Chiller Man

Dan Mizesko
[More Images]

Al Shirawi US Chillers clinched the ‘Specialist Contractor of the Year’ title at the 2007 and 2008 MEP Awards. Managing partner Dan Mizesko talks about the challenge of inculcating a maintenance culture in the chiller industry.

Can you give us some background on the company in the region?

US Chiller Services International is an independent, large-tonnage chiller service organisation that specialises in the service, repair, retrofit and modernisation of liquid chillers from all manufacturers. US Chiller Services was established in 1975 by a group of industry experts from Carrier, Trane, York, McQuay, Honeywell, Siemens and the Bechtel Construction Company. These industry professionals formed a nationwide service organisation with technical capabilities and synergies that were far superior to the service offerings by any of the manufacturers.

In 2001, US Chillers made a strategic decision, and agreed to bring its expertise and resources to the Middle East and Gulf region to fill the service void. The company is called Al Shirawi US Chillers LLC. This meant that, for the first time in the Middle East, professional large-tonnage chiller specialist services were available, all performed and supervised by US and British service engineers who are industry- and factory-certified by all the major chiller manufacturers.

Customers have the benefit of knowing our engineers are certified, and this is a real value, but what makes this so powerful is the culture of the organisation in that it is mandatory that all engineers on any service or response must follow the industry, factory and EPA guidelines and specifications. In addition, our engineers carry the service tool which allows us to upload all chiller operating parameters, and e-mail these off to other engineers for analysis and peer-review diagnosis. This allows us to inform the engineers which service literature or factory bulletins to access on our employee Web site for further relevant service information. These allow us to be proactive and 100% current and up to date on the operating conditions of the chillers, and apply the proper services for the utmost equipment reliability and efficiency. No other service organisation approaches the liquid chiller service segment in such a proactive and professional fashion.

US Chillers’ whole organisation, including our energy engineering department, is completely committed and focused on providing and supporting the Middle East and Gulf region with the most highly-advanced services and solutions available in the HVACR industry, at fair and honest prices.

We work for, and look out for, the interests of our customers, and not the manufacturers.

Story continues below

Advertisement

FEATURED COMMENT Please click here to comment on this article

The reasoning was rather straightforward. US Chillers recognised that the large-tonnage chiller services being provided in the region were very poor at best. We decided to bring our expertise to the region to fill this huge void. To be quite frank, we are very proud that we have, in fact, raised awareness in this region that the equipment end-users are no longer dependent on the OEM for service, and that a superior alternative is available at competitive pricing and with the best interests of the end user in mind, not the manufacturer.

What main products and services does it offer?

Our custom technical support programs include preventive and predictive maintenance agreements, as well as our exclusive chiller energy diagnostic software support program, which can guarantee chillers run at design kW per ton at full load, and even more efficiently at part-load conditions. In addition, we also offer our exclusive comprehensive chiller assurance programs.

The latter is the ideal way for a facility to budget yearly chiller maintenance and repair cost. For one fixed monthly rate, we guarantee the proper operation of your chillers, completely eliminating expensive emergency repair costs. If a component within the chiller fails, we provide all the necessary parts and labour to repair or replace it, at no additional cost. Component replacement will be not be undertaken if worn, broken or not within the manufacturer’s or industry specifications.

This program ensures equipment life will be prolonged, as well as continuous modernisation of equipment, without additional capital expenditure. In addition, efficiency of the operating equipment will increase and the facility will have guaranteed accountability. Our exclusive coverage will also reduce equipment lifecycle cost, as equipment replacement budgets can be redirected and used in other areas.

US Chillers will be responsible for all maintenance, repairs, parts and emergency service on covered equipment. Under this blanket coverage, you are guaranteed that we will maintain your chiller in optimum operating condition. We also offer full plant operation/maintenance/service and energy agreements for larger cooling plants and the district cooling industry in general.

Not only can we identify where and how your electricity is being used, but we can solve many of the problems that contribute to inefficient electrical distribution systems and high electricity bills.

Once our solutions are installed, they begin to deliver immediate, non-stop savings.

You will realise a decrease in energy consumption during the entire time your facility is operating. Even more impressive, our systems and solutions take advantage of passive technology, meaning that neither you nor your staff will have to remember to turn the system on or off, and no complicated programming and control upgrades will be required. We save you money when your equipment is up and running.