On Thursday, May 9, 2024, Refrigeration Sales Corp. (RSC) hosted its tenth annual open house at their headquarters and distribution center in Valley View, Ohio, about 14 miles southeast of Cleveland. More than 500 customers, vendors and employees were in attendance for the afternoon affair that served as a customer appreciation event, vendor trade show and kickoff party to the busy summer air conditioning season. RSC held their first open house in the same location in 2013, and has continued to do so annually except for a two-year hiatus (2020 and 2021) due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Guests were welcomed to the distribution center-turned-honky-tonk with an array of cardboard cutouts of modern country music stars, displays of raffle prizes, branded giveaways, custom event apparel and gift bags. They were able to move through a section of the warehouse encompassing more than 15,000 square feet that was set for a vendor trade show. Individual booths included presenting sponsors Carrier Residential, Totaline, Carrier Commercial, Manitowoc, CDI, Everpure, International Comfort Products (ICP), Mueller Streamline Co., and Tecumseh. Representatives from more than sixty vendors, many of whom wore appropriate western wear, were on hand to staff their booths, network with contractors and RSC employees, and showcase their products. 

Attendees could move from inside the distribution center down a ramp to the adjacent open-air garage to find a beer truck from Cleveland-based brewery Thirsty Dog, line dance instructors giving lessons, and a mechanical bull. Beyond the overhead doors in the parking lot was a large event tent with outdoor seating flanked by food trucks from Bay Village-based Smokin’ Rock N’ Roll. The trucks served southern favorites like beef brisket, smoked chicken, pulled pork barbecue, hush puppies, and peach cobbler.  Another tent was set across the parking lot to house the Akron-based country and southern rock band Whisky Bound, which performed throughout the day. Akron-based DJ Sparky B was on hand to fill in the musical gaps and serve as the event emcee. 

The open house culminated with a prize raffle that included a Big Green Egg smoker grill and table, a fifty-pound assortment of various meats from a local butcher, a Yeti cooler, tickets to see Ashley McBryde in concert, gift baskets, and gift cards. The grand prize was a country-themed weekend getaway to the destination of the winner’s choice: Nashville, Tennessee for the CMA Awards, Calgary, Alberta, Canada for The Calgary Stampede, or Las Vegas, Nevada, for the Professional Bull Riders Championship.  

Attendees could also pre-register for training courses that were held early in the day at RSC’s training center, located on the second floor of the distribution center. The offerings included a three-hour ductless class, and a two-hour panel discussion that focused on the upcoming A2L Refrigerant transition. The panel, “A Closer Look at A2L Refrigerants,” was moderated by RSC Carrier Brand Manager Craig Zinader, and included leading industry experts Jason Thomas of Carrier Corporation, Todd Titus of HARDI, Don Gillis of The Chemours Company, Andy Mahle of JB Industries, and Nick Esposito, RSC’s Technical Support and Training Manager.