Jim Ball has been involved in the HVAC industry all his life. His dad started Ball Heating and Air in 1964 and Jim spent his school breaks and summer vacation working in the business, helping wherever there was a need. After finishing Mississippi State with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, Jim spent a few years in Chemical Plants working on rotating equipment then came back to the family business. Ball Heating and Air had a strong maintenance plan with influence from Ron Smith.

Jim has been a long time NCI shining star and one of the most effective implementers of High Performance HVAC in his company. Jim recently sold his family HVAC service company and looks to give back to the industry through contributing his knowledge and experience with NCI. Jim hopes to help those involved with NCI to move forward with the implementation of performance-based processes.

NCI has recognized Jim’s status in the industry as NCI Contractor of the Year, and he also received the Chairman’s Award and The John Garofalo Implementation Excellence Award at Summit in the past.

Fun Fact:
Jim and his wife Seneca spent a week in the waters around Miami, Florida getting their American Sailing Association certifications. After a week in a sailing catamaran in June, the top priority for their future sailboat is air conditioning

Mitch started in the HVAC industry in 1976, when he was 15, working for his dad’s new company, Bailey’s Air Conditioning. After graduating high school, he became full time working up from helper to journeyman, service technician to manager, and eventually purchased the company from his father in 1991.

For the last 15 years Mitch’s company has concentrated on service and residential add on replacement. His company optimizes HVAC performance along with envelope upgrades to provide cost effective energy saving solutions along with improved home comfort.

Mitch’s goal is to perform a load calculation on every job, measure in the existing system, make corrections to ducts, the homes envelope, and equipment upgrades, and finally measure out each system to assure that the system is not only working but performing.

Mitch, is a BPI building analyst professional certified, has 8 NATE certifications, CSLB licensed B-General contractor, C-20 HVAC, and C-36 Plumbing. He currently serves on the IHACI Board of directors and is on the ASHRAE 221 Standard committee.

Mitch believes that static is the proverbial “Canary in the Coal Mine” for our industry, and we as technicians and contractors need to pay more attention to it. As he is commonly quoted in his classes, “You can’t put 4 tons of cooling on 3 tons of duct work, the same as you can’t fit 10 pounds of potatoes in a 5-pound sack.”

Jayme Carden started working in the construction industry in the 1980’s. Since that time, he has worked in all phases of construction from small residential remodels to large scale development projects.

Jayme became involved with HVAC testing and diagnostics in the early 1990’s. The local utility companies were offering incentives to contractors, developers and 3rd party verifiers that were willing to build beyond the current energy codes and prove performance through diagnostic testing. This process was the onramp to the California Energy Commission creating the Title 24 energy codes and the “HERS” compliance process.

In 2001 Jayme teamed up with Industry Legend, Scott Johnson and created Maximum Performance Housing, Inc. This company is still Jayme’s main thrust today. “MPH Inc” works primarily with HVAC contractors as a 3rd party verifier for Title 24 compliance and light commercial air balancing.

Beyond working in the field, Jayme has been working with IHACI (Institute of Heating and Air Conditioning Industries) as both an in-class trainer and a curriculum developer for many years.

Having been trained and certified in virtually every NCI discipline, Jayme is excited about his role as a trainer with National Comfort Institute.

Fun Fact:
Of course, spending time with the kids (Hailey & Tanner) is a huge priority. Jayme also likes to spend time in the outdoors. Camping and fishing with the family are some of his favorite activities. When the sun sets, the activities change a bit. Jayme have been playing guitar in rock bands for over 30 years now. He considers himself a successful musician because he gets free beer!

Casey brings many years of residential, light commercial installation and service experience to his position with NCI. He has been an NCI Instructor since 2015. He entered the HVAC industry through his father’s HVAC company in 2005. The company’s main focus was residential new construction and that is where he learned the basics of installing and commissioning and servicing HVAC systems.

When the market crashed his father decided to change the dynamic of the company to more billable service and add-on-replacement. With the new change in direction, Casey attended extensive sales, customer service, and technical training. He attended numerous NCI classes and became certified in residential and light commercial air balancing, HVAC system performance, duct system optimization, and CO & Combustion.

He was responsible for the add-on-replacement and commissioning through the SCE QI program along with the CQR program. He also managed the service department, where he had the opportunity to implement NCI’s test procedures on service and preventive maintenance calls. He developed a passion for training others and seeing their growth in the industry.

Since then, Casey has become a top NCI certified instructor for virtually every class NCI offers.

Fun Fact:
Casey enjoys working on cars, trucks, motorcycles, and home improvement. He also loves fishing and being in the outdoors.

I began working in the PHVAC industry in 1983 primarily in residential, new construction as an installation mechanic. I eventually moved into the add on/replacement segment as well as service work. It was during this time period that I took my first Jim Davis combustion course, a course that changed the way I viewed combustion appliances forever. This is also when I developed a passion for hydronic heating systems, steam, hot water and radiant. From 2002 to 2007, I was self-employed, most of my work being in custom homes, designing and installing PHVAC systems, specializing in radiant heating. In 2007 I went to work for a pump manufacturer as their national trainer and spent the next 8 years doing technical presentations to engineers, contractors and facilities personnel. A strong emphasis was placed on the potential energy savings that could be realized using circulators equipped with ECM technology. After leaving the pump company, I went to work for an American boiler manufacturer, again working with contractors and engineers doing both training and field assistance.

Fun Fact:
I am an avid outdoorsman, have been since I was old enough to cast a lure or carry a BB gun. I’ll fish for anything, but I am especially fond of fly fishing for trout. I enjoy bow hunting as much as I enjoy hunting with a gun.

Rob has 43 years experience in the Heating and Air Conditioning field, in particular, with Mechanical Design & Building Performance for owners.

He earned his certifications from the State of Maryland, Air Conditioning Contractors of America, Building Performance Institute, Residential Energy Service Network, United States Green Building Council, and National Comfort Institute.

Rob is active in many associations, including ACCA National Products & QA Committee Chair, ACCA/BPI QEE Standard Development Committee, Building Performance Institute (BPI), Building Performance Association, Building Performance Association National Program Committee, ACHR News Advisory Board, HVACRedu.net Program Oversight Committee, Home Energy Magazine’s Editorial Advisory Board, and Maryland Youth Apprenticeship Advisory Committee.

He lives in Burtonsville, MD with his wife Dawn. They have 3 children, 1 grand-daughter and 1 dog.

When Rob is not working, he likes to spend time with his family, play drums with 3 local bands, travel, and play golf.

John Puryear has a diverse background in the HVAC industry that dates back to 1973 when he helped his family’s landlord replace an oil floor furnace with a forced air oil furnace with ductwork. He joined NCI in February, 2011 as an instructor.

John met Rob Falke in 2000 and says “that my life changed forever.” He became one of the first 50 members of NCI’s membership program. He attended NCI’s second “Boot Camp” in 2003 and from what he learned there, developed an implementation process that he used with the first contractor he went to work for. Since then John has joined NCI as a full-time technical instructor.

Fun Fact:
John enjoys spending time and playing with his three grandchildren, twins Jaxon & Gauge, and Emory. He is also a fan of boating up and down the James River with his wife, Tina. John adds that he is an avid reader and loves researching answers to HVAC questions.

Dominick Guarino has grown the company from the ground up along side former President Rob Falke, into the HVAC industry’s largest independent training and certification organization. He co-founded NCI in 1994 with Rob (originally National Balancing Institute). NCI has also grown into a premier membership organization focused on every aspect of helping HVAC contractors. Dominick oversees all aspects of operations, new product introductions, and sales and marketing for the company. He also manages NCI’s business management, sales and soft skills training team. He presides over NCI conferences and participates in HVAC industry conferences and meetings.

David joined National Comfort Institute full time in 2010 as a curriculum developer and trainer. In this role, he develops and teaches practical, real-world training focused on the HVAC and Home Performance industries.

He has been involved in Performance-based contracting since 2001. This experience allowed him the opportunity to diagnose and correct many HVAC and Home Performance issues over the past decade.

In addition, David writes monthly columns for various industry publications to help increase awareness on the importance of performance testing. David is a regular presenter at many industry conferences working to spread the message of Performance-based contracting.

Besides holding all NCI certifications, David has held certifications as a HERS rater, BPI building analyst, and is a BPI field and written exam proctor.

Fun Fact:
David is a recent convert to the Macintosh Way and has become a Jedi Knight, working towards the defeat of all things that are not of the Apple Computer persuasion. May the Force be with you.