The home heating oil industry has a long and proud history, and Fuel Oil News has been there supporting it since 1935. It is an industry that has faced many challenges during that time. In its 77th year, Fuel Oil News is doing more than just holding
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EDITOR'S NOTE E D I T O R I A L S T A F F Editorial Office EPG Media & Specialty Information 10405 6th Ave. N., Ste 210 Plymouth, MN 55441 Publisher John Prusak 763/383-4402 jprusak@epgmediallc.com Editor Keith Reid 763/ 383-4406 kreid@epgmediallc.com Senior Contributor Stephen Bennett Columnists Charles Bursey, Sr. Shane Sweet George Lanthier List Rentals MeritDirect, Jim Scova jscova@MeritDirect.com 914/368-1012 Reprints Robin Cooper rcooper@epgmediallc.com P R O D U C T I O N Production Manager – Karen Kalinyak Art Director – Brian Snook A D V E R T I S I N G S A L E S East – Dave Campbell, Associate Publisher 413/528-8835 Cell: 413/717-1007 dcampbell@epgmediallc.com Central & South Rich Alden 603/899-3010 Fax: 603/899-2343 ralden@epgmediallc.com West – Ken Jordan 972/540-2122 Fax: 972/540-2127 kjordan@epgmediallc.com M A I N O F F I C E EPG Media & Specialty Information 10405 Sixth Ave N, Suite 210 Plymouth, MN 55441 C U S T O M E R S E R V I C E 845/856-2229 • Fax: 847/763-9569 customerservice@epgmediallc.com Fuel Oil News PO Box 2123, Skokie, IL 60076-7823 A nA number of interesting things happened in 1935. With some assistance from Wikipedia: Adolf Hitler reinstated the German Air Force—the Luftwaffe—as the initial step in Nazi Germany's full rearmament in violation of the Treaty of Versailles. Fortunately, in 1935 Robert Watson-Watt demonstrated the use of radar to detect aircraft which would serve his country well against that resurgent Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain, a mere five years later. The first nighttime baseball game was played between the Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies. FDR signed Social Security into law, leaving later generations to regularly wonder if there would be any money left when it was their turn to retire. During 1935 you saw the birth of Elvis Presley, Sonny Bono, Robert Conrad, Dudley Moore, Herb Alpert, Charles Grodin, Jack Kemp, Donald Sutherland, the Dalai Lama, Ron Paul, Geraldine Ferraro, Jerry Lee Lewis, Woody Allen, Diane Ladd, Paul Hornung and Sandy Koufax. 1935 also saw the birth of Fuel Oil News magazine. During the eight decades that followed empires rose and fell, great people were born and died, technology and industry advanced and the fuels that powered society and kept it warm underwent gradual (and occasionally rapid) evolutions. The industry has faced many challenges since FON first rolled off the presses, particu- larly the rise of natural gas following World War II, yet in many ways it is more dynamic now than ever. Heating appliance manufacturers are producing equipment with effi- ciencies that were unimaginable in the not-too-distant past. The fuel the industry sells is cleaner than it has ever been, removing the environmental arguments frequently made by such opponents as the natural gas utilities. For dealers and marketers, this is also a time of great innovation. Digital and analyti- cal technology allows business operations to be as efficient and effective as they have to be today. Customers can be tracked, drivers dispatched, tanks filled and accounts reconciled with a minimal amount of human interaction. Time that was once spent on manual, cleri- cal processes can now be spent enhancing customer service in an industry already known for its superior customer service. While heating appliances have long passed through the "space-age" into the "digital age" the technician servicing that equipment have similarly advanced. They now have access to a plethora of sophisticated training opportunities and diagnostic and testing tools to more than keep pace with these advances. More strategically, diversification within the industry continues to evolve whether that involves a move into propane as an alternative fuel to meet specific customer needs, or any number of exotic business opportunities to take advantage of core competencies or to utilize existing resources during the off-season. As a magazine, FON has weathered many of the same storms as the industry, and a few different ones on the publishing side of the equation. FON strives to be just as dynamic as the industry it serves. Our goal is to keep up on the technologies and the alternative fuels and the business diversification opportunities as they are embraced by the industry, and hopefully be out in front of the curve. That's a high bar to set, but we have a solid example to follow. l F O N Keith Reid 8 NOVEMBER 2015 | FUEL OIL NEWS | www.fueloilnews.com 80 Years and Counting