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Blog

New PROflex Master Rolls in Various Lengths: Now Available

Posted on March 20, 2023 by Caitlin Painter

You asked, we listened! Ductmate now offers PROflex master rolls in various lengths (1000 ft, 750 ft, 500 ft).  You can expect the same high-quality and customizable options from our master rolls as our standard 100 ft PROflex cartons.

What is PROflex?

PROflex is a flexible duct connector designed to isolate equipment noise and vibration from the ductwork, consisting of a fabric secured to sheet metal on both sides. Typically, the connector is inserted between the equipment and the ductwork.

Flexible duct connectors are widely used in commercial, industrial, and residential HVAC applications.  PROflex offers the following special characteristics:

  • Airtight and waterproof at 10 w.g. positive and negative
  • Double-lock gripping fingers of metal to fabric adds to holding power
  • Designed to meet NFPA 90A and 90B specifications
  • Pre-assembled with sheet metal permanently secured to the fabric
  • Fabrics are NFPA 701 listed (except Teflon®)
  • Available in six fabrics and five alloys for any configuration
  • Fabrics include UL Listed and LA Approved Super Duty Vinyl

How can PROflex master rolls increase efficiency and labor savings while reducing scrap?

PROflex master rolls, when used in conjunction with any automated flexible duct connector machinery, will significantly reduce labor time and machine downtime, resulting in notable labor savings on every project.  With less machine downtime and changeover time, your shop efficiency will skyrocket.  When PROflex master rolls are placed on a skid, loading and unloading with a forklift is a breeze, resulting in additional time savings.

PROflex master rolls are perfect for larger shops that use a large amount of flexible duct connectors.  The more you use, the more you save.

A PROflex 1000 ft master roll will significantly reduce the scrap produced compared to the standard 100 ft roll.  Over the course of a few projects, the amount of scrap coming from a standard 100 ft PROflex roll could add up to the cost of another standard 100 ft PROflex box.

An automated flexible duct connector machine used with PROflex master rolls will also allow you to take the guesswork and the possibility of user error out of the cutting process.

What if I need a smaller length of PROflex?

If you need a smaller length of PROflex, that’s not a problem!  We’ll work with your needs to minimize scrap.

Typically, PROflex is sold at a standard 100 ft length and is available with or without metal attached in various widths.

We understand that 1000 ft master rolls may be too much for most, so PROflex is also sold in multiple lengths, including 500 ft and 750 ft.

Can I customize my order of PROflex?

PROflex is available in six fabrics and five alloys for any configuration.  Specialty fabrics include UL Listed and LA Approved Super Duty Vinyl.   PROflex metals are available in galvanized, stainless, aluminum, and more.  For other alloys, fabric sizes, or chemical-resistant properties, consult your nearest Ductmate distributor.

As always, we’re happy to work with you to deliver the products you need.

Where can I buy PROflex?

Ready to buy PROflex? Ductmate products are available at over 350 locations across the US as part of a selective distribution network.  Use the Ductmate distributor locator map to find a distributor near you.

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2023 Distributor Training Dates

Posted on February 27, 2023 by Caitlin Painter

Registration for the 2023 Ductmate Distributor Training Classes is now open!

Ductmate Distributor Training Classes are offered as a three-day experience. Days one and two are spent half a day in the classroom and gaining hands-on experience. Day three is finished with a half-day in the classroom only. Hotel accommodations, transportation to and from our facilities, and dining are all compliments of Ductmate.

Learn our products:

Spend time with our Ductmate Sales and Product Line Managers as they instruct you on our complete line of products.  Learn all the features, benefits, technical aspects, and selling techniques in a relaxed classroom atmosphere.  This class is perfect for employees new to the HVAC industry or seasoned vets looking for a refresher on our products.

Gain hands-on experience:

Learn directly from industry professionals on how our products work in the field.  Getting a chance to work with them will help you to truly understand how they work.  Install flange, apply gasket, complete a duct connection, and more.

See our facilities:

Get a first-hand look at how our products are manufactured.  Tour our two main facilities and see the machines that helped to launch Ductmate over 40 years ago.  Then, see how Ductmate is manufacturing the future with automated manufacturing lines including our state-of-the-art laser.

2023 Dates:

  • April 24 – 26

  • May 22 – 24

  • June 12 – 14

  • September 11 – 13

Spots are limited and are reserved on a first-come, first-served basis.

To register, please contact Liz Polonoli (Ductmate Sales Assistant) at epolonoli@ductmate.com or (724) 276-3019.

We look forward to seeing you there!

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Ductmate Announces the Passing of William “Bill” Bradford Jr

Posted on January 6, 2023 by Ductmate Industries

Sheet Metal Industry Icon, Ductmate’s First Foreman Passes Away at 85

Ductmate Industries, leadership and employees are saddened to report that William “Bill” Bradford Jr., 85, passed away peacefully with his family by his side on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023.

Bill was a colleague and mentor to many in the sheet metal industry, as well as the first SNIPS Industry Icon. With over 55 years of experience, he was Ductmate Industries’ first shop foreman hired after the company’s inception in 1978. Bill assisted Peter J. Arnoldt, one of the founders of Ductmate, in building the original Ductmate 35 production line and spent countless hours perfecting the product that revolutionized the HVAC industry.

Once production began, Bill managed and directed Ductmate’s first group of employees to staff the factory. He trained hundreds of sheet metal workers and customers to properly install the Ductmate 25/35 Systems and quickly advanced within the organization. Bill held the following positions throughout his time at Ductmate: Foreman, Factory Superintendent, Field Service Manager and National Service Manager.

From his early days of running the Ductmate facility to traveling and working with contractors, end users and distributors, Bill’s impact on the sheet metal and HVAC industry cannot be overstated.

Bill was born on Aug. 13, 1937, in Pittsburgh to the late William and Frances (Matuszewski) Bradford Sr. and graduated from Oliver High School in 1955. Following graduation, he served for four years in the U.S. Airforce. Upon honorable discharge, he wished to continue his service by joining the Air Force Reserve, followed by the Pennsylvania Air National Guard, serving twenty more years.

Bill joined Ductmate in 1978 for his distinguished 32-year career. Although he officially retired in 2009, Bill remained a staple at training classes and industry events through 2019, sharing his knowledge with future generations of employees, sheet metal workers and customers for 10 years post-retirement.

Bill is survived by his high school sweetheart and wife of over 61 years, Joanne (Kaiser) Bradford, Joanne’s sister Jeanne J. Zeigler; his children Renee J. (Shawn) Pennington, William C. (Lori) Bradford; his grandchildren Ryan B. Pennington, Evan L. (Brenna) Pennington, Aila M. (Joshua) Freed, Hannah J. Bradford and William “Tanner” Bradford; his great-grandchildren Logan R. Pennington and baby-to-be Freed; his siblings Richard (Jane) Bradford, Terry (Christine) Bradford and Donna L. (Robert) Cunningham, as well as many nieces and nephews.

Bill considered the employees of Ductmate his second family. Throughout his career, he touched the hearts of many Ductmate employees and industry professionals. As a tribute, The William Bradford Training Center at DMI’s corporate headquarters in Charleroi was dedicated to him over a decade ago. Bill Bradford Jr. created a legacy within the industry and with Ductmate that ensures that he will be missed but never forgotten.

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No Lost Days Record Continues

Posted on March 10, 2021 by Ductmate Industries

Our facility in Lodi, CA has now gone 5 consecutive years without having an employee miss work due to injury.   This is an extremely difficult challenge for any industry of any size, and we are so proud to share this accomplishment.  Safety is a true team effort.  It involves compliance from all employees, enforcement from supervisors, and continuous suggestions for improvement to minimize potential hazards.  Lodi has done a great job in all of these areas. Keep up the great work, team!

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We Are Pleased To Announce The Launch Of The All New Ductmate.com

Posted on January 27, 2020 by Ductmate Industries

We are very excited to announce the launch of our newly designed website. After a lot hard work and dedication, we are pleased to officially announce the launch of the all new website at Ductmate.com!  We wanted to make the new website faster, easier to navigate, and more user-friendly.

As an HVAC accessories manufacturer and innovation leader, it’s important for us to make information regarding our products and services easily accessible for our current and prospective end users and customers. We strive to provide the most accurate, up-to-date information, and share our knowledge and expertise with the HVAC Industry.

Our goal with this new website is to provide our visitors an easier way to learn about Ductmate’s products and services, and to browse information based on their own choice. The new website gives better access to Ductmate product information, services, technical resources, distribution info, as well as company news, information, and announcements.

Visitors to the website will find useful information about our products in our new Technical Resources section.  This section now serves as a general repository for all our spec sheets, SDS documents, how to’s, and more.

For any questions, suggestions, feedback or comments, please contact us.

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Ductmate’s First Employee Honored In SNIPS Magazine

Posted on October 4, 2019 by Ductmate Industries

How Bill Bradford became a legend at Ductmate Industries Inc.

Bill Bradford’s sheet metal career is the embodiment of the phrase “standing on the shoulders of giants.” Only, in this story, Bradford is one of the giants.

Bill Bradford is a veteran of the sheet metal industry in more ways than most.

Born and raised in North Side Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, during the city’s “Steel City” renaissance, Bradford graduated from high school June 1955 and immediately joined the Air Force that July. “I was 17 so my parents had to sign documents to get me in,” he remembers. His dad, a truck driver, was gone on the road a lot while his mom worked different jobs to make ends meet. “Upbringing was normal in that we did not have a lot but did not want for anything,” he says, the oldest of two brothers and two sisters. The service was his chance to fight for his country while learning skills to build a future.

“College was not for me,” Bradford says, simply. Around age 23, a job repairing fighter jets for the National Guard became his ticket into the sheet metal industry, and soon he signed up for his first apprenticeship. “I did not want to go to college with that experience from the Guard,” he explains, “so I joined the Pittsburgh Local 12 Sheet Metal Apprenticeship program.” He adds, “Where else can you start a career and make a great living right out of the gate?”

Now at 82 years old and retired, Bradford is celebrated as part of the early generation of tin knockers who made making a living in the sheet metal industry possible. “I miss the great trade, the great people that I worked with over the many years,” he says. “Right now, we cannot hire enough sheet metal workers as there is so much work to be done across the country.” The bulk of Bradford’s part in that work began in the ’70s.

On a scale of 1 to 10, “Sheet metal work was a 10 back then,” Bradford says. “What made it difficult was all electric corded tools; we had to build scaffolding; there were no GLG lifts, heavy wooden ladders, no Tek screws, all pan head screws that had to be screwed in with flat blade screw driver, a lot of heavy manual lifting of ductwork,” the list goes on. However, that never stopped Bradford from getting the job done, and the downtown Pittsburgh skyline flaunts his resume. Installing the U.S. Steel Tower’s large HVAC system, “We also installed very large drop ceilings that were part of our scope of work,” he explains. “They were approximately 5 feet by 3 feet and 3 inches thick. No Ductmate-type connectors at that time.” Today’s PNC Park and Heinz Field stadiums are also at the location of another Bradford assisted project, the former Three Rivers Stadium (built in 1970 and demolished in 2000). “The coldest job ever,” he remembers. “Heavy ladders were hard to move around and the weather conditions were horrible.”

In 1978, Bradford made the career jump from field metalwork to manufacturing duct products as the first employee for a little-known company at the time called Ductmate Industries (now DMI Companies) under founder Peter Arnoldt. At 40 years old, Bradford welcomed the “lucky opportunity” to give his body a break from the everyday grunt work and extend his career.

“I received a call from one of the Ductmate owners about the possibility of a job. I talked it over with the foreman at my current company and he told me that Ductmate was a new company and he did not know much about it,” he remembers. “The good thing was, he told me to give it a shot and if it does not work out you can come back.” After a month, Bradford knew the company would be a success, he says. “I thought the company would be a success because of the type of connection they were going to introduce to the industry.”

The Ductmate 35 Flange was the first product line. “Peter (Arnoldt) chose that as the first one. I helped him set up the first roll former to get the 35 out the door. We were on a shoestring budget getting that first roll former up and running. We spent many nights and weekends working overtime to get that very first piece of equipment running properly,” says Bradford, and he wore more than a few hats in the process as general superintendent and national service manager. “I ran the shop, ran the roll former and did the purchasing. If we had field installation problems, Peter would send me to troubleshoot and fix the problem.”

The most common problem with field installations at the time was that contractors were not reading the installation instructions, he explains. “When they read the installation documentation, the installs went well. We made automated equipment to help contractors install Ductmate Flange better and faster. Some of these were the Ductmater, Autosealer and Super Welder. Peter invented all of these pieces of equipment.”

As the company took off and started to expand in the late ’80s, Bradford took on a role that most people today know him for: mentor.

“My first meeting with Bill Bradford, who supervised me at the time, sticks out in mind,” says Doug Gudenburr, now chief operating officer at DMI Companies. “We were young, snot-nosed, knew everything, and he would chase us around and shake his head sometimes. But at the end of the day, I think we really appreciated him and he appreciated us. At that time the general concept and mentality of the folks was whatever it took to get the job done. We played hard but we certainly worked hard, and that’s something I will always remember about Bill.”

Under Bradford’s whatever-it-takes-to-get-the-job-done style, future leaders were made that could efficiently manage the company’s operations into success. The William Bradford Training Center at DMI’s headquarters in Charleroi, Pennsylvania, pays homage to that success.

“I decided to retire as I had the proper people in place to take over my responsibilities,” says Bradford. “We had good people at Ductmate so I was not worried that the success we had would continue.” And it has.

“The generations of workers that Bill has trained, it could be countless. From his early days of running the facility to being on the road and working with contractors and users and distributors, different sales forces that have come and gone over the time. Many people at this point are either retired or frankly not with us any longer,” says Gudenburr. “It’s just a whole new group of people Bill has touched as time has gone on with his tenure in the company.”

Original Article On SnipsMag.com

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Supporting America And Union Sheet Metal Workers For Over 40 Years

Posted on September 6, 2019 by Ductmate Industries

All three Ductmate Industries Manufacturing Facilities Are Proud Members Of SMART

Monongahela, PA – SMART Local 12

Wagoner, OK – SMART Local 270

Lodi, CA – SMART Local 104

For over 40 years, Ductmate Industries has been manufacturing HVAC components and accessories that are crucial to the efficiency and longevity of the entire HVAC system. Whether you need our industry leading DM 25/35/45® connectors, our formulated for performance duct sealants, or practically any other component for the HVAC system, you can count on Ductmate to deliver the best – every time.

Products engineered for performance and manufactured with union level quality is what makes Ductmate Industries the unsurpassed leader in HVAC components and accessories manufacturing.

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Team Elizabeth Forward Wins!

Posted on February 21, 2019 by Ductmate Industries

We are so proud of our student team at Elizabeth Forward for their trememdous efforts in making their “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” video! On 2/20/19 they took home the award for “Best Promotion” at the Catalyst Connection Annual Reception and Video Contest Awards, hosted at Heinz Field. This was DMI’s third time participating in the contest, in which local middle school students are paired up with a manufacturer to learn about career opportunities.

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Make A Wish Donation

Posted on December 18, 2015 by Ductmate Industries

Today members of the DMI Companies Children’s Charity Committee (Ray Yeager, Donna Pauley, and Carol Singer) announced the fulfillment of a young boy’s wish to visit Virginia Beach. This marks the 12th year in a row that DMI Companies has donated to the Make A Wish Foundation and to date has donated $50,000 to the organization.
The employees at DMI’s four manufacturing facilities located around the USA and corporate HQ located in Charleroi PA, are happy to donate money on a regular basis for casual Fridays, 50/50 Raffles, Holiday Contests, and other various events throughout the year.

A clip from the live broadcast is available online, and on behalf of DMI Companies, have a Happy Holiday and a Happy New Year!

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Ductmate Partners with AMS to Build New Gen7 Concept House

Posted on December 8, 2015 by Ductmate Industries

Ductmate Industries, has teamed with American Modular Systems (AMS) to build a Gen7 Concept House on a 50-acre working vineyard in Lodi Wine Country. Designed to achieve LEED Platinum certification, River Vine Vineyards will be one of most advanced, high-end prefabricated residences ever constructed—a state-of-the art smart home that will take sustainable prefabricated design and construction to the next level. The Zero Net Energy building will integrate renewable energy systems, environmentally-friendly materials and cutting-edge products in a home that is livable, functional and energy-independent, using both solar and geothermal technologies to produce as much energy as it consumes over the course of a year.

“Ductmate Industries will be instrumental in making River Vine the inspirational building we know it can be,” said Tony Sarich, owner of River Vine and co-founder of AMS and Gen7 Schools. “Quality products like Ductmate’s are essential to our energy-saving strategies, because they’re sustainably made, highly efficient and hold up to daily use over the building’s long lifecycle.”

According to Sarich, River Vine will showcase a 21st Century living environment, combining modern design elements, advanced technology and modular building science within a sustainable footprint that meets multifunctional needs. The home will be fully automated, with all systems, appliances and electrical components networked for centralized control from a single touchpoint—a concept that can be replicated in future Gen7 classrooms and other buildings.

Construction of River Vine has started at the AMS factory in Manteca and is expected to be completed next summer.

For more information, visit the River Vine website.

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Corporate Office

Charleroi, PA

210 Fifth Street
Charleroi, PA 15022

Phone: 800-990-8459

Fax: 724-258-5494

Contact Us

Manufacturing Locations

E. Monongahela, PA

1502 Industrial Drive
E. Monongahela, PA 15063

Phone: 724-258-0500

Lodi, CA

810 S Cluff Avenue
Lodi, CA 95240

Phone: 209-333-4680

Wagoner, OK

300 SE 15th Street
Wagoner, OK 74467

Phone: 918-201-7022

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