This month’s passing of the Kigali Accord marks a significant milestone in the development of the global HVAC/R industry. Signed by nearly 200 Montreal Protocol countries, the Kigali Accord represents a global commitment to combat climate change and, if successful, will result in the reduction of the equivalent of 70 billion tons of carbon dioxide between 2020 and 2050.

By singling out one type of refrigerant, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), the Kigali Accord also presents a substantial challenge to both HVAC/R equipment manufacturers and users. 

Among the various hose types, demand for fluid power hose stood out as a star performer due to robust growth in US oil and gas production. Over the 2010-2015 period, sales of fluid power hose increased at an impressive average annual rate of 21%, largely attributable to rising sales in the US oil and gas industry. US oil and gas output (in terms of British thermal units) saw average annual gains of 7.6% over the 2010-2015 period, nearly three times the 2.6% average yearly growth from 2005 to 2010.

The market research landscape is evolving. Customer needs are changing. As a company, we are constantly working to anticipate these shifts and deliver the right mix of platforms and services to our global customer base.

MarketResearch.com’s leadership team recently wrapped up its annual strategy meeting. Department heads from content, operations, marketing, and sales gathered from across the U.S. and Great Britain to identify key issues affecting our customers. We caught up with CEO and Founder Rob Granader to hear his thoughts on current trends and developments and where the market research industry is headed.

Design trends in nonresidential buildings are increasingly making energy efficiency and environmental friendliness a priority. In few markets is this more evident than in the commercial window and door market. 

How is the commercial market different from the residential market?

The residential market is more directly impacted by energy standards, such as those of the ENERGY STAR program. These are regularly updated and often come with federal tax breaks for homeowners. Additionally, homeowners immediately benefit from the energy bill savings and more comfortable indoor environments associated with efficient windows and doors. 

Grocery retailers in the U.S. face fierce competition. There’s no shortage of retail channels vying for business — including supermarkets and discount stores, wholesale clubs, drug stores, natural food stores, farmers markets, and online delivery services.

How do these different retail channels measure up in the eyes of consumers? And with so many options available, how can retailers stand out from the competition and keep customers coming back? 

The research firm Packaged Facts addresses these questions in the new report Natural and Organic Foods and Beverages in the U.S., Fifth Edition, which includes data from a proprietary Packaged Facts National Consumer Survey conducted in July-August 2016. 

The recent announcement from Shaw Industries that it intends to acquire USFloors demonstrates the increasing demand for wood-plastic composite (WPC) flooring in the US.

WPC flooring — which consists of luxury vinyl tile (LVT) with a WPC core that serves as a backing — was introduced to the US by USFloors in 2013. This flooring’s attractive appearance and durability caused it to quickly gain acceptance among interior designers and homeowners. Seeking to capitalize on its popularity, several other hard surface flooring manufacturers developed their own lines of WPC flooring. 

Baseball managers have long kept tabs on their star players to make sure they stayed ready and rested for the big series.

Back in 1892, for example, when the Cleveland Spiders played the Boston Beaneaters in what was then called the World’s Championship Series, their star pitcher was Cy Young. Young was generally clean living, but he would occasionally get up early to go hunting for wild turkey in nearby woods, a potentially troublesome activity his manager had to watch out for.

Unsanctioned hunting is less of an issue in the Major Leagues now. Today, however, a manager has to make sure his starters don’t injure themselves by fiddling with a drone.

Facial and body language analysis are hot right now. Major companies are offering software that can record and analyze emotional expressions. And they can do it real time. Market researchers now have an incredible amount of data at their fingertips about how people react to stimuli such as advertisements and product ideas.

Many providers of these services are suggesting that emotional expressions and other body language are giving the real picture of what people are actually feeling and that we can uncover more insights when we delve into this reality. But is that true? Are we actually just adding a lot more data to analyze, or are we truly finding something new and different in our research? Using current theories and research on emotions from the field of psychology can help us to make sense of all this information.

Homeowners are remodeling again. They are on the lookout for products that compete with traditional high-end materials but come with a mid-range price tag. The underlying strength of the US housing market and the rising valuations of people’s homes are supporting robust activity in residential improvement, repair and remodeling.

This fact is underscored by the recent earnings of several big-box/DIY retail chains like Lowe’s and Home Depot. Home Depot reported in August that comparable (same store) sales rose by 4.7% in Q2 2016 over the same period in 2015 [1], and Lowe’s reported a similar 4.0% rise for its Q2 same store sales over 2015 [2]. Both stores expect full-year same store sales growth for 2016 to range between 4.4% and 4.9% as compared to the latest US Federal Reserve estimate of 2016 growth of approximately 2.0% [3]. Home Depot’s CEO, Craig Menear, specifically called out generally rising home valuations as the basis for his company’s optimism going forward regarding sales growth and overall residential renovation spending.

The corrugated box. The wood crate. The five-gallon pail. These products have been used to ship and store food ever since we started sending it further than the local farm stand. But another option is gaining popularity — reusable bulk containers.

Reusable totes and crates are already commonly used in applications like motor vehicle manufacturing and assembly due to the long-term cost savings of container reuse.

However, reusable bulk systems are now seeing wider adoption in food applications, such as for the transport and display of fresh produce or baked goods. Where you used to see a wood crate or a printed corrugated box, plastic containers are gaining speed, especially for large volume users who are looking to minimize waste and promote environmentally friendly practices.