Two Commercial Water Heaters Built for Big Buildings Win FacilitiesNet Vision Awards

Commercial water heating had a good week. Contractor Magazine reported on September 17 that two of the industry’s largest manufacturers each picked up a 2026 FacilitiesNet Vision Award, the annual program that recognizes products supporting efficient and profitable commercial building operations. Now in its eighth year, the Vision Awards honor manufacturers across 12 categories, and this year’s field included about 50 winning organizations.

Lochinvar’s Regent commercial tankless water heater was recognized in the HVAC category. Regent delivers up to 97 percent thermal efficiency with a 25 to 1 turndown ratio, which lets the unit throttle its firing rate down as hot water demand falls instead of cycling on and off. Two technologies do the heavy lifting: RealTime O2 Trim controls that automatically adjust the air-to-fuel ratio to hold combustion efficiency as conditions change, and an integrated ultrasonic flow sensor that detects changes in water flow so the unit can respond to rapid swings in demand. Lochinvar Senior Product Manager Rhea-Anne Pendley said facilities no longer have to choose between high-volume output and exceptional energy efficiency.

A. O. Smith’s Cyclone Flex high-efficiency commercial gas water heater won for the third consecutive year. Cyclone Flex reaches up to 98 percent thermal efficiency and uses AiQ Adaptive Gas Technology, which detects the quality of the incoming gas supply and adjusts combustion parameters on its own. The unit also supports over-the-air software updates, longer maximum vent lengths for more flexible installation, a 7-inch color touch display, and integrated leak detection with an optional automatic water shutoff valve. Betsy Curran, A. O. Smith’s director of marketing and customer engagement, called the third straight award a tremendous accomplishment for the team and said it validates the company’s focus on sustainability and efficiency in commercial water heating.

Why it matters to JFN

Central domestic hot water is one of the systems we think hardest about on a multifamily, student housing, hotel, or assisted living project. Hundreds of showers and kitchens run on the same plant, and demand swings from nearly nothing at 3 am to a wall of flow when a residence hall wakes up. Equipment that modulates deep, holds its efficiency across that range, and reports what it is doing changes how we size mechanical rooms, how we vent, and how we set up the owner for reliable operation after turnover. Leak detection with automatic shutoff is a feature property managers ask about more every year. We follow awards like these because they tell us which products are earning trust in the field, and because the right water heating plant is a real, measurable win for the developers and general contractors we build for.

Sources: Contractor Magazine, September 17, 2026 (Lochinvar Regent); Contractor Magazine, September 17, 2026 (A. O. Smith Cyclone Flex)