It was -10F the morning Contracting Business spoke to Ron Bushey, president of Ron Bushey Refrigeration, Frankfort, NY; a good reason for him to get through the interview, and hit the ground running.
Ron Bushey Refrigeration provides refrigeration service and installation for businesses in a five-county area situated between Albany and Buffalo. Bushey and his wife, Maryann, started the business in 1988. They make a great team; Ron handles the service, and Maryann manages the books. The company’s clientele includes chain restaurants, nursing homes, supermarkets, florists, and schools.
Bushey’s customers have latched onto the continued trend toward energy efficiency.
“Business owners are starting to realize they’ve got to upgrade and replace equipment, to stop nickel-and-diming themselves to death,” Bushey says. “Energy efficient equipment is the better way to go; especially in our area, where electric utility rates are some of the highest in the U.S.”
Bushey is investigating ways to use different motors and controls, as a way to provide the energy efficient systems his customers are interested in, and is also exploring the “outside air” method of refrigeration for use during winter.
“If the outdoor temperature drops below 30F, fans can be activated to draw the outside air into the cooler, and exhaust warmer air until the desired temperature is reached,” he explains.
Bushey says the transition away from CFCs was fairly smooth in his part of the state.
“Certain companies in our area seemed to have problems with the new refrigerants, but I never really had a problem; I think it was a case in which they didn’t train themselves in how to handle it and charge systems.”
His Tools of the Trade
Bushey’s product preferences include Copeland compressors; cases and coolers from Zero Zone and U.S. Cooler; Russell condensing units; and Robinair test equipment.