EMAIL INTERVIEW – Ken Smyers and Ken Sinclair

Ken Smyers, with DMS Controls Group, LLC, in Pittsburgh, has over 30 years of experience in the HVAC, Building Automation, and Controls Industry and is Co-Founder of the ControlTrends Awards, which was established to recognize the superstars and heroes of the HVAC and Building Automation Industries.  Ken is also very much involved with Eric Stromquist and ControlTrends.org, a leading internet source for HVAC and Controls information.

2017 ControlTrends Awards Celebration

As new trends, products, solutions, and people emerge, we see the vital necessity in recognizing their impact and success by incorporating them into the ControlTrends Awards.

Sinclair:  2017 ControlTrends Awards Celebration is scheduled for January 21st, 2018, the Sunday before the start of the 2018 AHR Show. Tell us more about the event.

Smyers:  We are celebrating our sixth annual ControlTrends Awards this year in Chicago, at the Hard Rock Café located at 93 W. Ontario Street from 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM.  The Chicago Hard Rock Café nightclub style of venue is well suited for this year’s theme. It’s going to another great night of industry superstars, excitement, entertainment, and networking. Blue Ridge Technologies and EasyIO will be hosting a VIP Event prior to the show from 5:00 PM till the start of the show.

Sinclair:  So, the ControlTrends Awards nomination period has just ended.  What happens next?

Smyers:  The ControlTrends Community members from around the world (37 Countries) have made their nominations -- and the top five to seven nominees in each category will be listed on the voting ballot. Now, we are in the voting phase that will determine the winner of each category.  Look for your ControlTrends Awards email voting ballot in the very near future.

Sinclair:  We see that there are a few category changes this year.  Tell us about them.

Smyers:  Yes, we’ve added the Race to the Small Space Solution; HVAC, Building Automation, or IoT Trainer of the Year; IoT Smart Building Solution of the Year; and the Progressive Consulting Engineer of the Year categories. As the trends that have the greatest impact on our industry change so does a portion of the ControlTrends Awards’ focus. As new trends, products, solutions, and people emerge, we see the vital necessity in recognizing their impact and success by incorporating them into the ControlTrends Awards.

[an error occurred while processing this directive]Sinclair:  Very good, though the show will stay primarily the same, right?

Smyers:  Yes, very much so. The traditional aspects of the ControlTrends Awards will remain the same. It’s all about recognizing the people in our industry. We’ll have the Young Guns Awards, the Petock Award, and the ControlTrends Hall of Fame inductees. Marc Petock and Kim Brown will be our Co-MCs again, and, of course, we appreciate your assistance and Brad White’s assistance in keeping the Young Guns Awards alive and current.

Sinclair:  Well, we look forward to another ControlTrends Awards update in January, and of course, another great night at the ControlTrends Awards.

Smyers:  Thanks, Ken, back to you soon! As always, with an event like the ControlTrends Awards, there are still a lot of moving pieces yet to connect before the show. See you in January!