Manufacturers Month Spotlight: HRAI
HRAI's membership is home to trailblazing HVACR manufacturers across Canada. For 2023's Manufacturing Month, the Institute is spotlighting a handful representing our members' good work.
Napoleon has plenty to celebrate on the eve of its golden anniversary. Since firing up for business almost 50 years ago, the family-owned company has become North America's largest privately-owned maker of fireplaces, barbecues, and HVAC products. And today, it continues to heat up its corner of the HVAC market.
The company was founded in 1976 by Wolfgang and Ingrid Schroeter, a husband-and-wife team who started with manufacturing steel railings in Barrie, Ontario. After being asked to build a fireplace for a friend in the 1980s, the Schroeters expanded their product line accordingly, and soon, Wolf Steel wood-burning stoves were being shipped to customers throughout Canada and the US. In 1995, the company marked another milestone by changing its name to Napoleon and adding barbecues to its increasingly popular catalogue.
It was in 2011 when Napoleon made its move into the HVAC space. 12 years of growth and innovation later, the company has become a trusted provider of heating and cooling solutions, ranging from gas furnaces to heat pumps, central air conditioners to ductless systems, indoor air quality tech to smart thermometers and beyond.
“As you can imagine, it’s been challenging earning our place in a competitive industry like HVAC,” Christian Romeroll, Vice President of HVAC for the organization, adding, “Especially when there are very respectable companies that have been in the market for over 100 years and are well established with the distributors, dealers, and contractors, and - therefore - the customers, however, we’ve achieved dramatic growth in the last 5 years and we are aligned with our targets in the medium and long terms”.
Still, the HVAC industry veteran adds, “It's been a very rewarding journey so far.”
Navigating a fast-changing industry has kept Napoleon on its toes. Like its competitors, the company is continually adjusting its manufacturing strategies to stay ahead of the curve on evolving regulations, jurisdictional standards, customer demands, and rebate qualifications.
It can be a challenge to keep pace, says Romeroll, but Napoleon is no stranger to adaptation: "What I like about this industry is that we have the opportunity to
innovate, and we are a very innovative company. We have a history of finding ways to provide better, more efficient, and more sustainable solutions for our customers that not only comply with their expectations but meet our own goals as an environmentally and socially responsible company."
Looking ahead, Romeroll says the HVAC team has plenty on its front burner. Still headquartered in Barrie, the company is exploring further innovations and advancements when it comes to IAQ technologies, higher-efficiency products (e.g., cold climate heat pumps, hydronic air handling units), and integrated home comfort solutions: “We’re looking at a lot of ways of diversifying, including not only offering isolated sustainable products but combined solutions that can satisfy all the needs a customer may have in their home from a perspective of comfort.”
HRAI is proud to count Napoleon among its trailblazing manufacturing members and looks forward to celebrating the company’s 50th anniversary down the road.
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