Associated Equipment Sales
Associated Equipment Sales is a privately held regional HVAC equipment distributor operating four offices across the U.S. Midwest. The company resells boilers, chillers, pumps, cooling towers, burners, and air handling equipment from 40+ manufacturers, serving commercial, industrial, and government end users.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersLenexa, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Associated Equipment Sales does
Associated Equipment Sales (AES) is a privately held regional distributor of commercial and industrial HVAC equipment headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas, with offices in Wichita (Kansas), Fenton/St. Louis (Missouri), and Omaha (Nebraska). Founded in 2004, the company sells boilers, chillers, pumps, cooling towers, burners, air handling units, venting, water heaters, valves, and HVAC controls under distribution agreements with more than 40 manufacturers including Lochinvar, Grundfos, AERMEC, Hurst Boiler, Weishaupt, Thermal Care, Burnham Commercial, Drake, VTS Group, and Siemens. AES operates as a specification-driven specialty distributor rather than a manufacturer, packaging premium equipment lines with engineering support, system design assistance, piping diagrams, and free technical training through its AES Academy learning portal.
The business model is equipment resale on a quote-based pricing structure across a horizontal set of use-cases — commercial HVAC, industrial process cooling and steam, institutional facilities, and government/municipal projects. Customer evidence includes aerospace/defense (a packaged pumping system delivered to a Lockheed Martin facility) and government (fountains for Kansas City Parks & Recreation). AES runs an enterprise field-sales motion through its four regional offices, supported by content marketing (case studies, helpful hints, piping diagrams) and the AES Academy, which issues certificates of completion on multi-tier courses covering pumps, boilers, steam systems, cooling towers, chillers, and controls. Training is offered free of charge to engineers and contractors, positioning AES as a technical-adjacent partner in the specification workflow.
The company is led by Keith Williams as owner/President. It is privately held with no disclosed funding rounds, parent company, or institutional ownership, and no revenue figures are publicly available. Strategic positioning combines manufacturer portfolio breadth (40+ brands) with regional physical footprint (KS, MO, NE) and a content/training asset (AES Academy) — a sales-engineering-led distribution model in a category where specification influence, not price, drives supplier selection.
Associated Equipment Sales firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Associated Equipment Sales
- Legal name
- Associated Equipment Sales
- Website
- https://aeskc.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Associated Equipment Sales is a privately held regional HVAC equipment distributor operating four offices across the U.S. Midwest. The company resells boilers, chillers, pumps, cooling towers, burners, and air handling equipment from 40+ manufacturers, serving commercial, industrial, and government end users.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Associated Equipment Sales industry classification
Industry- Product category
- HVAC Equipment Distribution
- NAICS
- Warm Air Heating and Air-Conditioning Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers (42373), Refrigeration Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers (423740)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Hardware & Plumbing & Heating Equipment & Supplies (5070), Wholesale-Machinery, Equipment & Supplies (5080)
- akta.pro primary industry
- HVAC, Water Heaters & Indoor Air Quality Distribution (CRAOAFAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Commercial Refrigeration & HVAC (Foodservice) Wholesale (AFAIALAI)
Keywords
Where Associated Equipment Sales is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lenexa
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Associated Equipment Sales business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Equipment Distribution: Associated Equipment Sales generates revenue through the distribution and resale of HVAC equipment including boilers, chillers, pumps, cooling towers, burners, air handling units, and related components. As a distributor, they represent multiple manufacturers and earn margins on equipment sales to commercial and industrial customers.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Equipment pricing - quote-based |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Associated Equipment Sales product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Associated Equipment Sales distributes HVAC, hydronic, and process equipment from more than 40 manufacturers—including boilers, chillers, pumps, cooling towers, burners, air handling units, and venting solutions—to commercial and industrial customers across the U.S. Midwest. The company pairs equipment distribution with technical consultation, system design support, piping diagrams, and training delivered through the AES Academy learning portal.
Product overview
Associated Equipment Sales is an HVAC equipment distributor offering a comprehensive portfolio of heating, cooling, and pumping products from multiple manufacturer brands. The company sells boilers (Lochinvar, Hurst, Burnham Commercial, LES Boiler), chillers (AERMEC, Drake, Thermal Care), pumps (Grundfos, Peerless Pumps), burners (Weishaupt, Webster Combustion, Midco International), cooling towers (Tower Tech, Güntner, Thermal Care), air handling equipment (VTS Group, Zehnder Rittling, USA Coil & Air), and venting solutions (Selkirk, US Draft, Heat Fab). Additional products include water heaters (Hubbell), deaerators (Industrial Steam), and various valves, controls, and HVAC accessories. The company also provides training courses through its AES Academy learning portal covering pumps, steam systems, boilers, chillers, and cooling towers. AES operates offices in Kansas City (Lenexa, KS), Wichita (KS), St. Louis (MO), and Omaha (NE).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Boilers (Lochinvar, Hurst, Burnham Commercial, LES Boiler) Distribution of commercial and industrial boilers, including steam, hot water, and high-efficiency packaged designs from Lochinvar, Hurst Boiler, Burnham Commercial, and LES Boiler for commercial and industrial applications across the Midwest.
- Chillers (AERMEC, Drake, Thermal Care) Distribution of liquid chillers, heat pumps, and process cooling equipment from AERMEC, Drake, and Thermal Care, with cooling capacities from fractional tonnage to over 100 tons for industrial, medical, and food and beverage customers.
- Pumps (Grundfos, Peerless Pumps, Cougar Systems) Distribution of circulators, vertical pumps, packaged pumping systems, and sump pump systems from Grundfos, Peerless Pumps, and Cougar Systems for HVAC, industrial, and sump applications.
- Burners (Weishaupt, Webster Combustion, Midco International) Distribution of industrial, commercial, and residential burners from Weishaupt, Webster Combustion, and Midco International, offering fuel flexibility, high efficiency, low-emission combustion, and modular designs.
- Cooling Towers (Tower Tech, Güntner, Thermal Care) Distribution of fiberglass and industrial cooling towers, condensers, evaporators, and dry coolers from Tower Tech, Güntner, and Thermal Care for energy-efficient process and HVAC cooling.
- Air Handling Units (VTS Group, Zehnder Rittling, USA Coil & Air) Distribution of semi-custom air handling units, fan coils, HVAC coils, and fluid coolers from VTS Group, Zehnder Rittling, and USA Coil & Air for healthcare, education, institutional, laboratory, commercial, and manufacturing facilities.
- Venting and Combustion Air Solutions (Selkirk, US Draft, Heat Fab) Distribution of chimney, flue venting, combustion air, and stairwell pressurization systems from Selkirk, US Draft, and Heat Fab (a Selkirk division), supporting Category I–IV gas appliances with EC-Flow technology.
- Water Heaters (Hubbell) Distribution of Hubbell commercial, industrial, foodservice, marine/offshore, and naval water heaters with storage capacities from 6 to 10,000 gallons plus instantaneous and semi-instantaneous units.
- Steam and Deaerator Systems (Industrial Steam) Distribution of pressurized and atmospheric deaerators, boiler systems, high-pressure systems, and wet steam accumulators from Industrial Steam for commercial and industrial steam plant applications.
- AES Academy Training Courses Free technical training courses covering pumps, boilers, steam systems, chillers, cooling towers, and controls, delivered through the AES Academy learning portal with certificates of completion.
Companies that use Associated Equipment Sales
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Associated Equipment Sales technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Associated Equipment Sales partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
22 partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- LochinvarcoreAES distributes Lochinvar boilers, water heaters, and commercial package systems. Lochinvar is a leading producer of energy-efficient HVAC equipment and part of A.O. Smith Corporation.
- GrundfoscoreAES distributes Grundfos pumps - the world's largest manufacturer of circulators covering approximately 50% of the world market. Peerless Pumps is listed as an affiliate of Grundfos.
- AERMECcoreAES distributes AERMEC products including liquid chillers, heat pumps, fan coils, air handling units, split units, VRF systems, and more with over 300 ranges and 10,000+ configurations.
- Thermal CarecoreAES distributes Thermal Care chillers and cooling towers. Thermal Care serves customers in more than 50 countries across North America, EMEA, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America.
- Hurst BoilercoreAES distributes Hurst Boiler products including gas, oil, coal, solid waste, wood, biomass and hybrid fuel-fired steam and hot water boilers since 1967.
- WeishauptcoreAES distributes Weishaupt burners - one of the world's largest burner manufacturers making over 150,000 burners per year worldwide.
- Tower TechcoreAES distributes Tower Tech cooling towers - an Oklahoma-based company specializing in superior fiberglass cooling towers with energy efficiency and water savings.
- DrakecoreAES distributes Drake chillers from 1/4 horsepower to 120 horsepower serving industrial, medical, and food and beverage industries since 1972.
- Burnham CommercialcoreAES distributes Burnham Commercial boilers since 1873 - a leading manufacturer of cast iron boilers for commercial and industrial applications.
- GüntnercoreAES distributes Güntner evaporators, condensers, air coolers, dry coolers, controls, and accessories - a leading worldwide company in heat transfer technology.
- Selkirk CorporationcoreAES distributes Selkirk chimney, venting and air distribution products for commercial and residential HVAC industries. Also distributes Heat Fab, a Selkirk division, for venting solutions.
- VTS GroupcoreAES distributes VTS Group semi-custom air handling units (AHUs) manufactured in Atlanta, Georgia, suitable for Healthcare, Education, Institutional, Laboratory, Commercial, and Manufacturing facilities.
- Cougar SystemscoreAES distributes Cougar Systems products including sump pump systems and controls.
- US DraftcoreAES distributes US Draft products for chimney, flue venting, combustion air and stairwell pressurization systems with EC-Flow technology.
- Webster CombustioncoreAES distributes Webster Combustion burners combining proprietary control technology with proven combustion performance.
- Midco InternationalcoreAES distributes Midco burners - the world's leading manufacturer of small power burners for residential, commercial, and industrial applications.
- Peerless PumpscoreAES distributes Peerless Pumps - over 70 years of experience designing, engineering, and manufacturing vertical pumps. An affiliate of Grundfos Pumps.
- Zehnder RittlingcoreAES distributes Zehnder Rittling fan coils, heat pumps, radiant panel systems, fin tube and convectors with custom capabilities.
- USA Coil & AircoreAES distributes USA Coil & Air commercial and industrial HVAC coils, fan coils, air handlers and fluid coolers with quick ship options.
- Industrial SteamcoreAES distributes Industrial Steam products including deaerators, boiler systems, high pressure systems, and wet steam accumulators.
- HubbellcoreAES distributes Hubbell water heaters with storage capacities from 6-10,000 gallons serving commercial, industrial, foodservice, marine/offshore, and naval industries.
- LES BoilercoreAES distributes LES Boiler packaged boilers and custom built energy management packages and boiler feed systems.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Associated Equipment Sales competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Watsco: Largest HVAC distributor in the US (NYSE: WSO) operating Carrier Enterprise, Gemaire and other regional HVAC distribution businesses — comparable business model to AES but at national scale with publicly traded parent-level scale economics.
- Ferguson (Ferguson Enterprises): Largest US distributor of plumbing, HVAC and waterworks products with a national branch network — directly overlaps with AES's commercial HVAC portfolio but at vastly greater scale and breadth, including plumbing categories AES does not serve.
- Trane Technologies (Distribution / Trane Supply): Major HVAC OEM that also operates a network of company-owned distributors selling Trane and Thermo King equipment — comparable to AES as a specification-driven HVAC distributor but with single-OEM alignment and global scale.
- Reliance Worldwide Corporation: Publicly traded manufacturer and supplier of plumbing, HVAC and water-management products through wholesale distribution — comparable channel overlap with AES in plumbing/HVAC distribution, though RWC also manufactures proprietary brands.
Direct peers
- R.E. Michel Company: Privately held HVAC wholesale distributor serving the Mid-Atlantic and parts of the Midwest with boilers, burners, pumps and controls — directly comparable to AES as a multi-brand regional HVAC rep with technical sales and training programs.
- Johnstone Supply: Largest HVACR cooperative distributor in North America, supplying contractors with a multi-brand HVAC product portfolio — directly comparable to AES in product mix (boilers, chillers, controls) and specification-driven contractor sales motion.
- Carrier Enterprise: Distributor of Carrier and Bryant HVAC equipment across the southern and central US — a direct competitor as a multi-state regional HVAC distributor with manufacturer-authorized territory allocations similar to AES.
Regional players
- ACR Supply: Regional HVAC distributor focused on the Southeast US, supplying contractors with HVAC equipment, parts and controls — comparable as a multi-brand regional HVAC distributor with a contractor/specifier GTM motion similar to AES.
- Cincinnati Fan & Ventilator Company / HVAC distributors in OH/IN: Regional industrial fan, blower and HVAC distributor serving the Ohio Valley/Midwest industrial corridor — comparable to AES as a technical regional distributor of HVAC and ventilation equipment to commercial/industrial buyers, though smaller and more ventilation-focused.
Emerging players
- HVAC.com / Modernize (HVAC lead-generation and distribution platform): Digital platform connecting HVAC buyers with distributors and contractors, increasingly disintermediating traditional regional distributors like AES by routing specifications and orders online — relevant as an emerging channel threat to AES's relationship-driven model.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Associated Equipment Sales social profiles
Digital presenceAssociated Equipment Sales financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Associated Equipment Sales leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Associated Equipment Sales funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Associated Equipment Sales M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Associated Equipment Sales
What does Associated Equipment Sales do?
Associated Equipment Sales distributes HVAC, hydronic, and process equipment from more than 40 manufacturers—including boilers, chillers, pumps, cooling towers, burners, air handling units, and venting solutions—to commercial and industrial customers across the U.S. Midwest. The company pairs equipment distribution with technical consultation, system design support, piping diagrams, and training delivered through the AES Academy learning portal.
Is Associated Equipment Sales a public or private company?
Associated Equipment Sales is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Associated Equipment Sales founded?
Associated Equipment Sales was founded in 2004. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Associated Equipment Sales based?
Associated Equipment Sales is headquartered in Lenexa, United States, in the North America region.
How does Associated Equipment Sales make money?
One revenue line is on record: equipment Distribution.
Who are Associated Equipment Sales's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Watsco, Ferguson (Ferguson Enterprises), Trane Technologies (Distribution / Trane Supply) and Reliance Worldwide Corporation. Direct peers are R.E. Michel Company, Johnstone Supply and Carrier Enterprise. Regional players are ACR Supply and Cincinnati Fan & Ventilator Company / HVAC distributors in OH/IN. HVAC.com / Modernize (HVAC lead-generation and distribution platform) is listed as an emerging player.
Does Associated Equipment Sales have an API?
No public API is recorded for Associated Equipment Sales.
What industry is Associated Equipment Sales in?
Associated Equipment Sales's product category is HVAC Equipment Distribution. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAOAFAJ, HVAC, Water Heaters & Indoor Air Quality Distribution, with a secondary code of AFAIALAI, Commercial Refrigeration & HVAC (Foodservice) Wholesale. Its NAICS code is 42373 and its SIC code is 5070.