Abstract
Lack of Skilled and Knowledgeable Installation Agents Hinders Growth
The hydronic radiant industry has been growing at a steady pace. One of the main challenges faced
by the industry is having enough trained contractors to do the work. The main reason behind this,
like with most other members of the building trade, is the skepticism of the design community and
contractors towards the acceptance of hydronic radiant heating as an alternate system. Their
argument is that these systems take more money, more supervision and it is a heavy responsibility as
any fault or error in the work can lead to bad consequences. These people often have a direct
contact with the client but instead of informing about the benefits of these systems, the
contractors often try to talk them out of it. This leads to adverse affects on the growth of the
industry. Though there is an increase in consumer awareness of the benefits of the system, the
customers are facing difficulty in finding competent, trained and knowledgeable installers to do the
work. As a result the customers tend to approach the plumbers who have the equipment and skill to
assemble the system but often lack the knowledge of heating technology and controls or the HVAC
contractors who have a clear understanding of heat loss and controls but are reluctant to be
involved in hydronics part of the industry.The limitation of the number of contractors in the talent
pool is expected to have a high impact till 2008. As the manufacturers and other associations make
an effort to combat the shortage of qualified people by factory training, the impact of this
challenge is likely to reduce to medium for the rest of the forecast period.
Increasing Comfort Consciousness Drives Sales
Comfort is the primary objective behind the installation of any heating or cooling system. And,
by far the biggest selling point for radiant floor heating is comfort.
Maintaining comfort levels is not a matter of supplying heat to the body; instead it is a matter
of regulating the heat loss of the body. When the interior conditions are such that they allow the
body to loose the heat at the same rate it is produced, the body feels comfortable. If the heat is
released faster or slower than the rate at which it is generated, the body feels some amount of
discomfort. So, to reach a level of comfort, it is necessary to regulate the rate at which heat is
released by means of radiation from the body.
Efficiently designed radiant systems control both the air temperature and surface temperature of
the space to maintain optimal comfort levels. Heat emitters like radiant floors and ceilings raise
the average surface temperature of the room and thus help in enhancing the comfort. Todays comfort
conscious homeowners are seeking alternatives to heating their homes, and radiant floor heating is
one option that many are opting for.
Booming Residential Construction Drives Demand
The total radiant heating market was $467.6 million in 2004. New construction accounts for
approximately 60.0 percent of the revenues, with retrofits reporting less than 40.0 percent in 2004.
The radiant heating market generated 72.4 percent of the revenues from the residential sector in
2004 with 27.6 percent of revenues from the nonresidential sector. Although North America has
witnessed adverse economy since 2000, the new home construction market has demonstrated robust
growth trends attributed mainly to lower interest rates. In the United States, the number of
residential units has increased by 14.0 percent in the western region between 2001 and 2002. While
during the same period South Central and South Atlantic witnessed an increase of 10.8 percent and
13.9 percent, respectively. Similarly, in the North East there was an actual increase of 11.4
percent in the number of residential units in 2002 over 2001. In Canada, the residential
construction market witnessed an increase of 4.7 percent in 2002 over the previous year, with
construction gross domestic product (GDP) totaling more than $15.00 billion. In 2003, there was an
increase of 4.1 percent over 2002 in value of residential construction in United States. The
increase in new home construction promises a huge potential for the radiant heating market, as a
large portion of the demand for radiant heating is received from the residential segment
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