Monday, July 18, 2011

Can We Talk?

I know, I know. Heat recovery is not among the usual topics for casual chat, but I’m going to assume that you’re here because you either know something about the subject or want to know something about it. Great. That’ll work for me.

So let me start by introducing myself: Bob Hanson, sales manager for E-Tech Engineering. I’ve been in the heat recovery business in one way or another for more than 32 years and, putting modesty aside for the moment, I have walked around the heat recovery block more than a few times (albeit slower with each passing year!).

Over the years I’ve worked with all of the OEM boiler companies and I’m a card-carrying member of the American Boiler Manufacturers Association, or ABMA.

I’m proud to have built a lot of long-term relationships within the industry and I’m always pleased to serve as a “go-to” guy for anyone who has a question about heat transfer or heat recovery equipment. If a question should come up that I can’t readily answer (it does happen, I admit), I’m in the fortunate position of being able to walk down the hall and get that answer from some of the brightest and most resourceful engineering brains in the business.

Now something more about those guys and the work they do. Custom-designed heat transfer equipment and economizers. That sums it right up, with the operative compound modifier right at the front: custom-designed.

We sort of invented a word to describe what we do at E-Tech: Greengineering. Because we tailor our designs to a client’s very specific heat recovery goals and specifications, we’re able to provide them with solutions that achieve the greatest efficiency possible for their boiler system. The result is not only maximized fuel efficiency, but also minimized emissions.

I’m not just saying that. E-Tech General Manager and Chief Engineer Jamie Tighe actually went so far as to invent an entirely new heat transfer unit — the ThermoCharger — to meet the precise needs of one particular client.

The ThermoCharger worked so well for that client that we’ve applied for a patent on it and have added it to our full lineup of heat recovery solutions. And it is a full lineup. As far as I know, we’ve never met a boiler system that we couldn’t maximize for more efficient fuel consumption with one or more of our economizer designs.

I’ll be talking a lot about fuel efficiency in this blog, and the government actions at every level that are bound to push this industry to ever-cleaner, ever more efficient solutions. I’ll be talking about those solutions, too. Not just ours, but those industry-wide.

I hope you’ll stick with me for the discussion and chime in with your comments. I already know what I think. I want to know what you think, too.

So please check in regularly, and we’ll talk.