Ron founded Enerfit in 2006 after a long career in HVAC sales and controls.

From 1971-1989, he was a sales engineer at Trane Company. Because of Trane’s unit selection process at the time, Ron had to manually select and specify each component – experience that would later prove critical in developing Enerfit.

In 1985, Ron founded Electronic Controls Inc., a controls contractor and mechanical service company with a broad presence in East Tennessee, Northern Alabama and Northern Georgia.

Drawing on his dual expertise in HVAC unit engineering and building controls, he designed and patented the advanced concepts and systems behind the Enerfit retrofit. In recognition of his innovative work with Enerfit, in 2010 Ron was honored with the Chattanooga Technology Council’s Early Innovator Award.

Ron holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Mississippi.

Ben began his career in writing and journalism. In his first position as a copywriter in a New York based ad agency, he wrote for A&P, the NYPD, and pharmaceuticals.

During this time, he realized that his true interest was not in the creative work, but in the systems that created it. In 2005, he co-founded Pixelfix NY, an IT consulting firm specializing in media, architectural and animation studios.

He is a former board member of the Jazz Foundation of America and the North Chickamauga Creek Conservancy.

Ben holds a BA in English from Dartmouth College.

BSME, University of Tennessee Knoxville

Sam graduated from the Mechanical Engineering program at the University of Tennessee Knoxville magna cum laude in 2011. He began his career during and after college at Advanced Energy & Design, Inc as a Mechanical Engineering Consultant where he worked extensively in mechanical design, energy modeling and analysis.

In 2014, he moved to Volkswagen Chattanooga as a Mechanical Infrastructure Specialist. While there, he was accredited with a verified $415k+ in annual energy savings in his first two years, the most savings of any VW plant worldwide.

Sam is very proficient with Carrier HAP energy analysis software, AutoCAD, MicroStation, Inventor modeling software, and Visual Basic Programming.

He is fluent in the following control platforms: AB RSLogix, Honeywell WEBs-AX, Siemens Insight, Johnson Controls Metasys, Mitsubishi, Tridium Niagara, Delta Controls programming and BAS system networking.

Sam holds an active PE license (Mechanical) and an EPA Universal Certification. He is also certified in Duct and Envelope Tightness (DET) and Tennessee Erosion Prevention and Sediment Control Program (EPSC) Level 1.

Brian began work as an HVAC subcontractor while studying HVAC refrigeration at Coosa Valley Tech in Rome, Georgia.

After graduation, Brian moved to Cartersville, Georgia as an HVAC service technician.

In 1998, he relocated to Chattanooga and continued his work in HVAC field service, joining Enerfit sister company ECI in 2009. Brian’s 27 years of HVAC mechanical work, along with control experience, make him a great trainer and troubleshooter for Enerfit field installations.

Brian is EPA certified and holds manufacturer's certifications from Carrier, Trane, Heatcraft, Honeywell Boiler Controls, ABB, NOVAR, KMC and Delta Controls.

Chattanooga native Balus Smith began his electronics career in the United States Air Force in 1965, where he worked on the inertial navigation systems in F-4 Phantom Fighter/Bombers.

In 1969, he moved to the private sector in California to work on the Cointronics Lunar Lander arcade game. In 1970, Balus returned to Chattanooga and began a TVA apprenticeship with courses on industrial electronics at Oak Ridge.

Balus moved to Electric Systems in 1977, where he was responsible for the board design of power supplies, interconnect boards and specialized circuitboards for the textile and carpet industries. In 2003, Balus moved to Enerfit sister company ECI Industrial LLC.

Balus’s insights have been instrumental in developing the current Enerfit Version 1 Basic, which eliminates as many field wiring termination as possible by building them into an integrated mezzanine board.

Balus holds an ASEE from Chattanooga State Community College.