By Mark Taylor, NARSA/IDEA Executive Director

Many radiator shop technicians actually started out as blacksmiths. An example of this history is NARSA/IDEA member Don Hart’s Radiator based in Waller, Texas. Don’s great-uncles, the Echols brothers, started a blacksmith business in Fort Worth in 1910. Because they recognized automotive technology as the wave of the future, they trained at Henry Ford’s plant and learned how to service cooling systems for these new machines. And when they returned, they opened the first radiator shop in Texas. To this day, the Hart family has been major players in the industry.

Even though radiators may look similar today to radiators that were made almost a century ago, they are far more advanced. Innovations in cooling system materials have allowed cooling systems to be more compact and efficient. Manufacturers of radiators have been able to improve the strength, durability and reliability of radiators in all applications from light-duty to industrial. Through the use of technologically advanced alloys along with advanced engineering, cooling systems are far superior to cooling systems from decades ago.

See What’s New in Heat Exchange

The Mobile Heat/Transfer/Heating/AC section at AAPEX 2021 is sponsored by NARSA, the International Heat Transfer Association, and IDEA, the International Diesel Emissions Association. NARSA was founded in 1954. A couple of years ago, NARSA added the diesel emissions association as an add-on service to our members since a large portion of radiator service businesses are engaged in the cleaning of diesel particulate filters found on diesel engines used in light, medium, and heavy-duty applications. NARSA/IDEA exists to create One Idea, One Opportunity, and One Connection. Our members represent every aspect of the heat transfer and diesel emissions industries from transportation to industrial thermal and emissions management products and services. This year for the first time, we will have companies exhibiting at AAPEX who offer cleaning equipment and parts for diesel emissions systems.

The Mobile Heat/Transfer/Heating/AC section (Level 1, Sands Expo) returns this year as the global marketplace for service replacement parts and everything heat exchange. The companies exhibiting in this area will belong to one of three categories: engine cooling systems, mobile air conditioning and diesel emissions service.

The exhibitors that are part of the engine cooling category will range from raw material suppliers, equipment manufacturers, radiator manufacturers, cooling system parts manufacturers and cooling system parts distributors. Visit the companies exhibiting in this section so you may be able to discover those hidden service dollars that can be produced by sourcing the parts needed to help you more efficiently repair the vehicles that you service. Talk to the radiator suppliers to find out more about how this part has been transformed since its inception many years ago.

The last category of exhibitors represented in this area are the companies who sell equipment and parts for the diesel emissions industry. This is a brand new category to be included in NARSA/ IDEA’s section. As mentioned earlier, there are many cooling system service businesses that clean diesel particulate filters so the inclusion of diesel emissions was a natural fit. The cooling system actually plays a part in cooling exhaust gases when Exhaust Gas Recirculation coolers are used on an engine. As a result of EPA regulations, diesel engines require an exhaust gas filtering system to remove particles and contaminants from the diesel exhaust. Diesel particulate filters and diesel oxidation catalysts need to be inspected and cleaned. The companies exhibiting this year at AAPEX offer cleaning equipment, new replacement diesel particulate filters, and other parts necessary for the service of diesel emissions filtering systems.

With the disruption in the parts supply chain, come to this area to meet new suppliers who can offer you the opportunity to source the high volume automotive, light-duty, and heavy-duty vehicle applications to find sources for one off custom engineered heat exchangers. Let NARSA/IDEA’s Mobile Heat/Transfer/Heating/AC section create that one idea, one opportunity, and one connection for you and your business. Register today!