Inovis Energy Welcomes New Director of Business Development, Tony Parente
Tony Parente comes to us with 13 years in the energy efficiency field. His list of credentials is impressive, but his humble and relatable demeanor is really the asset that makes clients love him. It also makes employers like us eager to make him part of our team!
We are thrilled to announce that he is heading our sales team as we expand across the country with EV charging installations, LED Lighting upgrades, and large mechanical projects, as we continue to tackle and serve our local and national accounts with energy savings projects.
Credentials
Tony Parente went to school for mathematics at Rhode Island College. There, he fell in love with pre-law classes and managed to add on a few years of schooling to graduate with both majors. He even minored in Philosophy and Chemistry before finishing school.
Post-graduation, he went straight into sales where his naturally positive personality quickly earned him the title of Regional Sales Manager for a Xerox machine distributor. Working with businesses across the region, he was approached by an energy service company about working for them to get companies to reduce energy use, for which they would receive a monthly rebate. From there his knowledge of industrial and commercial lighting began to grow. He became a wildly informed and self-taught man concerning all aspects of and efficiency measures.
While he is proficient in LED Lighting upgrades and retrofits, Building Management Systems (BMS), Controls of all types, and HVAC upgrades, he gets the most satisfaction from improving wastewater treatment facilities and improving mechanical systems everywhere.
Hobbies
While Tony is an expert in efficient use of energy, he has to be a master of efficient time management as well. While working across New England in schools, hospitals, and all other types of buildings, he also managed to make it to the Nationals Tournament in Vegas for Pool Players… Twice!
Tony’s eldest child is a fantastic swimmer. Because of this, Tony got involved in coaching and officiating swim meets while his son was young. He is still an official for four different leagues as well as being a YMCA National Trainer for swim officials.
COVID Project
And as many of us learned during COVID, there is more than one way to get things done. Tony bought a 1967 Camaro in 1987 and has maintained it ever since.
But when COVID hit, our active man of infinite talents and interests, decided to start restoring the car. He removed all the paint down to the metal to make sure the foundation was perfect.
Tony removed, rebuilt, and repainted the engine, removed all the interior and replaced it, along with welding in a new rear quarter panel. The one thing that he decided to install that was not factory specification was an extreme audio system. All that is left now is to replace all the brake system and then get it painted.
Weirdest Energy Project
“We see a lot of crazy stuff in this job, but the weirdest thing I’ve ever run into was this church in Massachusetts. It was a mechanical job where we were going to look at updating their heating system. But when we walked into the basement there was an original embalming table where you could see the draw that you would pull out to fill with ice while working on bodies back in the day. That has to be the nuttiest thing I’ve ever walked into without warning on a job.”
A Funny Story
“Speaking of crazy jobs, there was this paper mill in Maine where we needed to put in a new VFD (Variable Frequency Drive) for a fan array. The thing needed 2,000 horsepower. (An average van array would use 5-150 horsepower). That was an impressive use of power if I’ve ever seen one.”
Family
“My wife is the best Domestic Engineer a man could ask for, and our two kids are off to a great start in life. My son, 25, is a Blackhawk Mechanic for the Army and my daughter, 21, is the creative entrepreneur type that loves photography and is going to school for psychology currently. We normally do a lot of day trips. Over the years we’ve gone to Mystic Sea Aquarium, Mystic Sea Port, or different water parks and always end up at the beach later in the day.”
Looking forward
Tony is excited to get to know the existing people and culture at Inovis while exploring new projects for himself and the company. He has a work, life, play balance which he plans to maintain while expanding our territory and traveling with the company. His favorite part of working in this industry is the flexibility (and the strawberry flavored pop tarts). The great thing about working on mechanical projects is the variety of situations they present. Each job is a learning experience, and learning is a great way to continue growing as a person.
Here at Inovis we are looking forward to having Tony’s great leadership and proven mentoring abilities make us an even more exceptional team than we already are!
