AT Mechanical: Delivering innovative solutions since 2004

AT Mechanical Owner and President Alex Tompsidis got his start in the construction industry in 1986. After graduating from the University of Toronto as a mechanical engineer, he worked for a company that performed a number of theater renovations as well as office and hospital work, and has since grown into one of Toronto’s largest firms based on revenue.

Stateside in 1990, Tompsidis honed his industry expertise while working for several high-profile Illinois mechanical contractors before founding AT Mechanical in 2004. The company maintains a lean operation, employing anywhere from 35-75 team members throughout the office and field. But the culture at AT Mechanical is collaborative, not top-down, where everyone here knows what it takes to get the work done properly.

“Our strength comes not from size — it comes from a very flexible and very dynamic approach to this business as well as doing everything we can to remove obstacles to getting our work done,” Tompsidis said. “We look for different ways to create value and be ‘better,’ especially by eliminating mistakes. We like to anticipate the next move in our market and we look for signals from many different sources. The playing field is constantly changing internally, with our competition, with our vendors, with codes, etc. Our job is to look at all the possibilities and come up with systems, organizational procedures and a plan to execute the project to achieve the best solution for the client.”

The full-service HVAC mechanical design contractor is proud to deliver some of the most forward-thinking systems and solutions across a variety of markets, including multifamily, office spaces, industrial warehouse, critical facilities and more. AT Mechanical is also LEED certified, along with other rating systems, and committed to implementing economical strategies to increase efficiency. They are very involved in the design community and especially where it involves sustainability and efficiency.

“One of our current jobs, the first of its kind in Chicago, is the electrification of three older multi-family apartments, with a gas stove, gas domestic water heater, centralized gas-fired laundry, gas furnaces, the whole works,” Tompsidis said. “We’re going in and removing all the fossil fuel equipment and getting them on the path to decarbonization.”

AT Mechanical’s extensive construction design build and plan and spec portfolio allows for very different approaches to service retrofit and replacement projects. “We’re a service contractor, but we think like an engineer with respect to our service and retrofit work,” Tompsidis said.

Current projects include a 132,000 square-foot office headquarters, more than 2,000 multifamily residences using every type of HVAC system, retail work, a convention center, more than 4,000,000 square feet of industrial warehouse space and various retrofit and replacement projects. The AT Mechanical team is also working on several affordable housing projects including an in-house designed passive house complex.

“This is a very talented design town, and we’ve gained the trust and respect of the design community,” Tompsidis said, noting the company’s focus on providing the best technology to employees so they have the resources and tools to do their jobs well. “We spend a lot of time on training and we’re very focused on our field and the logistics in our operation.”

As part of SMACNA Greater Chicago’s Breathe Easy Illinois program, AT Mechanical is working to help solve one of the industry’s current challenges: clean indoor air. But an even more pressing issue, according to Tompsidis, is recruitment.

“This is a business that’s suffering from a lack of new talent,” he said.

“We need more talented people, more women and more people with a diverse way of thinking and generally we need more people who want to be in the HVAC industry. As contractors, we all have the same problems and are all in this together and need to find a way to communicate and work together on solving this ongoing challenge.”

For an emphasis on comfort, efficiency and indoor air quality, as well as the best value, rely on the team at AT Mechanical!