Women in HVAC-R Industry – Coyne College

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WOMEN OF
HVAC-R
Promoting Women in HVAC Industry
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Abstracts
Female HVAC Technician
When Sandra Garza graduated from Coyne College in
1996, she was the only woman in her HVAC
program. She was accepted with open arms and
took advantage of all the training and mentoring
she could get. It paid off. Now, 22 years later,
she is the owner of SG Heating Cooling Services
in Oak Lawn.
W o m e n i n H V A C - R
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Details
What do you need to become an HVAC Tech?
The path she took toward business ownership was a
strategic one. After graduation, Coyne
immediately placed Garza in her first job. It
was more plumbing than I expected, she said,
and Im not a plumber. She spent a year in the
position but asked Coyne for more job placement
assistance. In each subsequent position, she
learned more and more about the industry as she
honed her skills. I started my sole
proprietorship 15 years ago, Garza says, even
as she continued to work with other companies.
I got a lot of experience with companies, but
that expanded to appliances. Work was steady
until about eight years ago. The HVAC industry
took a dip, she remembers. I think the weather
had a lot to do with it. Chicago in 2010 saw a
fairly temperate climate, and the demands for
heating and air conditioning dwindled. It was
difficult to get steady work.
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Who The
Pioneer Team
In a period of one year, I tripled my business,
she says I couldnt handle it all on my own.
She hired two secretaries and four HVAC
technicians who help her in her business, which
focuses on third-party appliance warranties a
field that she says is really expanding..
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Key to being a Woman of HVAC
What sets you apart from the competition?

• The key to being female and being accepted is
  very simple. Go into the field as a regular
  person, Garza says. Do not try to use the fact
  that youre a female for favoritism, because
  thats what defines you as a peer. If you work
  with the men as one of the guys, theyll
  respect you more. Garza hopes to see more women
  in the trades especially in HVAC. Women tend
  to be more observant than men and take a
  different approach, she says. Women tend to
  nurture the appliances and be more engaged
  with people. Garza also thinks that if there
  were more women in HVAC more people would ask
  for professional help rather than try to do it
  themselves with the help of YouTube videos. If
  we can get customers to trust tradespeople and
  validate the charges, theyd use professionals
  more often.

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Get in touch
Main branch address 1 North State Street, Suite
400 Chicago, IL 60602 https//www.coynecollege.edu
/contact/ Phone number 800-720-3990 Email
address info_at_coynecollege.edu