Fuel Oil News New Vendor Awards

These awards go out to companies (and their solutions) that are fresh entrants to the home heating oil industry. The primary goal of this contest is to identify new or returning companies to the industry trade show space that might be of interest to our readers. The eligibility criteria is being (to the best of our knowledge) first time exhibitors or returning exhibitors after an absence of five years exhibiting at any of the major industry trade shows ‘ AHR, AREE, NEFI or OESP.

The Fuel Oil News New Vendor Awards is presented in three classes, as available each year:

1. Fuel Handling and Storage. These companies provide solutions relative to the fuel product (oil, propane, wood pellets, etc.) and include: bulk plants; trucks; truck tanks and truck equipment; hedging solutions; additives; filters; home storage tanks ‘ etc.

2. Heating Appliances and Combustion Technologies. These companies provide boilers; furnaces; hot water heaters; solar and other alternative solutions; hydronic solutions; warm air solutions; function as supply houses; support HVAC operations and provide burners and combustion components.

3. Business Solutions. These are typically home office and operational solutions. They would include back office software vendors; accounting and other professional service providers; environmental service providers; business forms and related; and HR solutions.

Invariably the companies will offer a wide range of solutions in the same general category. That makes it difficult to have an ‘apples to apples” comparison. It is also difficult in this format to really dig into each solution in great detail. Therefore our judges were asked to consider these solutions the same way they would walking by the company’s booth on the trade show floor ‘ does that seem interesting, particularly useful or unique?

This year’s judges:

Charles Bursey has been in the oil industry since 1963. He now works for industry manufacturer F.W. Webb, Warwick, R.I., and serves as a service columnist for this magazine.

Shane Sweet is in management with a major Northeast fuel marketer and has served the industry as CEO of New England Fuel Institute and executive vice president/director of the Vermont Fuel Dealers Association. He lives in Manchester Center, Vermont.

Charity Lombardi-Simard is president of Lombardi Oil & Gas Company in Newburyport, Mass. The family business was started in 1958 by her father, Frank Lombardi and was transitioned to Charity as second generation over the past five years. Charity holds both an undergraduate degree in economics, and a graduate degree in business management.  Prior to this, Charity spent ten years in a progressive video gaming company, working through an intensive multi-departmental management training program. During this short time back with Lombardi, she has been successfully driving a major growth and expansion initiative. Her business objectives have centered on efficiency and technology as well as expansion into community services.

And now, the companies