Some people spend their entire professional lives trying to find the right challenge. For others finding the right career can be as simple as following your interests. Such is the case with Anthony Strobl, lead refrigeration and HVAC technician with DRD Repair, a Lexington, Ky., service agent.
After spending five years working with a major beverage company as a service technician working on its beverage dispensers and vending machines, Strobl was looking for something different. “I found a job listing on the internet and applied. The interview went well, and they wanted to hire me right on the spot,” he recalls. That was more than eight years ago and Strobl has never looked back.
FE&S: How has foodservice technology evolved for the better since you first started?
AS: Everything is more electronic, which is a benefit. With ice machines, for example, the machines have temperature displays that relate to various parts of the unit. The information on those displays gives you a direction when starting to work on the equipment, and it makes diagnosing the problem easier.
FE&S: What are a few things savvy operators do to extend the service life of equipment?
AS: The biggest thing is planned maintenance. Have a regular schedule where we come in, clean coils and look over everything. This allows you to identify problems before they occur. And planned maintenance programs can lower the risk of say a walk-in going out over the weekend and costing you thousands of dollars in spoiled food. As technicians, a planned maintenance visit allows us to know the equipment is running efficiently.
FE&S: The industry has faced lots of supply chain issues in recent years. Have they impacted your ability to serve your customers?
AS: You have to be creative to get customers up and running in the short term until we can get in the correct OEM parts. Some parts are more critical than others. Thermostats represent one example. You really can’t work around it when one goes out. Sometimes when you have a failed walk-in compressor, a customer may replace the compressor because it is readily available even though the system is 20 years old and should be replaced. So, they will repair rather than replace in some instances when we can do that faster than they can get a new piece of equipment.
FE&S: What’s the most important lesson you learned that shapes how you go to work every day?
AS: It’s important to focus on what you are working on at that particular point in time. You can’t worry about the next job until you complete the current one. When working on a piece of equipment, look at the big picture and not just the obvious thing in front of you. For example, if the unit has a burnt wire look past that to understand why it may have burned out. Looking for root causes can keep you from getting a callback from the operator a few days or weeks later.
