1) Cfm Distributors is an HVACR distributor based in Kansas City that is employee-owned. It prioritizes developing close relationships with employees, suppliers, and customers. 2) Founded in 1969, the company has grown from $486,000 in annual revenue to over $100 million today. It became employee-owned in 1993 through an ESOP. 3) Cfm Distributors emphasizes a mission statement of delivering success to customers, employees, suppliers, and the company with "warmth, integrity, and spirit." It focuses on developing loyalty among employees through initiatives like profit sharing.

1. ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
D i s t r i b u t i o n B u s i n e s s
Supplement to Penton Publications
August 2008
The Official Magazine
of HARDICAMBRIDGE-LEE
INDUSTRIES
WHERE COPPER
IS KING
SUPPLY CHAIN EXPERT
BRYAN JENSEN
REVEALS THE SECRETS
OF CONFIGURATION
HARDI’S 2008
ANNUAL CONFERENCE
HIGHLIGHTS
PREVIEW
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
The Official Magazine
of HARDICAMBRIDGE-LEE
INDUSTRIES
SUPPLY CHAIN EXPERT
BRYAN JENSEN
HARDI’S 2008HARDI’S 2008
ANNUAL CONFERENCEANNUAL CONFERENCE
A Mission Statement
That Includes the Customer
The Official Magazine
That Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the Customer
Distributors Inc.
A Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission Statement
Distributors Inc.
cfm
T H E S I N G L E V O I C E O F H A R D I D I S T R I B U T O R S A N D PA R T N E R S
808cstmfchv.indd 1 7/25/2008 2:25:36 PM

2. C O N T E N T S
D i s t r i b u t i o n B u s i n e s s
Page 12
Page 18
Page 32
From the President’s Pen ....................................... 4
Editor’s Page........................................................... 6
News....................................................................... 7
Smart Products and Literature............................. 11
HARDI New Members .......................................... 48
HARDI Member Services...................................... 49
Marketplace.......................................................... 50
From My Viewpoint .............................................. 51
Ad Index ............................................................... 52
DEPARTMENTS
FEATURES
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
D i s t r i b u t i o n B u s i n e s s
The Official Magazine
of HARDI
WHERE COPPER
IS KING
BRYAN JENSEN
REVEALS THE SECRETS
OF CONFIGURATION
HIGHLIGHTS
PREVIEW
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
The Official Magazine
of HARDI
BRYAYAAY N JENSEN
A Mission Statement
That Includes the Customer
A Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission StatementA Mission Statement
That Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the CustomerThat Includes the Customer
Distributors Inc.Distributors Inc.
cfm
ON THE COVER:
(Left to right) The faces
of employee ownership
at cfm Distributors:
Spencer Bell, Cal Berry,
Tom Roberts, Paul
Flora and Kevin Morris,
selected by their co-
owners for this photo.
12 Loyalty Starts at Home.
At Kansas City, KS-based cfm Distributors Inc., the employees, who own the company,
have a vested interest in its success. See how this ESOP can spell profits for “owners” and
employees alike.
18 Being Cool about Copper.
Cambridge-Lee has gained a reputation as a leading manufacturer of copper and copper
alloy products. Learn how this Reading, PA, company keeps growing based on a company
philosophy that takes the high road in its business dealings.
24 The Real World of VRF.
Pittsburgh wholesaler David Heckler has a grand opening for his variable refrigerant flow
living lab.
30 Where the Classroom Ends and
the Internet Begins.
We already know some of the advantages of online learning. Here’s how to apply it to HVACR.
32 Economic Forecasting.
HARDI has a new relationship with Alan Beaulieu of the Institute for Trends Research, who
answers the question: Are YOU in a recession?
34 Legislative Update.
HARDI Vice President Talbot Gee keeps us in tune with legislative issues that affect wholesalers.
36 Confused about Configuration?
Supply chain expert Bryan Jensen explains why the configuration issue is so important and
yet often overlooked.
39 Inbound Freight.
Don’t take it for granted. Greg Toler, vice president at Gustave A. Larson Co., offers a checklist
that helps to rein in freight costs.
40 New Refrigerants?
Ammonia and carbon dioxide might be the latest alternative refrigerants, but as Pete Grasso
tells us, they really aren’t that new.
44 Is Your Contractor Immune from a
Recession?
Is your contractor recession-proof? HVACR marketing expert Blaine W. Fox explains.
46 HARDI’s 2008 Annual Fall Conference.
A preview of the best conference yet!
WHOLESALER’S SPOTLIGHT
SUPPLY CHAIN TECHNOLOGIES
REFRIGERATION
A PENTON PUBLICATION
MANUFACTURER’S SPOTLIGHT
Copyright © 2008 Penton Media, Inc.
All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.
To change address or cancel subscription to
HVACR Distribution Business, fax notice to
913/514-6623 or e-mail
tyler.motsinger@penton.com.
2
HVACR DISTRIBUTION BUSINESS, AUGUST 2008
DISTRIBUTION/LOGISTICSMANAGEMENT
MANAGEMENT METHODS
Editorial Advisory Board
Gary Daniels
president
Johnstone Supply Inc., Portland, OR
Don Frendberg
executive vice president/COO
HARDI, Columbus, OH
David H. Heckler
vice president
Comfort Supply Inc., Pittsburgh, PA
James F. Luce
vice president
Luce, Schwab & Kase, Fairfield, NJ
EDUCATION
HVACR SYSTEMS & EQUIPMENT
GOVERNMENT & TRADE RELATIONS
MARKETING
HARDI CONFERENCE
Correction: In the June issue, we misidentified the chair of HARDI’s Supplier Members Committee. The chair is
Hal Kivlan, with Carlisle, PA-based Dynatemp International Inc. We regret any inconvenience.
808cstm2hv.indd 1 7/25/2008 2:26:32 PM

3. B Y M I C H A E L M A Y N A R DWholesaler’s Spotlight
12
HVACR DISTRIBUTION BUSINESS, AUGUST 2008
The customer is at the top of the
chart, but cfm Distributors has a
39-year track record of forging close
relationships with its employees as
well as its suppliers. Tom Roberts,
cfm Distributors’ president, proudly
points to the company’s mission
statement that describes what the
company is all about: cfm Distribu-
tors is devoted to delivering success
to our customers, our employees,
our suppliers and our company with
warmth, integrity and spirit.
Define cfm Distributors’ Customer-Focused Approach
“Warmth, Integrity,
Spirit”
T
he organizational chart of cfm Distributors looks a little
different from the structure of most companies. At the top
of the chart is “the customer,” and every other position
within cfm Distributors is designed to support each and every person
who places an order or comes to one of the five stores in Kansas,
Iowa and Missouri for HVACR equipment and parts.
808cstm12hv.indd 1 7/25/2008 2:29:29 PM

4. 13
www.HARDInet.org
“That’s what we do every day,” Rob-
erts says of the mission statement that
was developed in 1993. “Work in ways
to help our customers succeed. We also
think heavily about employees and their
situations and their success. We don’t
think win-win is a tired buzzword with
suppliers. We think we can all help each
other get what we need: customers, em-
ployees, suppliers and the company.”
Roberts is the third president of cfm
Distributors, which was founded in
1969 by Roberts’ father, Amos, and his
business partner, Bruce Huffman. Rob-
erts and Huffman were manufacturers’
sales reps, and they were approached
with the idea to open a wholesale dis-
tribution business in Kansas City, MO.
“They thought it was a good idea,”
Roberts recalls, and it certainly was.
In their first year in business with one
supplier, revenues were $486,000. The
business grew from there.
Tom Roberts joined the business
in 1981 after three years of working
for York’s engineered machinery divi-
sion selling large commercial HVACR
equipment. By then, cfm Distributors
had become a York distributor. “It all
kind of fit together,” says Roberts, so
he moved from Atlanta back to Kansas
City to join his father and Huffman.
With the country in a recession, 1981
was not a very good year for business –
or for consumers, for that matter. But
economic difficulties also proved to be
something of a revelation for the com-
pany. “In those tough economic times,
we, in turn, were struggling and had to
do something,” Roberts recalls. Amos
Roberts and Huffman called their
employees together and said they
would vote on whether to take a 10 per-
cent cut in pay or reduce the work force
by 10 percent. The employees voted to
cut their pay. By the end of the year,
business had improved, and the
company repaid them.
Beyond there was a large lesson of
employee loyalty to one another: the
importance of getting buy-in from
all employees. For the past 12 years,
the management team has held twice-
supplier, revenues were $486,000. The
business grew from there.
in 1981 after three years of working
for York’s engineered machinery divi-
sion selling large commercial HVACR
equipment. By then, cfm Distributors
had become a York distributor. “It all
kind of fit together,” says Roberts, so
he moved from Atlanta back to Kansas
Training – Internal/External
Definition: Offer the best training oppor-
tunities for staff and customers. Be recog-
nized for leadership in technical expertise
and training classes. Encourage broad and
deep participation in training at all levels.
Examples: Internal – Utilize HARDI
training for counter personnel and front-line
customer service team. Reward completion
with cash bonus. Encourage attendance
at University of Industrial Distribution –
(three attendees last session). Utilize
desktop training (PowerPoint e-mails) on
new product offerings, complete with tests
and rewards (gift cards), and drawings
for completers. Encourage and support
lifetime learning. External – Provide
technical training throughout the service
territory that also qualifies for NATE®
, state
and county licensing continuing education
credit. Provide technical training at county-
required contractor licensing continuing
education training sessions. Provide online
training opportunities for NATE testing and
employee screening.
Significance: Internal – Education leads
to knowledge which leads to expanded
opportunities to assist others inside and
outside of the company, creating leaders
in organizations to show by their example
the value of education. External – By
making our training meet the qualifications
of other agencies, we simplify the training
choices of the contractor and reward
them more broadly for their participa-
tion and attendance in our programs,
wherever and whenever they are offered.
Benefits: Internal – The best technicians
seek the qualified counter for answers to
daily problems. Highly qualified customer
service personnel can provide answers to
system questions that help sell correctly
matched systems and reduce costly errors
in system selection and option choices.
External – Greatly simplifies the overall
task of technical support. Increases the
communication effectiveness between
contractor installer, service personnel and
our technical support team.
Best Practice
Procedure: Internal – Identify areas of
desired improvements and fundamental
knowledge, then utilize HARDI resources
to build competencies. Encourage the
store managers to attend UID (Univer-
sity of Industrial Distribution) training.
External – Determine the requirements
of other continuing education entities in
the service area, and include those re-
quirements in the creation of the syllabus
and training program materials. Maintain
the relationship with submission of new
training courses to the oversight bodies
for approval. Promote the qualification in
all training materials and fliers.
People involved: Internal – New
products by product managers as appro-
priate, HARDI training monitored and
supported by managers. External – VP of
Sales and Marketing,Technical Support
Manager, Parts and Refrigeration Manager,
President, Marketing Staff at annual
meeting to modify training opportunities,
schedule training for new product
offerings or strategic directions. Marketing
staff develops annual schedule for
training, inserting new offerings, etc.
Timing: Internal – Continuous with
emphasis on UID schedule. External – Set
annual calendar and publish on website.
Avoid May–Sept. dates for classes.
Cost: Internal – Training is a moderate
development cost. External – Training
charged at a level to recover all costs.
Excellent training is well worth the
cost.We provide discounts for multiple
students and prepayment to encourage
broad attendance and commitment.
Other considerations: Internal –
Provide incentives for those who par-
ticipate in training. External – Provide
incentives to those who provide training.
Distribute a percentage of the net income
of the class to those who prepare and
deliver the training curriculum.
Contact: www.cfmdistributors.com
(Left to right)The faces of employee
ownership at cfm Distributors: Spencer
Bell, Cal Berry, Tom Roberts, Paul
Flora and Kevin Morris, selected by
their co-owners for this photo.
808cstm13hv.indd 1 7/25/2008 2:29:47 PM

5. monthly meetings, the first on the
company’s sales, profitability and
general financial performance, and
thesecondonthefast-growingreplace-
ment parts, supplies and store opera-
tions performance.
With its employees so clued in to
all aspects of the company, the next
logical step was to turn the employees
intoowners.Roberts’fatherhadretired
in 1993 (although he still works about
12 hours a week in customer technical
support as the author and provider for
the company’s internal job-quoting
software), and Huffman was prepar-
ing to retire in 2001. “For us, it was a
natural evolution,”Roberts says.
“We had taken the employee culture
established to the point that it seemed
like this is where we were heading,” he
says. Planning for the change to em-
ployee ownership began in 1998 and
took effect in 2001. Employees own 39
percent of the company, while Roberts
owns the remaining 61 percent. While
employees had always felt a responsi-
bility to the company and to one an-
other, becoming an employee-owned
company has “crystallized”the culture
of cfm Distributors, making what they
do even more relevant, Roberts says.
“It’s given people a reason to fill in for
the person who is sick or who has a
family emergency.”
But the customer-focused ethic that is
evident throughout the company is not
Wholesaler’s Spotlight
just a result of employee
ownership. Remember
the mission statement?
“Warmth, integrity and
spirit” are important
elements that help to
define the company and
make employees want
to stay. In fact, the aver-
age employee has been
with cfm Distributors
for 12 years. This sense
of family and fun translates into easy
andenjoyablecustomerexperiences,like
freshly baked Otis Spunkmeyer cookies
and ice cream in the summer at cfm Dis-
tributors’ stores. “There’s always some-
thing new going on at the stores, and
there’s always a good reason to want
to come to us, hopefully, instead of our
noble competitors,”Roberts says.
When Roberts refers to his competi-
tors as “noble,” he means it. Distribu-
tors in cfm markets are regional play-
ers – there are no national distributors,
he notes. “For the most part, we have
good competitors who have the best
interest of the customer at heart. It’s a
good industry to be competing in – it’s
a small world – and your reputation
and integrity are everything,” Robert
says. “We’re fortunate in the Midwest
to have the kind of people who take the
long view on a lot of different issues.”
That long view has certainly ben-
efited cfm Distributors. Look at the
company’s growth rate since 1969 and
you’ll see a nice, steady, upward curve.
“Our average annual growth rate has
been about double digits since 1969,”
Roberts says. Being involved in diverse
market segments has helped buoy the
company during the times when certain
markets were flat. In fact, cfm Distribu-
torsisinvolvedinpracticallyeverymar-
ket that an HVACR distribution could
be in – from all aspects of commercial
and residential to applied equipment,
replacement parts, and tools and test
instruments and supplies.
In the Midwest, new residential con-
structionsalesarealsosomewhatweak,
but there remains a relatively strong
commercial market. “So we can shift
resources and shift our emphasis over
to those markets that are continuing
to be successful, while the other mar-
kets are recovering,” Roberts says. The
relatively flat and flexible management
structure has helped the company to
easily shift gears into different markets.
The flat organizational structure
means that customers don’t have to go
through layers of managers to get is-
sues resolved. All cfm Distributors cus-
tomers have a VIP card that contains
the cell phone numbers of all the key
people within the company, including
Roberts, the tech support people, sales-
people and parts people. Roberts says
he’d rather resolve an issue at 10:30 p.m.
on a Saturday than have to hear from
a customer Monday morning who has
had an entire weekend to stew about not
being able to talk to someone.
The company has maintained such
a flat structure even through its expan-
sion to new markets in the late 1990s
and 2000. Upon Amos Roberts’ re-
tirement in 1993, Huffman and the
younger Roberts convened a strategic
planning session that led them to con-
clude that they needed to be more than
cfm’s Annual ESOP Celebration is a place for employee-
owners and their families to learn about the business.
14
HVACR DISTRIBUTION BUSINESS, AUGUST 2008
President & CEO: Tom Roberts
Vice President: Cal Berry,VP Sales & Marketing
Headquarters: Kansas City, MO
Operations: Full-Service HVACR Distributor with Applied Equipment
Kansas City, MO
Des Moines, IA
Lenexa, KS
Springfield, MO
Wichita, KS
Employees: 55
Annual Sales: $30 million
Major Product Lines: York, Coleman, Bohn, Reznor, CES, Johnson Controls, Honeywell
Website: www.cfmdistributors.com
Year Founded: 1969
cfm Distributors at a Glance
808cstm14hv.indd 1 7/25/2008 2:30:09 PM

6. 16
HVACR DISTRIBUTION BUSINESS, AUGUST 2008
sive. It’s just been a mutually rewarding relationship. The York
people in Wichita and Norman operate state-of-the-art facili-
ties and deliver a top-quality product with class,”Roberts says.
But it’s not just the local ties that bind. Roberts says there’s a
Midwestern work ethic that plays a major role in this. “So hav-
ing that management team in place at York in both Norman
and Wichita doesn’t just mean that they’re close to us; it means
that they think like we do and they have the customers’ best
interests at heart, and are ready to do the things that are neces-
sary to maintain the integrity of their brands,”Roberts says.
Training remains a mainstay of cfm Distributors for both
customers and employees. Technical and business training
courses are held at all the stores throughout the year, custom-
izing materials for the needs of its customers – whether they
are installers, technicians or salespeople. Some programs, like
its Masters of Sales course, have become multisession pro-
grams. cfm Distributors has also been heavily involved in
contractor training and continuing education that has since
become mandatory in Kansas. Technicians can use most of
its training courses as continuing education credits.
The company also invests in training its employees. Susie
Smith, manager of the Kansas City store, holds the distinc-
tion of being the first HARDI-certified counter specialist.
Roberts says she would have taken the training even without
the certification offer. “She’s a good example of someone who
constantly wants to better herself and offer better service
to her customers.” There are now more than 25 employees
enrolled in HARDI continuing education programs.
Such training is just one of the benefits of being a HARDI
member, Roberts says. “It’s excellent, and it’s another great re-
source and reason to be involved with HARDI.”As the presi-
dent of cfm Distributors, Roberts appreciates the benchmark-
ing conducted by HARDI. “It’s really the best benchmarking
in our industry by far,” he says. “It allows distributors to see
howtheirfinancialperformancecomparestotheirpeersacross
the nation. I consider that to be part of my training.”
He knows that change will continue to be the constant in
the HVACR industry and, by extension, among wholesalers.
“I’m beginning to think that management’s primary respon-
sibility is the management of change,” he says. “And once
you get past establishing and reaching financial goals and
recruiting and retaining the best employees, you wind up
with change being the biggest continuous challenge.”
Michael Maynard is a business writer in Provi-
dence, RI, who writes on issues related to HVACR,
construction and architecture. Contact him at
michael.maynard@lycos.com.
a local player. From 1997 through 2000, cfm Distributors
opened one new store a year. In addition to the original
Kansas City store (cfm Distributors does not call them
branches), there are stores in Wichita and Lenexa, KS,
Des Moines, IA, and Springfield, MO.
All are within three hours of the Kansas City head-
quarters and along major highway routes. Being in dis-
tinct markets yet close enough to the company’s 85,000-
square-foot central headquarters allows it to leverage
resources and gain the economies of scale that a multistore
operation can bring to a company. Roberts notes the im-
portance of the store locations. Springfield is the regional
market center for southwestern Missouri and northwestern
Arkansas, Wichita is the largest city in Kansas, and Des
Moines is the market center for Iowa.
Roberts says the location of its Wichita store is especially
fortunate as two of its major suppliers – York and Coleman
– have significant bases of operation in Wichita, and York’s
Commercial Unitary Products Group is just three hours away
in Norman, OK. “We’re the hometown distributor of the
hometown brand, and that provides us with the opportunity
to have a great relationship with really great manufacturers,”
Roberts says. Such proximity gives cfm Distributors’engineers
and technicians access to top engineering people so they can
collaborate on customer needs. “They are incredibly respon-
Circle 14
cfm’s Store
Manager Susie
Smith assists a
customer with
warmth, integrity
and spirit. Susie
was HARDI’s first
Certified Counter
Specialist.
Wholesaler’s Spotlight
A Different Kind of Moving Box
888-443-7937
www.Dryerbox.com
1.6 Million Installed
Builders take one look and know
collecting the flex hose neatly
in the wall behind the dryer
just makes sense.
Be certain to stock this
higher margin alternative.
It’s one box that really
moves.
A good idea combined
with aggressive marketing
helps it fly off the shelves.
Heavily advertised
in more than 15 major
building trade magazines.
Model 425
Model 4D (Downward Venting)
Proud Member
808cstm16hv.indd 1 7/25/2008 2:30:30 PM