Inside the Industry

Texas College Hosts National Propane HVAC Train the Trainer Event

Propane Goes Prime Time: PERC's Video Campaign Will Air Millions of Videos This August

At PERC’s recent Train the Trainer, HVAC event, 30 instructors from technical schools and community colleges across the country, including Texas, gathered to learn how to educate their students on PERC’s HVAC and Plumber Technical Training curriculum, which discusses how to safely and efficiently install, test, and operate propane appliances and gas distribution systems.

Along with learning how to teach the curriculum, attendees had hands on demonstrations of both the regulator board that PERC provides schools who are grant program recipients, as well as a hydrometer, another tool that the schools are required to purchase with the grant program money.

The three instructors from Texas State Technical College from various campuses (including Waco, North Texas and Harlingen) attended the training.

PERC thanks host Collin College in McKinney for making this event a success!

People In Propane

John R. (Jack) Shiplette, 78, passed away June 29 with his loving wife by his side. After serving our country in Vietnam with the U.S. Navy, Jack worked as a gas appliance serviceman in San Diego, California. After marrying Jeanette, he moved to El Campo, where he built his business, El Campo Propane Service. Our thoughts are with his family.

Annell Dorris,Roadrunner Energy - Uvalde, Texas passed away on July 11, 2023 from medical related complications. Annell was married to Jerry Dorris and they started Roadrunner Energy in 1978 after purchasing the former Vapo Gas Company. After Jerry passed away in 2004, Annell continued to work as the majority shareholder of the family business, along with their three sons Ben, Jody & Todd. Jerry & Annell were and Todd has continued Roadrunner Energy’s long time, active involvement in the Texas Propane Gas Association. In lieu of flowers, family suggests donations/memorials can be made to El Progreso Memorial Library, 301 West Main, Uvalde, Texas 78801 or Uvalde Grand Opera House, c/o City of Uvalde, PO Box 799, Uvalde, Texas 78802.

The Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) is celebrating a substantial bonus earned from its successful summer campaign. With this incentive, PERC is poised to launch an exciting bonus campaign, slated to run from August 1 to August 31. The heart of this new initiative will be the captivating "Propane 30-second Future is Now" video.

This engaging video will be strategically showcased across various platforms, ensuring broad viewership and impact. Viewers can catch the :30 commercials on popular TV Network Apps, including ABC, Fox, ESPN, NBC, Discovery, TNT, Food Network, NBC Sports, MLB Network, National Geographic, TBD, A&E, AMC, and Peacock. Additionally, they will be available on On-Demand Apps like Pluto TV, Tub, Xumo, Vevo, Crackle, and Hulu. Moreover, the campaign will leverage Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) channels such as Roku, Samsung, Vizio, and Direct TV, maximizing the audience reach.

To build on the momentum gained from the summer campaign, PERC plans to spread these propane educational commercials across the 36 states that actively participated, including Texas. The projection is to achieve over 2.3 million free :30 video streams, thus fueling awareness and understanding about propane's potential and benefits.

PERC looks forward to this next chapter of the campaign, aiming to make an even greater impact and continuing to pave the way for a propane growth.

Share New Agriculture Safety Guides with Ag Producers

“For greenhouse heat and power generation, no other energy source gives growers the anytime, anywhere reliability of propane. Propane heating systems provide consistent heat within 0.5 degrees of the desired temperature in a low-emission, plant-safe way while also helping growers cut fuel costs,” says Michael Newland, director of agriculture business development at PERC.

Producers are frequently thinking about safety when it comes to their agriculture operations—remaining safe when using equipment, keeping their crops and livestock safe, and ensuring the safety of everyone working on an operation are always top of mind. We also want to make sure that everyone who is involved with an ag operation remains safe when using propane throughout the farm.

The Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) has recently developed six new ag safety guides that are now available in The Learning Center. Each one-page safety guide provides important information about code and training requirements, specific hazards, and special safety considerations for a variety of propane uses and equipment. The six safety guides include:

• Propane Safety On the Farm

• Safety For Transport Delivery

• Using Farm Carts Safely

• Safety For Wet Line Dispensers

• Confinement Barn Safety

• Crop Dryer Safety

PERC encourages you to download the guides, familiarize yourself with the safety information, and share them with your ag customers.

Download the ag safety sheets at bit.ly/3NxsyPk.

PERC Joins National Greenhouse Manufacturers Association

Fast-growing public support of local, controlled vegetable growing operations is heightening the need for clean, safe, reliable power to operate greenhouses nationwide.

That’s why PERC has joined the National Greenhouse Manufacturers Association, which represents the manufacturers and suppliers of greenhouses and greenhouse components.

Nationwide, indoor-grown lettuce, arugula, kale, mustard, spinach, herbs, and cannabis are being produced locally year-round in controlled environment greenhouses. The practice of controlled environment agriculture allows growth in diverse regions using less water, less land, and no agriculture chemicals.

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Allen and Debra Wells

Wells Propane & TPGA/President

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