Even though I have my head deep into industry integration solutions, I have to admit that I did not see this one coming, or at least not so fast. I think that if I had thought about it, I would have predicted that "buying integration solutions from a controls warehouse" would occur four or five years after the integration industry matured. But integration solutions are becoming sought-after commodities, and the market for them is here now.

What the heck am I talking about? Let me explain. It started with an interview in the May issue of AutomatedBuildings.com with Jim Hayman, who is part of the management team at Controls Group North America (CGNA) (http://www.cgnacontrols.com) in Brea, CA. CGNA is a national network of 34 independent wholesale HVAC/R controls distributors with 118 branches throughout the United States and Canada.