Blog

May 27, 2023

Making the ‘Impossible’ Possible with Spiral Duct

It’s no secret that SPIDA members and manufacturers are faced with tall tasks on

It's no secret that SPIDA members and manufacturers are faced with tall tasks on almost a daily basis. Whether it be dealing with tight project timelines, difficult construction specifications, or just being asked to go above and beyond to satisfy their customers, many of them are asked daily to do just that, making the impossible, possible.

SPIDA member Eastern Sheet Metal is no stranger to such impossible asks. Located and headquartered in Cincinnati, OH with an additional manufacturing facility in Dothan, AL Eastern Sheet Metal has nearly 240,000 sq feet of space dedicated to the manufacturing of spiral ductwork. Starting as a family owned and operated business in 1978, Eastern Sheet Metal will be celebrating its 45th year in operation in 2023.

Eastern Sheet Metal's Chris Profitt recalls one of those such times in which they were asked to go above and beyond for a large complex housing several local breweries in Charlotte, NC.

"This was a tough job from a manufacturing standpoint and was a true team effort between us, the sales representative and general contractor. The owner of this building had a very specific vision for every aspect of the complex. They wanted a very artisanal look to the space including the ductwork and wanted everything to have a rustic feel. They chose not to paint the ductwork even though it was in a very exposed application. This brought us some challenges because of the ductwork being galvanized. They wanted the beneficial properties of the zinc coating however they did not want it to have an overly shiny appearance to keep the look of the space."

"Galvanized ductwork is used primarily in concealed applications and that there can be material appearance variances from coil to coil when sourcing metal. We had to hand pick and choose specific coils that not only were a duller visual appearance for galvanized, but also had the struggle of color matching for aesthetic purposes as well. At the end of the day, it all comes down to service and execution. It's a competitive business and we really pride ourselves on our customer relations and being easy to do business with. In the end seeing the product hanging and how good it looks in the space I’ll say it made the headache and extra footwork all worthwhile."

Chris Profitt is a Sr. Production Manager at Eastern Sheet Metal.