Bobby Bevill, Jr. of Davis Services: First-ever, two-time recipient of National Comfort Institute’s top technical honor

Davis Services, Inc. announces that Bobby G. Bevill, Jr., service manager, has received the National Comfort Institute’s (NCI) top technical honor for the second time. The only individual to be singled-out twice, Bevill was recently presented with the 2026 Jim Davis Technical Excellence Award, which recognizes the industry professional who best demonstrates technical excellence in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. He previously earned this prestigious designation in 2012, when the award was named for David Debien.

Photo: Bobby Bevill, Jr. surrounded by colleagues from Davis Services. (L to R): Ty Hutchins, Nick Davis, Bobby Bevill, Jr., Brian Davis, Jeremiah Caldwell.

NCI’S Technical Excellence Award honors the legacies of two men who shaped the field. David Debien was a pioneering HVAC expert and educator known industry wide as an air conditioning guru, whose work advanced residential comfort and humidity control. NCI renamed the award in 2024 for Jim Davis, known as “Captain CO” and widely regarded as the godfather of combustion safety.

David Richardson, vice president of training for NCI, presented the award to Bevill at NCI’s High-Performance HVAC Summit in Pigeon Forge, TN, along with Jim’s widow, Betty, and his daughter, Jamie, who traveled from Ohio for the ceremony.

“We’re incredibly proud to have Bobby as part of our team and are excited to celebrate this well-deserved honor,” said Brian Davis, president of Spartanburg-based Davis Services, Inc. “Bobby has trained every technician who has come through our doors for more than 20 years. Our service department looks nothing like it did before he built our service protocols and it has given our technicians the confidence they need to show our customers the Davis difference daily.”

Bevill first met Jim Davis at a training event in Mobile, AL more than 20 years ago – the start of what would become a long-term business partnership. Eventually, Bevill recruited Jim to Davis Services, Inc with on-site training sessions attended by technicians from across the Southeast. The classes have resulted in hundreds of technicians being trained to properly diagnose combustion and carbon dioxide problems. These training sessions continue with the next one, led by NCI’s David Richardson, scheduled for late September 2026.

“Jim Davis was a mentor, instructor, and close friend, and we were deeply saddened to lose him in June of this year.” said Bevill. “He was a giant in this industry. His books and his training on carbon monoxide and combustion saved countless lives, quite possibly including my own grandson’s. Carrying his name on this award means more to me than anything else in my career.” Bevill’s referenced grandson is the third generation of his family to work in the industry.

More about Bobby Bevill, Jr.

Bevill is a native of Spartanburg County who joined Davis Services in 1989 as an entry-level preventative maintenance technician. Currently, he manages the company’s Residential and Light Commercial Service and Maintenance departments, which have grown to more than 40 employees.

Internal training at Davis Services happens two to three times per week, a rarity in the industry. Bevill leads the majority of those sessions himself covering safety, walking technicians through processes step by step, and keeping the team current on service bulletins and advances in the field. That program has earned the company NCI’s Training Excellence Award multiple times; the award goes each year to the contractor with the most comprehensive training program.

Bevill’s approach has drawn national attention. The National Comfort Institute’s High-Performance HVAC Today featured him in a previous issue, in which he described how technical training has reshaped the business. In a market that is essentially one season long, the company moved away from riding out the summer rush and toward performance-based contracting.

“With more than 30 HVAC service technicians and 12 installers, it’s just not smart to send them out to work in people’s homes if they don’t know what they are doing,” Bevill told the magazine. “Because of our investment in technical training, we can do airflow tests all the time, even during our busiest months. We can’t always do the additional work right then, but we can go back when things slow down, to do further testing that often results in duct renovations as well as replacement and accessory sales. We sell lots of renovation and replacement sales when our competition is begging for work.”

Bevill is a long time North American Technician Excellent (NATE) certified technician and holds an active Journeyman certification with the state of SC. He is also an active member of the Refrigeration Service Engineers Society (RSES) and holds multiple National Comfort Institute (NCI) certifications such as System Performance and Combustion and Carbon Monoxide Diagnostics. He also attends manufacturers’ training at every opportunity and holds certificates from most major manufacturers on multiple models of equipment.

About Davis Services, Inc.

Founded in 1972 by Michael Davis, Davis Services, Inc. provides residential and commercial HVAC, plumbing, electrical, pest control, duct cleaning, crawl space management and weatherization services across the Upstate of South Carolina. The company is based at 111 Davis Road in Spartanburg and is available seven days a week for emergencies. Learn more at davisservicesinc.com(opens in new tab).

About National Comfort Institute

National Comfort Institute is a leader in HVAC training that stresses delivered performance for both cooling and heating and combustion and CO safety. NCI provides training and consultation to HVAC contractors around the world so they can deliver more comfortable and energy-efficient homes and offices.