About Us
Our History
Climate Engineering, Inc. was founded in 1965 by Lou Bindner and Len Johannes. The company’s primary activity was the sale, installation, maintenance, and repair of air conditioning and refrigeration systems in commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings.
The company started in a tiny corner of a large warehouse and office building on West 2nd Avenue in the South Platte flood plains. (Although we didn’t realize that at the time!) Three months after we opened the doors of our business, they were opened even wider when the top eight feet of the Platte River wiped out our office and shop and deposited a truck load of cabbages from the farm across the alley. That flood devastated the Platte Valley from south of Littleton through Commerce City and left only three usable bridges still standing in the whole metro area.
We operated out of our vehicles and phone booths (no cell phones then) until we found temporary quarters. Within a few months, we moved into space at 400 South Lipan. The city slowly recovered and we managed to do the same but it was one of two major setbacks we encountered on our journey. Company growth was steady but purposely controlled in order to build an organization of highly qualified personnel.
In 1975, we became the factory representatives for Barber-Colman temperature controls in Colorado and southern Wyoming. This enterprise flourished and in a short period of time, our company more than doubled in size to 50 people with 25 trucks on the street and a warehouse full of inventory. We moved into our current location, plus two other buildings, to make room for this growth. By this time, Ken Winner had already joined our team as one of the owners.
The Denver economy fell off the table in the 1980s with little warning. The construction industry became very unstable and this marked the beginning of the decline in profitable activity in the temperature control market as well as a change in the profile of operators in that market. This was the second major setback and it lasted into the 1990s.
We sold the temperature control department to Ken Winner and some employees and returned to our core business in 1985. In the process, we pared the company employment to less than half of our high water mark. By this time, Len Johannes had retired and we purposely withdrew from the new construction, plan-and-spec market. Since that time, we seek out design/build work, mainly remodel and add-on projects, where we can control the design and can assure the customer a premium job at a fair price.
Centennial Controls, Inc. was established in 1993 to provide state-of-the-art temperature control and building automation services for contractors, consulting engineers, and building owners and operators. Centennial Controls was selected by Johnson Controls Inc. as an Authorized Building Control Specialist (ABCS) for the great state of Colorado. Recently awarded top honors by Johnson Controls, we offer our customers a combined total of over 100 years of superior service, engineering, and installation in all facets of environmental control and building automation systems.
HVAC maintenance and service remain the backbone of our company. As we grow, we will do so with our service first mentality and our original philosophy intact – to remain the employer of choice within our industry and to remain the organization that customers call upon for the challenging and complicated jobs. Climate Engineering’s biggest asset is our team of people from our administrative and sales staff to our HVAC technicians and technical personnel.
Since 2008, Todd Flannery, a 30-year veteran in the mechanical services and HVAC industry, has been at the helm of Climate Engineering and Centennial Controls as President and Co-Owner. Mr. Flannery’s charter is to take his years of success as a Senior Vice President of the Linc Service® network and improve on a 48-year-old culture of quality service and delivery to ensure Climate Engineering and Centennial Controls exceed customers’ expectations while providing a great environment for professionals to grow individually and collectively. Ultimately, our objective is to provide our customers with a positive experience each and every time they call on Centennial Controls and Climate Engineering.
Climate Engineering, Inc. was founded in 1965 by Lou Bindner and Len Johannes. The company’s primary activity was the sale, installation, maintenance, and repair of air conditioning and refrigeration systems in commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings.
The company started in a tiny corner of a large warehouse and office building on West 2nd Avenue in the South Platte flood plains. (Although we didn’t realize that at the time!) Three months after we opened the doors of our business, they were opened even wider when the top eight feet of the Platte River wiped out our office and shop and deposited a truck load of cabbages from the farm across the alley. That flood devastated the Platte Valley from south of Littleton through Commerce City and left only three usable bridges still standing in the whole metro area.
We operated out of our vehicles and phone booths (no cell phones then) until we found temporary quarters. Within a few months, we moved into space at 400 South Lipan. The city slowly recovered and we managed to do the same but it was one of two major setbacks we encountered on our journey. Company growth was steady but purposely controlled in order to build an organization of highly qualified personnel.
In 1975, we became the factory representatives for Barber-Colman temperature controls in Colorado and southern Wyoming. This enterprise flourished and in a short period of time, our company more than doubled in size to 50 people with 25 trucks on the street and a warehouse full of inventory. We moved into our current location, plus two other buildings, to make room for this growth. By this time, Ken Winner had already joined our team as one of the owners.
The Denver economy fell off the table in the 1980s with little warning. The construction industry became very unstable and this marked the beginning of the decline in profitable activity in the temperature control market as well as a change in the profile of operators in that market. This was the second major setback and it lasted into the 1990s.
We sold the temperature control department to Ken Winner and some employees and returned to our core business in 1985. In the process, we pared the company employment to less than half of our high water mark. By this time, Len Johannes had retired and we purposely withdrew from the new construction, plan-and-spec market. Since that time, we seek out design/build work, mainly remodel and add-on projects, where we can control the design and can assure the customer a premium job at a fair price.
Centennial Controls, Inc. was established in 1993 to provide state-of-the-art temperature control and building automation services for contractors, consulting engineers, and building owners and operators. Centennial Controls was selected by Johnson Controls Inc. as an Authorized Building Control Specialist (ABCS) for the great state of Colorado. Recently awarded top honors by Johnson Controls, we offer our customers a combined total of over 100 years of superior service, engineering, and installation in all facets of environmental control and building automation systems.
HVAC maintenance and service remain the backbone of our company. As we grow, we will do so with our service first mentality and our original philosophy intact – to remain the employer of choice within our industry and to remain the organization that customers call upon for the challenging and complicated jobs. Climate Engineering’s biggest asset is our team of people from our administrative and sales staff to our HVAC technicians and technical personnel.
Since 2008, Todd Flannery, a 30-year veteran in the mechanical services and HVAC industry, has been at the helm of Climate Engineering and Centennial Controls as President and Co-Owner. Mr. Flannery’s charter is to take his years of success as a Senior Vice President of the Linc Service® network and improve on a 48-year-old culture of quality service and delivery to ensure Climate Engineering and Centennial Controls exceed customers’ expectations while providing a great environment for professionals to grow individually and collectively. Ultimately, our objective is to provide our customers with a positive experience each and every time they call on Centennial Controls and Climate Engineering.