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AI for HVAC quoting didn't exist
Quoting a new commercial job starts with a blueprint. More than 100,000 mechanical engineers in the US, each earning at least $100,000 after graduating, spend their days working through that blueprint process so a company can bid on new commercial work.
Evan had done work for his uncle's company and watched his uncle in the business for years, so he knew the process from the inside. He went looking for software that could do it, found nothing, and started Rebar to build it.
T.J. Parker was in the same position before PillPack. He worked in his dad's pharmacy as a teenager, long before he built a company in that world.
How do estimators price a commercial HVAC job?
Estimators work from the mechanical drawings in a process called a takeoff, counting every piece of equipment, measuring duct and pipe runs, and tallying fittings. Each quantity is then priced for materials, labor hours, and equipment, and overhead and margin are added on top. A contractor often bids against several competitors on the same drawings, so a small miss in the count can erase the profit. Takeoffs have long been done by hand on paper plans or with on-screen measuring tools.
Why do private equity firms buy HVAC companies?
HVAC is a fragmented industry with thousands of small, often family-owned contractors, many of whose owners are nearing retirement. Service and maintenance contracts bring in repeat revenue that buyers value. A roll-up folds many such firms into one platform so purchasing, dispatch, and back-office costs can be shared. Private equity roll-ups have also been used in veterinary clinics and dental practices.
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