Impact Studies

Automating HVAC Monitoring & Diagnostics

Industry

Heating & Cooling

Market Leadership

Largest HVAC maintenance company on the east coast.

National Reach

Serving half a million homes per year.

The Challenge

Horizon faced several critical challenges:

Labor Challenges: There's a shortage of skilled HVAC technicians. The steep learning curve deters new entrants, making it difficult to keep up with demand.

Peak Season Demand: Demand ebbs and flows with the seasons making it difficult to plan capacity and results in missed opportunities or idle workers.

Increased Competition: Competition amongst HVAC Contractors for new customers and maintaining existing customers continues to be a growing challenge. Customers are looking for fast service, are increasingly price sensitive, and will shop around for the best opportunity and first available in emergency situations.

Reactive Maintenance: Homeowners typically wait for breakdowns because they don’t understand the state of their machine, resulting in emergency repairs. Without real-time monitoring, HVAC companies miss opportunities to extend unit life, capture the sale on new equipment and build customer relationships that drive customer satisfaction and retention.

High Energy Consumption: Heating and cooling account for more than half of the energy use in the average U.S. home. Inefficient systems, without proactive maintenance, increase energy consumption. HVAC companies strive to offer more eco-friendly solutions.

The Solution

BrightAI collaborated with Horizon to create ComfortAI, an AI-powered platform that enhances service efficiency, improves system reliability, drives productivity, and new revenue streams.

What our partners are saying:

Once ComfortAI is installed on an HVAC system, all the data's right there. The homeowner has the same metrics on their phone and the tech is just explaining it to them. It’s a game changer.

George Donges, Service Manager, Horizon

Real-time intelligence

Stateful AI Hub:
Seven multimodal sensors continuously monitor critical parameters and threshold performance, such as temperature, run time, voltage, leaks, and system usage, delivering actionable real time insights.

From reactive to proactive

HVAC AI Foundation Model:
Learns continuously to detect patterns, predict issues, and provide diagnostic solutions.

24/7 AI Master Tech:
Connects field technicians with HQ, ensuring issues are addressed before they escalate.

Automating operations

Admin Web Portal:
A centralized platform for managers/technicians to prioritize tickets, optimize truck rolls, and reduce maintenance costs.

Technician App:
Live data and guided workflows empower technicians to execute installations and repairs efficiently, improving first-time fix rates and validation the equipment is running at optimal performance.

Mobile App:
Homeowners gain visibility into their system's health, receiving timely alerts to reduce unexpected service calls.

Portal

Horizon leverages real-time data to efficiently monitor and assess HVAC system health remotely. Its proprietary health alerting rules deliver valuable insights to fleet managers, minimizing unnecessary truck rolls and optimizing operational efficiency.

A digital dashboard showing active alerts and tickets. One box displays Active Tickets with numbers and another shows Active Alerts with a count of 517. Details include alert statuses and equipment information like make, model, and serial number.

AI Alerting

Real-time alerts with AI detection enable remote diagnostics, helping to quickly identify and resolve issues.

A circular infographic displays data: First Triggered at 39.25°F, Last Triggered at 41.3°F, Max Seen at 45.65°F with corresponding dates and times. Below, 54 total locations, 6 new locations, and an interior temperature graph with various lines.

Technician App

Guides HVAC techs through installations with a validation feature that confirms accurate setup and ensures the system operates within proper thresholds. It also provides remote access to real-time system data for faster diagnostics and streamlined service calls.

Three smartphones display an HVAC control app. The first shows a dashboard with options, the second shows a heating test with a gauge at 75, and the third shows sensor readings, including air temperature and humidity.

Homeowner App

Review, Status, and System Information

Three smartphone screens display an HVAC monitoring app. The left screen shows location, health, and water notifications. The middle screen displays status, runtime graphs, and air filter info. The right screen shows a line graph of total runtime over a year.

What our partners are saying:

My favorite thing about ComfortAI is that it eliminates the guesswork. Now, I have all the service and maintenance data I need right on my tablet, making my job much easier.

Justin Steere, Service Technician, Hutchinson

Homeowner Benefits:

Comfort & Convenience: Improved visibility into HVAC system life, efficiency, and early

Energy Savings: Optimally tuned and maintained HVAC systems save energy.

Cost Savings: Early detection of issues prevents costly breakdowns.

Proactive Alerts: Timely notifications for filter replacements and other maintenance.

Data Encryption: Secure storage of collected information for peace of mind.

HVAC Company Benefits

Increased Revenue

Unique Differentiator: Gain a competitive edge with more service contracts using less labor and a first-mover advantage on new installs.

24/7 Monitoring: Continuous monitoring provides insights into system health, allowing HVAC companies to alert homeowners to critical issues and prevent system failures. It also helps manage fleets by detecting patterns and risks.

Customer Lifetime Value: Boost customer satisfaction and retention while lowering acquisition costs.

Increase Service Call Revenue: Early detection allows techs to identify hidden issues, generating new jobs and upgrade opportunities.

Cost Reductions

Reduced Service Call Duration: Quicker service visits thanks to pre-diagnosed issues.

Increased First Call Completion Rate: Fewer call-backs with the right part, right time, and right truck approach.

Recurring Maintenance Contracts: Proactive real-time alerts boost HVAC efficiency and customer loyalty, ensuring continuous maintenance and reduced emergency repairs.

Labor Improvements

Streamlined HVAC maintenance: Automated monitoring and alerts enable smart routing. Knowing the issue in advance, they can send the right technician for each job.

Labor Leveling: By rolling trucks only when needed, companies improve efficiency during peak seasons and generate demand in slower periods.

Reduced Call Backs: Increased productivity and capacity due to accurate diagnostics and proactive maintenance.

Better for the Environment: Reduction in truck rolls and reduced carbon emissions from early detection of refrigerant leaks.

Scaling for the future

ComfortAI is expanding rapidly across Horizon Group Holding’s key service lines. ComfortAI represents the future of HVAC maintenance—efficient, sustainable, and proactive—aligning with BrightAI’s mission to revolutionize infrastructure through AI automation for a more resilient and sustainable world.