The recent news of Google's acquisition of Nest, the maker of the wildly popular self-setting Wi-Fi enabled home thermostat and now smart smoke and carbon-monoxide alarm, has had the Internet a buzz about just what this may mean in the ways of privacy and home automation control.
Naturally, talk of the acquisition started quickly online and there is no shortage of ideas to just where Google will take this. Whether we like it or not, companies like the Internet giant have had their investments teams on the trail of the technology found within the Nest thermostat and smart alarm.
The technology has been around for a while but Nest with its marketing genius and Silicon Valley roots took it to the homeowner on a whole new level. Contractors, at first, were excited too but as time moved on the contractor connection waned. We are already seeing a different reaction this time around.
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Is it because of Google's involvement? Are we now aware of the limitations of the current Nest generation? Maybe it's the fact that the thermostats are available to the contractor's customer right off the shelf at the local electronic retail store.
The HVAC market has no shortage of Wi-Fi-enabled controls and long gone are the days of gateway platforms if you're looking to offer remote connectivity to heating or cooling appliances.
But just connecting and controlling a heating or cooling system is limiting and companies like Google (I predict) will market their new acquisition as only one piece of a much larger puzzle.
Home security monitoring companies have been offering to control your heat or A/C, alert you of water leaks and the like for a while now. Maybe Google is looking in that direction? Of course this may be just another business deal for them (Google).
Last month I attended the AHR Expo in New York City. If you haven't been to an AHR show I can personally recommend it to any contractor looking for new technology, tools or to get a leg up on your competition.
The topic of smart thermostats, as you can imagine at a show that has a heavy presence of HVAC products, was being discussed all over the place.
One of the highlights of the show for me was participating as a speaker at the Mechanical Town Hall event. It was at this event where the training guru and event panelist John Barba of Taco Inc. added to the round table discussion his opinion of Google's acquisition with this: "Google spent $3.2 billion on a thermostat company.
When you compare that to the overall annual value of the residential HVAC industry you have to think that whatever it is that Google is buying it isn't the thermostat. Also, you don't see Google dropping that kind of coin to buy Carrier, Trane or Lennox."
So what is Google buying? Your habits? Insight as to when you arrive home, leave for work or sit in front of your computer?
As a plumbing and heating contractor in central Minnesota I have had limited success selling “Smart” thermostats. I have earned the reputation of being somewhat progressive in the way I run my business; new technology and products often get my wheels turning with the prospect of new or expanded work through the door, but in some cases all-out rejection from clients at the thought that they could or would have to control their heating and cooling system from their phone or computer is just one more thing they do not want to “have” to do. Maybe Google will excite these people and get them on board? We’ll just have to wait and see.
Eric Aune started Aune Plumbing LLC in 2004 and specializes in residential and small commercial hydronic heating systems and service. He is a graduate of Dunwoody College of Technology and Plumbers Local 15, Minneapolis Apprenticeship Training Program, and is currently a United Association Instructor and teaches for the Plumbers Local 15 JATC. Aune is also founding partner and vice president of mechanical-hub.com. Contact him at: [email protected].