Heather Simmons here - VP of Sales and Marketing at Mysa. Our incredible Mysa smart thermostats team just wrapped up 3 massively productive days at the Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration (AHR) show in Orlando, Florida. With 50,000 attendees and 1,800 exhibitors, that is one BIG show!
Read on for the inside scoop on what our gang of customer-obsessed smart thermostat nerds learned and shared at AHR 2025.
Hitting the Booth With Our Partner Copeland
The Mysa team’s first stop was the Copeland booth, where we connected with our strongest trade partner in Canada, met new Copeland US contacts, and swapped stories about the epic Super Bowl watching party they threw the night before (we can’t give you ALL the details, but apparently it was one for the ages).
New Research on Facility Manager Priorities in March 2025
The Mysa HQ learned some important things at several excellent educational sessions. For example, the Association for Smarter Homes and Buildings (ASHB) completed a recent landmark research project on the drivers of smart building adoption – this will be available for purchase here in March 2025 but you can get the free Executive Summary now. Top drivers of intelligent building adoption, according to the research, are:
- Energy efficiency
- Environmental sustainability
- Improving occupant experience and amenities
Interestingly, the survey reports that occupant experience (ie, comfort, safety, and ambiance) is priority #3. In contrast, facilities managers tell our team that keeping buildings operational and people comfortable and safe is their top priority.
Smart Building Tech Frees Employees to Serve Customers
Why the focus on operations and comfort? Because retailers don’t want their store associates spending any time thinking about the temperature, smart thermostats, HVAC, or air quality. They want them selling goods, providing services, and staying laser-focused on high-quality customer experience.
Case in point: Last fall I walked into the flagship store of an amazing Mysa HQ customer – a cutting-edge bike retailer with 20+ locations in the Western US. They carry brands such as Santa Cruz, Cervelo, Cannondale, and Pivot, as well as some lovely single-gear commuter bikes for the rest of us.Access to local cycling experts, highly technical service, and the store environment are keys to success for them. (They have a bike track INSIDE the store!). I arrived early for my appointment with the Director of Operations, so I asked a store manager how our newly-installed Mysa thermostats were working for them. He looked momentarily puzzled, then glanced over his shoulder at the thermostats on the wall and said, “Oh yeah. We got those a couple weeks ago. I guess it’s going fine.” He politely excused himself and sold a bike about 20 minutes later.
Exactly. Store associates should be spending time with customers, not fiddling with thermostats.
Are Building Automation Systems Affordable?
Back at AHR, several manufacturers, including Schneider Electric and Siemens, astutely pointed out that there is a chasm between basic thermostats and vast building automation systems. Automation systems provide increased functionality but can be cost prohibitive.
That’s where Mysa HQ can help. Our Energy Management System in a Box™️ includes smart thermostats, a dedicated cellular gateway (no more wi-fi issues), a platform that provides visibility and control across all sites, and a variety of sensors (humidity, duct air, occupancy, refrigeration, and more), for approximately ¼ the price per site of more complex systems. If we can help you with store comfort, energy savings, and control, book a time to chat with the Mysa HQ team here.
After a few fun and eye-opening few days (and several winter flight delays), I made it home to snowy Toronto…but I wish I were still in Orlando, brrrrr! Until next time, AHR!