Volcanoes erupt. They grab attention, change landscapes overnight, and leave everyone scrambling to adapt. Glaciers, by contrast, move almost imperceptibly. Yet over time they carve valleys, redirect rivers, and permanently reshape the terrain.
Bosch has chosen to act like a glacier in the U.S. HVAC market. Their recent $8 billion acquisition of Johnson Controls–Hitachi’s residential and light commercial HVAC business was not a flashy eruption. It was a deliberate, step-by-step expansion that nearly doubled their Home Comfort division to more than $8.6 billion in sales and added 3,400 employees and two new U.S. factories in Oklahoma and Kansas.
For distributors, manufacturers, and reps in HVAC, Bosch’s glacier strategy is worth studying. It reflects a distinctly German business methodology that values patience, long-range planning, and stability over speed.
A Step-by-Step Mentality
During the time I worked for a German-based parent company, my German colleagues had a phrase they repeated all the time: “Make a plan, work it step-by-step.” It wasn’t a throwaway line. It reflected a cultural mindset. Problems were approached end-to-end, one at a time, in a linear progression. For someone used to working issues in parallel, that pace could be challenging to adapt to.
Yet that same methodical discipline is what makes Bosch’s U.S. HVAC move so powerful. In my experience, German companies typically budget three years out, or more, at a time. The approval process for typical workflow functions could be excruciatingly painstaking. At times it could seem as if success or failure of the hung on whether or not every possible “i” was dotted and every possible “t” crossed. They may appear risk-averse compared to the American bias for quick action. But once a course is chosen, they stick to it with remarkable steadiness.
From Patience Comes Scale
Bosch now operates 33 production sites and 26 engineering locations worldwide for HVAC. They expect the market to grow about 5 percent annually through 2030, and they are positioning themselves to grow faster than that rate. That confidence does not come from guesswork. It comes from decades of cautious investment in R&D, portfolio pruning, and supply chain resilience.
I saw this same pattern in my own experience. German companies are not always cash-rich, but they are notably conservative in how they manage liquidity and capital. They will spend, but only after every possible gate in the process has been cleared. It can feel like standing in line at the DMV. The difference is that once the commitment is made, the capital is not tentative. It is full and enduring.
Observations
Glaciers move slowly, but they are inevitable. You can’t stop a glacier by wishing it away, and you can’t outrun it forever. Over time, it grinds down everything in its path and leaves behind a landscape of its own making. Bosch is bringing that same sort of inevitability to the U.S. HVAC market.
While competitors erupt with big announcements, Bosch is reshaping the terrain through steady, relentless execution. New factories in Oklahoma and Kansas are not press releases; they are footholds. Cash-rich discipline and three-year horizons are not abstractions, they are weapons. This is not a company chasing splash. It is a company betting on inevitability.
The uncomfortable question is this: if Bosch is gaining ground in our market with glacier-like discipline, what does that mean for everyone else? Can U.S. competitors match this kind of patience and precision? Or will they burn bright like volcanoes and then fade, while Bosch steadily carves out dominance one deliberate move at a time?
Final Thoughts
HVAC manufacturers and distributors don’t need to mimic Bosch, but they should take the glacier lesson seriously. Start building for the long term now. Invest steadily in A2L readiness, in contractor training, and in localized service models. Think about three years from now, not just next quarter. The market will reward those who move deliberately but consistently.
- Which one describes your business, a glacier, or a volcano?
- How does your company approach planning and execution?
- Do you draft plans with your partners each year only to put them in a drawer, or do you actually work your plan with discipline and consistency?
The answer will determine whether you make noise for a season or shape the market for a generation.
Volcanoes make noise. Glaciers shape markets. As always we appreciate your comments and feedback. So please feel free to reach out to me at any time.
