The Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors National Association presented its annual HVAC Contractor of the Year Award – sponsored by Rheem– to Mitchell Cropp, chief executive officer and founder of CroppMetcalfe Services in Fairfax, Virginia. Recognizing excellence in the HVACR industry, the award – presented at CONNECT 2018 in Albuquerque, New Mexico – salutes the contractor best demonstrating professionalism, merchandising and management skills, innovative HVAC practices, trade involvement and community service.

A respected leader in the industry, Cropp is CEO of CroppMetcalfe Services, a company he founded in 1979. From the beginning, Cropp has believed that meeting his company’s mission to provide the ultimate in total comfort systems for its customers’ homes and businesses takes dedicated and loyal employees. Under his leadership, the company established core tenets – including excellent benefits, strong family and community ties, and exceptional training for career growth – to take care of its team.

“Wanting to be a great company and becoming that company are different things,” said the nomination submitted by PHCC of Virginia. “Mitchell Cropp is a testament to how responsive employees and customers can be when their interests and concerns are at the forefront of business decisions.”

A secret to his success, according to his PHCC of Virginia colleagues, is that Cropp views challenges as opportunities and identifies creative solutions, as exemplified by his company’s early adoption of an in-house apprenticeship training program. Today, CroppMetcalfe Academy is a four-year apprenticeship program accredited in Virginia and Maryland; students who complete the program graduate with a journeyman’s license. The program is in its sixth year and currently has more than 45 students.

In addition, CroppMetcalfe has a strong community presence and supports many programs, including St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Wreaths Across America and Best Buddies. Likewise, Cropp consistently gives back to his industry by serving on committees and advisory boards for several trade-related associations, including the Fairfax County Virginia State Apprenticeship Program, the Construction Technology Education Foundation, PHCC of Virginia and PHCC of Northern Virginia, and the Air Conditioning Contractors of America.

As the nomination form summarizes, Cropp is “an excellent representative of the HVAC industry, a remarkable member of the community in which he lives and works, and an asset to the PHCC of Virginia membership and the professionalism of tradesmen.”