This is my first entry to the Berner Blog, and I am really excited about it. My name is Georgia Berner, and I am the Owner and CEO of Berner International Corp. and Berner Energy Recovery, Inc. As a woman CEO, a manufacturer, and an advocate for solving rising energy costs, comfort and health issues, I have a lot that I would like to share and also a lot that I would like to learn. With the power and presence of blogging in today’s society, this is the perfect outlet.

Here is a little about me:

Business management was not my first career choice. Prior to taking over at Berner International, I had completed my Master’s degrees in Social Psychology and English Literature and had taught English Literature in Japan. In 1984, everything changed when my husband died suddenly in a plane crash. At the time, my four children spanned in age, from 9 – 15. Some questioned the appropriateness of me running a manufacturing company because I lacked formal business training, and after all, it is manufacturing. But I understood the importance of the business, its impact on my children’s lives and knew that no one would care about it as I would, so I jumped in, ready to learn. One important lesson that I learned quickly upon inheriting the business is that your attorney, your CPA and your banker are your new best friends. They educate you, help you and lead you through the first year.

Early on, I began attending meetings with associations, like the American Society of Heating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) to stay informed on the latest industry developments. Another group that I got involved with was the Air Movement and Control Association (AMCA), our national trade association, which is a certifying body made up of industry-savvy individuals who became good friends. From them, I learned much.

When I first took over at Berner, there weren’t many woman Presidents out there.  In recent years, that has changed for the better.  A new knowledge and friendship source is my membership in the Women Presidents’ Organization – a great place to exchange ideas and get feedback.

My time at Berner International has been very rewarding. Since 1984, I have grown the business over 800%. We have been in business for over 50 years and continue to grow and flourish.

At Berner, we manufacture air curtains,

How an Air Curtain Works

which are energy-conserving products that were introduced to the United States by my father-in-law, Erling Berner, in 1956. An air curtain is a device that is mounted above a doorway and blows air down across the door, separating the indoors from the outdoors, or one environment from another. It keeps the indoor controlled temperature inside of the building, allowing clients to save energy when anything from a customer to a tractor trailer enters or exits the building, while maintaining comfort for employees and customers.

A few years ago, we added a complementary company, Berner Energy Recovery, Incorporated. Berner Energy, as we call it, produces fresh air ventilation with energy recovery hvac systems for commercial or office buildings. These units capture exhaust air and use it to heat/cool and humidify/dehumidify the internal air of the building, greatly reducing the building’s BTU requirements and solving the problem of Sick Building Syndrome. Being a building owner and having grandchildren in grade school (a place where these units are commonly used), I understand the importance of bringing fresh air into buildings to enhance the health and productivity of the people inside, while saving energy. Berner has been a missionary for energy conservation and Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) for over 50 years – understanding that our preferred choice of energy supply is finite. Today, the rest of America is catching up with us.

This blog will be a place for me to share my challenges and successes as a business owner, as well as news about my employees, products, research, community involvement, travels, etc. This blog will give us the chance to have a meaningful dialogue – and not a mean dialog. This is a place for productivity, creativity and sharing. Welcome to my blog!

Tags: air curtains, air doors, Berner Energy, Berner International, energy recovery, energy savings, environmental separation, fresh air, Georgia Berner, insect control

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 24th, 2008 at 9:53 am and is filed under Georgia's Blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.