you miss an event. You know what I mean? This happens. Uh, and it happens with any role, not only it being a refrigeration technician, but you got to really reflect on the things that you've done.
• 1:06
  And I think that will help you. Uh, and I don't believe enough technicians do that. I see a lot of technicians and maybe you can agree or not that they'll look at their week call, they did 25, 30 calls, whatever they did, but they'll pick the one or two that they made a mistake on, not the 22 that they did great on, you know, when it finished, it was called quick on time.
• 1:07
  Customer was happy, but they make a mistake on one call, especially new technician, that one mistake. Just throws out all the other ones that they do well. And if you can reflect on that one, where did you make the state? What could you do better? How can you grow from it? That hopefully will help you just change that mindset.
• 1:08
  Do you have any thoughts on that? Uh, and have you felt like that in the past?
• 1:09
  Andrew: Yeah, I mean, you could easily get beat yourself up because, you know, you, you made a mistake. Uh, that, that example that I said that I charged this, uh, Conventional system. I shoved 30 pounds of refrigerant in that little tiny unit, which only hold like five pounds.
• 1:10
  Um, but I got a full sight glass, right? So with that full sight glass, I'm like, yeah, I got it. And then it trips out on the high head. Literally, like two hours after I go, it tries to pump down. We start stacking the refrigerant in the receiver. Well, it was already. Plump full, right? So, uh, but it kind of beats you up, you know, man, you're like, man, that's a, that was a dumb mistake, but what did I do prior to it?
• 1:11
  And what did I do after it? You got to really focus on the wins and not beat yourself on your losses. Your losses are going to come and go same with your wins. But as long as you learn from your losses, you're going to be that much further ahead in your own career. So I, I have to agree with you, Trevor, don't get focused on the losses because you're just going to just tumble down, you focus on your wins and you learn from your losses, your, your, your progression is just going to go down.
• 1:12
  And
• 1:13
  Trevor: I see lots of great tech, like a lot of great technicians coming into the program and those ones that are excelling what they do. And even some business owners I talked to who started as a technician and grew their business and got into owning their own business. They're like, you know what? I did. I did think about my, the, the, where I made mistakes, which I learned from, but what I thought about is how can I make my next service call better?
• 1:14
  Like, how can I like, even like when they do a great job is like next time, how do I make it more efficient next time for myself? How do I make my job easier? Is it a special checklist for this specific customer? Is it a special maintenance program? How do I make my job easier? From these calls that I'm doing already.
• 1:15
  So you get a win on that call, but how do I Excel from that? Can I do my troubleshooting time quicker instead of it taking me an hour and a half, can I do an hour and 20 minutes and challenging themselves and those technicians all I've seen, well, not all of them, but most of them went right up into leadership roles or owning their own business by putting that work in, but that takes a mental attitude that's different than most, uh, most technicians in the field.
• 1:16
  Even myself. When I was doing those years in the field, I wasn't, I wasn't thinking all the time, especially when I first started out, how do I make this quicker and better and faster? Uh, when I started doing that, I really start to excel. Do you have anything, do you do things like that? Yeah. So
• 1:17
  Andrew: I second that when you first start out, um, in this career, you're just trying to figure things out.
• 1:18
  So as soon as you start figuring those things out, and you're going to also get to a point in your career like, man, I'm, I'm getting this. I'm understanding this stuff. And so then it really starts clicking. And then, like you said, what can you do to make that happen? Your diagnosis better. Um, and that, that's how I, I guess I always, uh, thought of it is how can I make this job better, quicker, move on to the next one?
• 1:19
  Um, so yeah, I, I totally agree with you, uh, with that, just getting that mindset, but it's kind of overloading when you think about it as a whole. Um, but if you could do it step by step by step, you're going to, like I said, it's just going to shoot right up in your, your knowledge, your peer career.
• 1:20
  Trevor: So for any technicians that are listening right now that are in the field, what could be one or two tips that you could give them to probably help this process?
• 1:21
  Uh, what are some of the things that you did to, you know, maybe make that next job better? So, uh, is there things that you could share with maybe, like I said, one or two things that helped you along the way? So I guess
• 1:22
  Andrew: how I thought of it is I got an hour to figure out what's going on with this system. Um, if it's electrical, if it's mechanical, what, whatever it is, I got, I put in my mindset, I got an hour.
• 1:23
  In that hour, I'm going to know what my amp draw, my compressor is, what are my pressures, what type of defrost, if the coils are clean or dirty, you know, I got a whole checklist of what I'm going to do before. I get to a point where I throw my hands up in the air. I don't know. I need some help. So that really, really helped me is, is I've made a, you know, a progression of sheet, I guess, uh, of what I need to check before I call.
• 1:24
  Because a lot of, when I first started out, you just getting in the career, um, you're like, Oh, I don't know what to do. You call, right? And then you call and then they're like, well, what's your pressures? I don't know. Well, why are you calling me? Right? That was the, the, that's how I got talked to. And I was like, Oh, you, well, you're right.
• 1:25
  So then I go out, check all that. So then what I did was when I would call for help when I very first started. I started making a list of what they were asking me and that's how I put my list together. So they're asking superheat of the coil system, supereat, uh, Amtrol, the compressor, what type of system is it?
• 1:26
  Where are you at? What problems are you having? Is the case warm? Is it leaking? You know, I just, I just started writing those questions that they're asking me down. So when I call, if I did get in that, you know, that hour timeframe, and I don't know, I could just start naming off what they're going to. You know, they're going to say, so I guess it's really, uh, that's a good, uh, reference of how my career progressed, right?
• 1:27
  They're asking me the questions, I already had the answers, and then after the time, when they're, when I would call and ask, they're like, have you checked this, this, and this? And I was like, yep, I got this, I got this, I got this. And then they're like, well, I don't know, I'm going to have to come down. And they're just like, yes, it's a win, right?
• 1:28
  Because now it's not a simple fix over the phone. And then they come over there and they fix it in five minutes. You're like, you know, it's discouraging because you're doing everything you can to get this, but did you learn from it? That's the most important part, right? Um, so he's not over there to make you that, your, your lead or your boss or, you know, your foreman or whoever it is coming out.
• 1:29
  He's not making you, trying to make you look dumb. It's where he comes in, helps you out, and then how did he get there? Those are the questions you got to ask. A lot of my time was when I would, beginning of my career, is when I do finally get that, made that list, and they would come down and they fix it.
• 1:30
  Now I'm thinking, what are they thinking? Then I start asking questions. Well, how did you get to this? Or why did you go that route versus, you know, the route that I took? And then you learn from that from those technicians, um, that's been out in the field. And that really helped my career, you know, Progressing too.
• 1:31
  Trevor: Yeah, that's huge. You know, and I love that, that there, that's a huge tip. If you start writing down the questions, experienced technicians are asking you, and don't get me wrong, there's some, there's some things that they'll, the questions I'll ask you are the ways they may have done it in the past, which is not always the right way to do it.
• 1:32
  You know what I mean? For sure. Well, if it's in the green when you're doing your evacuation and your gauges, it's good, you know, you know Actually get your micron gauge out and do it because that's the way they did it Maybe you know what I mean? But I really like that tip So if you're a technician out there when you're calling and asking for help, maybe write down those questions.
• 1:33
  I love that one That's a great tip. Yeah,
• 1:34
  Andrew: and that really helped me. Um, and then some of the questions that really stuck out was um You know, the basics, but the one that really stuck out for me was when I called my boss asking for help. He, uh, asked me what, what's the max discharge pressure or excuse me, discharge temperature, six inches out of the compressor on a Copeland, you know, what is that?
• 1:35
  And I had to sit there and tell him, I don't know. I don't, I don't know what the max discharge pressure is, what it, excuse me, temperature, temperature, I'm sorry, temperature. Um, and. Then he goes, Well, how do you know if it's good? And I couldn't answer that either. I was like, I don't know. So needless to say, those questions there, that was my I'm like, Okay, so now I need to know what is my max temperature?
• 1:36
  Because if I don't know if it's good or bad, then how am I supposed to fix this unit? Right? So knowing what is that max discharge temperature? Or what is my lowest suction pressure I should get? Or what is my maximum? Max ant draws on my compressor. That was a huge game changer too. It's knowing the parameters of your system and your solid.
• 1:37
  Trevor: Yeah. And I learned that from so many gurus. That's really, once again, taking my career off is like, it's good or bad and doing a lot of field support for, for technicians out there. It's good or it's bad. There's in refrigeration. There's nothing good or bad. It's facts, you know what I mean? So you did just say the numbers so it's bull, you know what I mean?
• 1:38
  It's outside its envelope or it's inside its envelope of a compressor or it's outside the box Or it's out the sides of system design numbers, you know So if you can get the good and bad out and actually have the facts in there, that's total game changer as a technician Oh, yeah
• 1:39
  Andrew: 100 and that's just going to excel your career As, uh, when she gets those.
• 1:40
  And every manufacturer is different, right? Uh, you got the rule of thumbs, what you, what you'll start to remember, um, but the manufacturer is going to take care of it. Your rule of thumb is out the window and go with the manufacturer if you don't
• 1:41
  Trevor: have that And and that's it too and you'll learn with experience Maybe a manufacturer did say this but isn't this exact application, you know They do it in the lab atmosphere and this is out in the field So you take their knowledge and you apply it to yours?
• 1:42
  You always need to keep it inside the specification if it's maximum pressure differential if it's a compressor envelope Whatever system design if it's from a you know Uh, system designer manufacturer, but you in the field will need to take this assessment. Just like Andrew said earlier, this checklist that you have suction discharge, temperatures, pressures, airflow, all those things should be all checked.
• 1:43
  And that's going to make your life easier. If you do ever have to make a phone call or you miss something, that's the biggest thing too, because a lot of our work. Is in the middle of the night. So, you know, when you're on call, like I have to go, we got to make sure that that million dollar plant or facility has all this food that could be going bad.
• 1:44
  We need to go fix it right away. And that's, what's cool about our role, our job. A lot of people are counting on us. We have a very important role in this world. And the thing is though. You work all day, 13, 10 hours, eight hours, and then you have to go and get up in the middle of the night and you're not as sharp as you were in the middle of the day.
• 1:45
  So these checklists that you can go over, uh, and, and highlight, did I, did I get that? Oh, I missed this one. Let me go check that. Oh, that's what it was. I just missed checking this filter dryer that's plugged because the bubbles were, you know, cause it was showing bubbles for an example. And it really makes a big difference because this is what I used to do.
• 1:46
  And I got caught once on this was a hot gas defrost, and I had to defrost a coil in the middle at night. So we, I went in at 9 PM or something just before store was closing and isolated everything. The system shut down, shut down, did a few manual defrost, but then I shut all my ball valve that off, cleaned out the case, turn, open up the suction again, the liquid, get everything up and running, forgot to open up the hot gas ball valve.
• 1:47
  I mean, so, so I left the site and then it's a store for it's froze up again because I didn't open the ball valve. And, uh, so it's just things on your checklist or leaving a site. I've done that before in a package unit before leaving the site and forget to turn the air handle on you and back on, you know, do all your work, you clean everything up.
• 1:48
  Everything's great. But you get a phone call saying, We don't got any air conditioning in here or heat, whatever it is. Well, I didn't turn the back, the unit back on, you know what I mean? So to have in that checklist going in and going out as a big deal. Yeah. So Andrew, we know career has been going really good.
• 1:49
  Everything's been going on, but I know that you had an accident. In your career that really put a stop on a lot of things that was doing because things were going great And all of a sudden something happened. Do you mind talking about that a little bit?
• 1:50
  Andrew: Absolutely. Yeah, so I was on the job I just got my parts at my parts house driving down and I had red light it happened.
• 1:51
  So I stopped right? I got in a huge car accident. Someone rear ended me. Um, and it was like a four car You Uh, pile up and, uh, the first thing I do is do myself check real quick. I'm like, okay, I'm good. And I jumped out of the van and I looked at the person that, you know, um, hit me. And so I go over there and make sure that individual is okay.
• 1:52
  Um, so needless to say, ambulance, ambulance came. And all that I didn't go to the hospital at first. I wish I did. Um, and here's why. Uh, so needless to say, I actually ended up breaking my back. I T 12. I got a wedge fracture now. Um, so it really impacted, uh, my physical, uh, capabilities. So for two months I was walking around with a broken back doing service, but I was only able to do like four hours a day.
• 1:53
  I was just in so much pain. And then finally one night I was like, I gotta go. There's something wrong because I'm thinking I'm, you know, I was in my 20s when this happened thinking I'm invincible. Like, let's go. It's just an accident. You know, I've been in accidents before, you know, uh, so that's why I didn't go right away.
• 1:54
  And needless to say, I go to the hospital. I got a CAT scan, and then they put me in a full brace, body brace, basically, where I couldn't even move my back. Then, you know, reality started kicking in. What am I going to do with my career? I am, I'm in trouble. Um, this is I love this trade. This is what I want to do.
• 1:55
  And now physically I can't. Um, so it was a, it was a lot of emotions going on during that time. Um, but overcoming those challenges is what really helped me. Grow my career even further, you know, anyway, I couldn't do service and I didn't know what to do at that point. Um, but I knew I wanted to stay in the trade.
• 1:56
  So I started thinking about what can I do to keep myself in the game. So I started thinking parts house, um, I could probably go and sell some parts. I'll be really good at that cause I know my parts. And then, um, uh, uh, opportunity came up to go teach at a. Technical college level. And I was like, Ooh, that sounds like fun.
• 1:57
  I'd love to talk about refrigeration, how it all works. And, um, so that opportunity came up for me. Um, and I applied for it and I got it. I was super excited. So now, uh, going from the field into a training role. At a technical college. It's actually my old school that I went to Perry Technical Institute, which is a crazy turnaround, right?
• 1:58
  I was taught. I was got taught there. Now I was teaching there. So, yeah, that's where I ended up going back to was, uh, Perry Technical Institute, and I started teaching there and I was there for five years. Um, and now I work at our UI. But, um, I love that role. I, that training and learning and, and getting those, when you're teaching something, you really get to know the inside and out of every single component and that brings you into, into a different mindset, you know, so now you got these students asking you these questions and you're like, and I never thought about that.
• 1:59
  I better know that. So that my very first, um, teaching portion of my career was, was definitely a huge learning curve on that too, because you get these questions that like, man, I should know this. I've been out in the field. I've been doing this for, at that point in my career, 10 years. Plus I had training here.
• 2:00
  So yeah, it was just a huge learning curve for myself, but I accepted that challenge and I loved it. I loved hearing about what everybody else thinks about a component or how, why does it work this way? So getting to know the inside and outs of what you're teaching just will really step your career up even further.
• 2:01
  I highly encourage anybody that, uh, you know, take that step in that mentorship role and, and help. You know, the, the future really, that's what these guys are coming into the field, their future, and let's train them, let's get them up to our par. And you know what, ideally is to get them out faster than you came up.
• 2:02
  And that's, that's how I look at it. I was like, because that struggle of those first couple of years, I was just mentally exhausted. I've been there where you just, I need help. And. With that, knowing that, and now I'm teaching and now I am where I'm at now. I just want to help everybody. That's that's my whole thing.
• 2:03
  I just want it. Give everybody my knowledge and here you guys go, you know? Um,
• 2:04
  Trevor: so yeah. And that's, I want everyone to understand like thing life can kick you into teeth. Sometimes just like you, you, you, you're just having a normal work day and all of a sudden you get rear ended and you get hurt. And I did the same thing when I was younger too.
• 2:05
  If I got hurt, um, I'll tough it through and not get anyone to look at it. This, this. Just this conversation here you should think about if you hurt yourself or you think you hurt yourself go get checked You know, this is so important. I did the same thing when I was in my 20s hurt my back Multiple times in the field at work and outside of work.
• 2:06
  It's like, oh no It's just a sore back come to realize that it's a back problem because i've really injured myself Not as bad as, as what you, what you did, but this, this really makes you look at what you're doing. And I, I highly compliment to you on staying in the industry and wanting to stay in the industry because a lot of people would just, that's it.
• 2:07
  Okay. I, I'm, I'm done. The career's over. But you left the field and got into, you left the, the tools got into a, a training role, which really challenged you, uh, challenged your knowledge because you have to think differently like that. And I really, like you said. I think that's why I feel like I know a lot more is because since I've been training for the last almost 10 years now, is that the question that people ask that I never thought of that question before now let's go find the answer out.
• 2:08
  Now let's go test. That answer out and see if it actually works and that's where really where I grew my knowledge and I'm sure that you have So you did so you did 10 years went to and trained at a college for five years And then you came back into the field. Is that correct? Yeah, so
• 2:09
  Andrew: after my career at perry, um, I I jumped back into the field and now i'm currently with rui Which is part of the Articom group.
• 2:10
  Trevor: So let's talk a little bit about that. So, cause there's a lot of times people don't jump back onto the tool. So some do, and I've talked to a few and then there's lots of different reasons. And most of them love it more now than they ever did before. Let's talk about the last year or how's it been going as being a service technician.
• 2:11
  What was the difference when you were in the field seven, eight years ago to in the field now, and what are things that you're looking forward to and you're excited about?
• 2:12
  Andrew: Good questions. Um, so how do they, I guess that transition getting back into the field, um, is actually, it took me probably two weeks to get back into the groove of things, uh, you know, being on call, uh, hurry up, get this customer going because you got, you know, another, another, you know, Uh, either walk in or store down that you got to get, uh, so that, uh, your pace just picked up real quick.
• 2:13
  Right? Um, so that was the biggest transition. And honestly, you know, when I was another thing, which is might be weird. Um, but you know, you're in a van and you don't realize it. Well, you do because you're working in it, but you get out of it and you haven't been in a van for two years or five years. Um, And then, you hop into a van and you're just like, wow, this thing's top heavy.
• 2:14
  So, I don't know, for some reason that just sticks out. Uh, so you're taking corners a little slow because it's just, you're used to your car or your truck or whatever you're driving. It's not so top heavy. Um, so that was another little, piece that was different coming into it. Other than that, uh, the transition has been great.
• 2:15
  Um, the guys over here at REY I work with are just wonderful. Articom is great too. They have treated me very, very well. Uh, they, they know about my background and everything too. Um, so then they, that I was always kind of the guy if anybody had problems, but that's just my nature. I just want to. Go help, right?
• 2:16
  And then, which is crazy, some of my past students are working here. So then they heard that I was coming aboard. So they're all excited. So then, uh, you know, just helping them out in the field. Um, so I've, I've been in a lot of that role is if there is a problem with a call or, uh, training exercises, that's where they kind of put me now and helping these guys build their career up.
• 2:17
  Um, and recently, yeah, me too. I, I just, I'm just, you know, Like I said, I'm super thankful for what they have done for me and I'm able to go out there and help train, which that's, I have a passion for that. And I want to teach everybody everything, you know, everything that I want that I know I want to give them and the guys that are out there when you talk to them, a lot of them are like, man, I wish I had more training.
• 2:18
  I'm like, I got you. What do you want to know? You know, you just you just jump in that role and I'm ready to and just excited to teach. And that's awesome. You
• 2:19
  Trevor: know, recently you said that you went down. to California to do some training. How did that go? Yeah.
• 2:20
  Andrew: So, um, I, like I said, I'm just super thankful and, uh, I have an opportunity to go down to Articom Group down in California.
• 2:21
  And we have a training facility over there and get to help train at that facility. So last week, I was down there training a bunch of a group of guys down there and progressing their own careers into this, into this field. So just seeing where they come in and then when they leave. Uh that knowledge that they gain is really just incredible.
• 2:22
  Um, you get to see it They get to see it and they're so thankful And just you know investing in yourself and you know your company's investing in you That's a huge win just in itself. And it's just great to be part of that growth of these guys.
• 2:23
  Trevor: Awesome What do you look forward to in the industry in the next two to five years?
• 2:24
  What are some of the things that you're really excited about?
• 2:25
  Andrew: Uh, you mentioned it before I took your CO2 class. I love that stuff. Uh, I know that's where this industry's going, but it's going to go CO2 and the A two L. That's where this industry's going, uh, just because of the global warming potential and the EPA is tightening down on it.
• 2:26
  Um, and of course what, why, I don't know anywhere else but Washington, there's actually, they're restricting it too. Even further beyond that. Um, so we got to be ready for that. What, what can we do when that does? This is what we have to do, right? So what am I excited for is that transition piece? Um, so the A2Ls are great.
• 2:27
  Um, the flammable, uh, pieces or elements in there. Um, it's definitely worrisome for a lot, but the A2Ls is very minimal. Uh, so I don't want people to be scared of it, just to know of it. You know, just like, um, CO2, a lot of people are scared of it because of high pressures, right? But don't be scared of it.
• 2:28
  Just know about it. And as soon as you understand or know what's going on with that system, that pressure, I guess, goes away and they're like, Oh, okay, this isn't that bad. You know, and then they get in that in that mindset and then you're just taking care of the customer just like a normal Hsc unit so
• 2:29
  Trevor: yeah, and that's and that's what it is It's just once again understanding knowledge training yourself getting trained by others investing in yourself Like you said, which is so important and investing in your company, your customer, the company will invest in you more.
• 2:30
  That's just the way it works. And you know, if you run into a company that you invest in and they don't want to invest in you, there's lots more companies out there that will invest in you because that's just the way the refrigeration industry is. We are small and there's a lot of people that want good people, good technicians on their team to help grow that, that organization together, man, you had super exciting.
• 2:31
  Career already in this journey and I know it's going to continue on like I'm super excited for you because I I can tell the Passion that you have for the industry helping others helping your organization Final question andrew what is like one or two tips? You would like to give someone new, you know within the first five years two to five years in industry One or two tips that really could help them accelerate, um, their career if they start implementing maybe a few of these tips.
• 2:32
  I
• 2:33
  Andrew: mean, like you say, you gotta look at this as a career, right? This isn't a job, this is a career. As soon as, and most people will do that, invest in this and look at it as a career. Um, a lot of the, what I would say is you gotta enjoy what you do. Right. Um, if you have, if you enjoy what you do, you're going to have this passion.
• 2:34
  Right. Um, so I definitely encourage you to find what you love about this industry. The crazy part about this industry is not just heating or ventilation, right? Air conditioning, right? It's anything across the field. So there, if you like mechanical, you like electrical, there's going to be a place for it.
• 2:35
  Find that passion. Go for it. Go do whatever it takes. Another thing, uh, to boost that, uh, confidence or knowledge or excitement, um, challenge yourself. That is a huge key. Put yourself in the uncomfortable position. And get her done. You know, uh, that really helped step my career game up is where I get used to doing certain things, right?
• 2:36
  You get used to doing this service call or this customer or whatever it may be, and then a new opportunity comes up. A lot of people. I don't want to do that. I'm just going to stick with my bubble. If you can get outside of that, your bubble is going to grow. And that's what, that's what this is all about, right?
• 2:37
  Is to get that knowledge, to keep growing and growing and growing outside of the bubble, but you got to put yourself outside. So definitely my encouragement is start being comfortable. Uncomfortable.
• 2:38
  Trevor: I love this conversation. We, I could do, I could talk about this for hours and hours. I love refrigeration.
• 2:39
  I know you love talking about it. Andrew, how can people find out more about you, your organization? If they want to learn about you a bit more or the company you work for?
• 2:40
  Andrew: To contact me, I got a LinkedIn account, excuse me, a LinkedIn account. Um, I do post a lot of my stuff that I find or training purposes.
• 2:41
  And I like to ask questions and, uh, try to just, you know, get a conversation going, not to take your words, but, you know, get a conversation going. Uh, that's what it's all about. Right. And that's where everyone's going to learn because we all have different. When you look at a group of people or your organization, you got different skill levels, right?
• 2:42
  And they might know something that you don't know, even, you know, and that's just, just taking the time and listening, get a conversation going. It's huge part of this. And you know what? If. If we could get more people talking that I just see a lot more people learning and that's what it really comes down to is is just start talking because the next guy probably thinking the same thing, but maybe it's not comfortable talking about it yet.
• 2:43
  So just, just put yourself out of that uncomfortable position and let's get talking. Uh, and then of course, uh, talking, uh, uh, for RUI, definitely there's a, a website that we have, also Articom. You can look them up and see what we have to offer. Uh, but yeah, we're, we're a huge, huge, um, company and we're growing.
• 2:44
  Uh, and we, we just got a lot of potential and enthusiasm to keep going with it. So yeah. I'll put
• 2:45
  Trevor: it in the show notes. Make sure to connect with Andrew on LinkedIn. Check it. I see some of these. Post it. They're awesome. Very detailed and, and always getting good conversation going, Andrew. I want to thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me and the refrigeration mentor podcast, and look forward to chatting with you again.
• 2:46
  Awesome. I want to thank you so much for hanging out with me and the refrigeration mentor podcast. If you enjoyed
• 2:47
  Andrew: this episode, please leave a comment. Let me know what were your key highlights, what you took away from myself or my guests, as well as if you have not subscribed yet, head over to Apple podcast or Spotify and subscribe.
• 2:48
  Bye. And if you enjoyed this episode, please share with a friend, let your friends know that there are people who care, who want to share the refrigeration
• 2:49
  Trevor: information to help them get to the next level in their career. If you have not been to the refrigeration mentor website at refrigeration mentor. com, go check it out.
• 2:50
  There's a ton more guest podcasts I've been on
• 2:51
  Andrew: as well as the event page. Check out the events page because
• 2:52
  Trevor: there's a lot more free trainings. As well as paid training to really help you grow your knowledge base. Super excited.
• 2:53
  Andrew: Can't wait to see at the next
• 2:54
  Trevor: refrigeration
• 2:55
  Andrew: mentor
• 2:56
  Trevor: podcast. Let's get a conversation
• 2:57
  Andrew: going.