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solutions at the right competitive price . We also now have the ability to do even more amazing things with the systems we work on in terms of energy efficiency and therefore cost savings ,” adds van den Berg .
REMEMBERING CASSIE STEENKAMP Steenkamp was well known in the industry particularly for his business strategy , being able to understand a far bigger picture and almost ‘ predict ’ the outcome of the future . The vision left behind will still be carried forward as his care for the business and team stood strong as he continued to give guidance and steer the business to be a better company and remain an exceptional working environoment right up to the time of his passing .
Steenkamp further had a wonderful passion for helping people to improve and building a strong team while he continued to offer up his time to mentorship and letting others realise their dreams , all amidst building the business up to what it essentially is today . His legacy will continue long into the future .
FORWARD PLANS For any business , ensuring they have the right people in place is critical , particularly in the void left by a lost leader , and for these companies it is indeed the case according to van den Berg who notes that the team is more than just work colleagues , they are a family .
“ As we push forward , as all sectors must these days , we will continue to expand using the internal knowledge and skill sets within the companies to keep providing quality services . Change is important because without it you fall behind and we definitely intend to stay ahead , however , how change is implemented is an important aspect too becasue transition between events or changes may be stressful for everyone involved and alignment becomes critical for a successful outcome ,” notes van den Berg .
In addition , van den Berg stresses in caution that business in the HVAC & R space today have to be careful because their own dealing have noted that much trust has been lost , particularly
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Cassie Steenkamp was known for being able to understand the bigger picture and predict future outcomes .
in contracting , because behind the scenes people who are not adequately trained or qualified are found to be working on very expensive equipment . An air conditioning technician should not
be working on a multi million rand chiller investment because when something goes wrong and breaks , its not a couple of hundred rand to fix , but could be tens of thousands of rands .
Another critical aspect that needs to get attention is the general mindset around costs as clients are generally only interested in the figures at the bottom of the quote rather than considering the lifespan of their equipment . Generally plant equipment will last upto 25 years and poor choices up front could land up costing dearly over the long term , considering capcities could run into many megawatts – even the smallest savings enables a payback period of any additional capital within a very short period compared to the expected life span .
Concluding van den Berg says , “ At the end of the day , we continue to look after all of our customers , because business should not see an engagement as a once off but rather the start of a long term relationship . Our objective has always been to do busininess with our customers long into the future , 20 plus years down the line , and so a long term view is what it has always all been about and will continue going forward .” RACA
www . hvacronline . co . za RACA Journal I February 2022 5