Cultivating a Scientific Mindset in the World of HVAC
Price’s ever-growing team is made up of extraordinarily talented individuals from different backgrounds. We periodically profile a “person of Price” to give you a glimpse at the person behind all those emails or the voice at the end of the phone! This post: Ryan Johnson.
Priceless Industries: What is your current title and role at Price Industries?
Ryan Johnson: My title is Research and Development Manager. My work involves educating our customer base on optimal HVAC design and keeping up to speed with the newest technological developments in our industry. I design and manage our Price Technical Centers (PTCs), teach in our training classes and engineering visits, author white papers and journal articles and oversee much of our engagement with professional organizations such as the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), the Air Movement and Control Association (AMCA) and the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI).
PI: How long have you been with Price Industries, and what other roles have you worked in since you started?
RJ: I joined Price in 2013, starting as an Applications Engineer in our Mock-Up and Test Laboratory. In the lab, I gained hands-on experience with every product in the Price catalog, solving challenging real-world problems for our customers. One week we might test the acoustics of a custom fan coil for a high-rise building, and the next week we would build a scale replica of a hospital patient room and test the air quality for its occupants.
In 2016, I began managing the lab and tech centers as a Senior Applications Engineer. In 2018, I started my current role, which has expanded the scope of my work beyond the walls of the lab and tech centers.
PI: How did you find yourself in your current area of specialty – was it a lifelong interest and aptitude, or did it evolve later in life?
RJ: In childhood, I always excelled in math and science courses in school. I vaguely knew I wanted to work in architecture, but I didn’t quite have the language to describe the job I wanted. My older siblings pursued hobbies and careers in the performing arts, so I joke that I “rebelled” and became an engineer instead.
I received my bachelor’s in civil engineering from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign and continued for a Master of Engineering immediately after. This included a research exchange program with the University of São Paulo, where I spent a semester at an agricultural school in Brazil researching environmental quality for animal housing and then continued that research back in Illinois for my thesis. My plan was to take this education on indoor environmental quality for animals and apply the same principles to humans in the commercial building environment – which is exactly what I do now!
PI: What was the career path that brought you to Price, and what was it about Price that inspired you to join this team?
RJ: I remember getting a call from Jerry Sipes, who was then the VP of Engineering, asking me to fly down to Atlanta and interview at Price. It immediately felt like a perfect fit. At Price, I had the opportunity to continue doing research in a commercial setting while also challenging myself professionally in new directions, such as teaching in our Price Engineering Training (PET) classes or working directly with clients on jobsites.
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| Ryan teaching a group of engineers about room air distribution at Price Technical Center East (PTCE) in Suwanee, GA |
I also connected well with Jerry, as he was a PhD with a wealth of research experience and could help me further cultivate a scientific mindset in the business world. I could ask him about something as simple as a sidewall grille and it would turn into a two-hour discussion on the Coanda effect and boundary layer theory. In recent years, I’ve come to love the mixture of theory and practicality in our industry, and it is a goal of mine to bridge that gap for contractors and engineers alike.
PI: What are some industry developments that you’ve seen in your time within the field that have changed the way you think and work?
RJ: I am often amazed at the forward-thinking nature of decision-makers in our industry. In college, I had the perception that the construction industry was slow to change. However, most engineers I talk to are enthusiastic about trying different technologies, such as chilled beams and displacement ventilation, even when something “new” may feel like a risk on large projects. I also felt the industry as a whole pivoted quickly to the increased air quality needs presented by the events of 2020 and developed a strong appetite for more scientific literature on the subject.
PI: What is your favorite project you’ve worked on in your time in the industry?
RJ: Without a doubt, my favorite projects have been the renovations of our Price Technical Centers. The tech centers are large training facilities with interactive displays designed to educate guests on the design, applications and scientific principles behind every product Price manufactures.
Since 2017, we have performed full gut renovations of both our Atlanta and Phoenix tech centers (PTCE and PTCW, respectively). I collaborated with each product group to translate its products’ fundamental design principles into easy-to-understand interactive displays. These typically include functioning mechanical equipment, pressurized ducts, theatrical fog, live data collection and interactive touch screens to control them all. I then coordinated with contractors to integrate these designs into the infrastructure of the facilities themselves. This was easier said than done – by design, all our systems were cutting edge and new to the installers. Every duct, every wire and every data point needed to be meticulously dialed in to create a professional, state-of-the-art training facility, not to mention maintaining a clean, cohesive architectural aesthetic to tie it all together.
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| As a lifelong runner, Ryan stole a weekend to run along the South Rim of the Grand Canyon while renovating Price Technical Center West (PTCW) in Casa Grande, AZ |
I gained firsthand experience of what it is like to be “on the other side” of constructing a building with each product in the Price catalog. The renovations also required me to work closely with every department in the company: developing the display concepts with Engineering, building new prototypes with Manufacturing, telling clear stories with Sales, drawing a uniform visual aesthetic with Marketing, balancing the budget with Accounting, logging on new computers with IT and coordinating countless construction crews with Facilities. I gained an appreciation for how Price functions as a business and how every employee from every discipline comes together for a common mission. It was a real team effort.
PI: What do you feel is the biggest contribution you have made to the professional community?
RJ: I take the most pride in my day-to-day teaching and conversations with our reps and engineers. HVAC is a huge industry. If I can influence the design of buildings to be “5% more energy efficient” or have “5% better air quality” or “5% less material waste,” then incrementally I like to think that makes a healthy impact on the world. I am also very proud of our tech centers and how we educate thousands of visitors every year and will continue doing so for many years to come.
