Saratoga Business Journal
By Christine Graf
Established in 1945, Albany-based Eastern Heating and Cooling provides HVAC services to commercial and industrial customers throughout Upstate New York, Western Massachusetts, and Southern Vermont. In 1997, the company joined with 11 other businesses to establish Comfort Systems USA, a publicly-traded company that has grown to include 170 locations across the United States.
“We are owned by Comfort Systems USA which is now a $5 billion company,” said Buddy Tricarick, president of Eastern Heating and Cooling. “We specialize in design, build, installation, maintenance service, and building automation,”
An Air Force veteran, Tricarick began his career at the company 15 years ago, rapidly climbing the company ladder.
“I started out in the construction department, working in the tool crib handing out tools,” he said. “I worked my way up to assistant construction manager and then construction manager/safety director.”
In addition to installing, replacing, and servicing existing HVAC systems, Eastern Heating and Cooling has an in-house engineering department that is able to assist with the design-build and plan-and-spec process. The company also has its own sheet metal shop where ductwork is fabricated and installed.
“We also have our controls division where we build automation that can do everything from operating the heating and cooling equipment to turning on the lights in a building. You name it, we can do it,” said Tricarick.
Tricarick said that Eastern Heating and Cooling has been able to maintain a consistent workforce despite the labor shortages that have plagued many HVAC companies.
“We’re very blessed, and I think the reason for our success is because we recruit from local colleges and BOCE programs. We have a very intensive training program, and when we hire people, they ride with senior technicians for a full year before they go out on their own.”
The company has a total of 130 employees spread across four divisions, many of whom have been employed there for a decade or more.
“Turnover is so expensive, and when we train people and onboard them, we want them to be here for the long haul,” said Tricarick. “When we hire these young kids, we want this to be their first and last job. We’re blessed because we have guys who have been here for 10, 20, 30 years. We have someone who has been here for 40 years, and he’s still out in the field working.”
According to Tricarick, Eastern Heating and Cooling has experienced tremendous growth over the past two years, with revenues increasing from $28 million in 2021 to just shy of $40 million in 2023.
“We pride ourselves on being one of the region’s most versatile, responsive, and technologically savvy companies. That’s always been our claim to fame, and the reason for our success is due to our talented and dedicated field technicians who are out there working with their hands, often in harsh weather conditions.”
For more information, visit www.easternheatingcooling.com