The foodservice industry has always been a welcoming place for people with a desire to roll up their sleeves and test their problem-solving skills.
Such is the case with Dmitriy Poplavskiy, a service technician for Goodwin-Tucker, a Lincoln, Neb.-based service company. Poplavskiy, who earned master technician status from the Commercial Food Equipment Service Association, works on cooking and refrigeration equipment as well as HVAC systems for hospitals, nursing homes, schools, restaurants and any other foodservice operator in his market.
Poplavskiy’s journey to the foodservice industry began by earning an associate degree in HVAC and then joining a manufacturer-based service organization in Rochester, N.Y. Roughly five years ago, he relocated to Lincoln, Neb., and began working at Goodwin-Tucker.
How has equipment evolved for the better since you first started as a technician?
DP: Over the years I have seen that equipment has become more sophisticated and technologically advanced. One of the biggest shockers for me was seeing a customer connect to a combi oven from their computer or phone via the internet. That showed how far the foodservice industry’s technology has come. Today there’s a lot of equipment out there where you can use it with the push of a button or through a touch screen. And when you place the new equipment next to older items you can see how much better the performance is today. You can see how much more convenient and easier it is to use.
How important is proper placement of equipment to ensuring a long service life?
DP: Equipment placement is definitely important to ensure the longevity of an item. The installation manual will help specify the clearance needed and the best placement for the equipment. Equipment clearances are often overlooked by installers, but it is one of the most important things, because a piece of equipment needs to be able to breathe and cool itself down. Almost all equipment has cooling fans and those are there to help cool down the individual components like control boards. If you don’t cool them correctly it becomes costly to replace those components.
Customers have been very understanding about the long lead times, particularly with new equipment. Customers understand the supply chain crisis is a global one and they see shortages across other businesses and industries. So, given there’s a shortage of new equipment, they have to repair their old equipment and continue to limp along until new items arrive.
There will never be a time I will know everything, but I can continue to become a better technician if I continue to educate myself and continue to go to training.
