Big Ass Fans

Big Ass Fans is an American company that manufactures fans, lights and controls for industrial, agricultural, commercial and residential use. The company’s headquarters are in Lexington, Kentucky, with additional offices in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada. Big Ass Fans sells its products directly to customers.

Big Ass Fans
TypePrivate
IndustryManufacturing
Founded1999
Headquarters
Lexington, Kentucky
,
U.S.
Number of locations
8
Area served
Worldwide
ProductsIndustrial, commercial, agricultural, residential fans and lighting
Number of employees
699
ParentDelta T. Corporation[1]
Websitebigassfans.com

History

After designing a new type of cooling system for industrial spaces and warehouses with his father, Carey Smith incorporated the Delta T. Corporation in Lexington, Kentucky, to manufacture and install the systems in 1994.[2] In 1999, Smith saw an advertisement for a "high-volume, low-speed" (HVLS) ceiling fan made by a company in California.[2] Believing he could sell the fans to many of his existing customers, Smith signed an exclusive distribution agreement with the company in 1999.[2] He changed the name of his company to HVLS Fan Company and shifted the company's focus almost exclusively to fan sales.[2]

By 2006, Big Ass Fans had outgrown its original location and moved its headquarters to a larger facility on Merchant Street in Lexington.[3] During the Great Recession, Smith refused to lay off workers and still gave bonuses, albeit smaller than in previous years; the company augmented revenue by offering installation services for their products.[4] By 2010, the company was forced to re-occupy its Winchester Road location in addition to the Merchant Street location and its research and development facility on Lexington's Jaggie Fox Way in order to accommodate its continued growth.[5]

In 2014, the company opened a new division called Big Ass Light to sell LED fixtures. As of June 2018, the company occupied three buildings in Lexington: an 88,000-square-foot (8,200 m2) office building; a 44,000-square-foot (4,100 m2) research and development lab that is certified LEED Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council; and a 165,000-square-foot (15,300 m2) manufacturing facility.

In 2017 the company shut down its facility on Winchester Road.[6]

In 2017, Smith sold the company to private equity firm Lindsay Goldberg.[7] In February 2018, Lennie Rhoades, a senior vice president at JELD-WEN, became CEO.[8]

Naming

In 2000, the company then known as HVLS Fan Company initiated a marketing campaign with mailers depicting the rear of a donkey, a fan with a 20-foot (6.1 m) blade span, and the caption "Big Ass Fan".[9] Although some postmasters in Georgia, Mississippi, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, California and Louisville returned the cards to HVLS as inappropriate, the campaign generated interest in the product.[9] After numerous customers called the company asking if it made "those big-ass fans", Smith changed the company name to Big Ass Fans.[10] Fanny, the donkey used in the ad campaign, became the company's mascot, and Smith changed his job title to "Chief Big Ass".[10] The company's web site sells promotional merchandise with the company name and logo.[11]

When the company relocated to Lexington's Winchester Road, residents staged protests of a 40-foot (12 m) wide mural depicting the company's name and mascot on the side of its building.[12] Because of the name, Lexington's Blue Grass Airport declined to display advertising from the company in its baggage claim area.[13] The airport later relented and hung a Big Ass Fan and a plaque near the security checkpoint. The Big Ass Fans Facebook page includes a gallery of letters complaining about the company's name, and in 2012, it began a YouTube channel featuring customer voicemail complaints styled as music videos.[14] For schools and religious institutions, however, the company maintains an advertising package that does not include the company name alongside the famous logo.[14]

Products

The company's first line of products included several iterations of high-volume low-speed fans for industrial and agricultural use. These fans use airfoils instead of flat blades and feature onboard variable-frequency drives. Since its founding, Big Ass Fans has expanded its product line to include directional, oscillating and mobile fans. The company has developed a line of fans for air-conditioned commercial and residential spaces, LED light fixtures and controls.

Big Ass Fans entered the commercial business market in 2008. In late 2011, Big Ass Fans acquired a manufacturer of energy efficient residential fans. In 2014, the company created a new division, Big Ass Light, and began manufacturing lighting products.[15] This line includes the Big Ass LED and the Big Ass Garage Light.[15]

Awards and recognition
Example of industrial fan: Powerfoil X2.0 Plus
Example of residential fan: Haiku

In 2016

  • Forbes' 25 Best Small Companies in America[16]
  • Fortune's 50 Best Workplaces for New College Grads[17]
  • EPA honors Big Ass Fans with 2016 ENERGY STAR® Award for Excellence in Energy-Efficient Product Design[18]
  • 2016 Top Green Providers[19]

In 2015

  • Haiku with SenseME was named Best in Class by Inc.[20]
  • Forbes named Big Ass Fans to its list of America's Most Promising Companies. Big Ass Fans rose to No. 33 from No. 49 in 2014.[21]
  • World Architecture News honored Haiku with SenseME with a Product Innovation Award.[22]
  • Plant Engineering named Big Ass Light High Bay LED a gold winner in its Product of the Year awards.[23]
  • Consulting-Specifying Engineer named Big Ass Light High Bay LED as a finalist for 2015 Product of the Year.[24]
  • Big Ass Fans was ranked 13 in the annual Best Places To Work in Kentucky awards. This was their first year ranked among the large business category, and their seventh year among the winners.[25]
  • Inc. magazine included Big Ass Fans in the prestigious Inc. 5000 list. This is the ninth-consecutive year that Big Ass Fans made the list.[26]

In 2014

  • Haiku was named ENERGY STAR Most Efficient.[27]
  • U.S. Green Building Council Best of Building Awards for Product Manufacturer of the Year – Best Product for Energy Efficiency (Essence), Best Product for Efficient Lighting (Big Ass High Bay LED) and Most Innovative New Product of the Year (Haiku with SenseME)[28]

In 2013

  • FX Awards Product of the Year for Haiku[29]

In 2012

  • Popular Science Best of What's New for Haiku[30]

In 2011

  • Plant Engineering Product of the Year for Yellow Jacket[31]

References
  1. This is the legal name per the Terms of Use
  2. Dooley, Karla (August 13, 2002). "Business is a Breeze". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  3. Sloan, Scott (October 26, 2007). "Local fan maker's campus to double in size". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  4. Sloan, Scott (June 3, 2012). "Bucking the trend comes naturally to 'Chief Big Ass'". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  5. Sloan, Scott (August 12, 2010). "Too Big for its Niches". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  6. Truman, Cheryl (November 10, 2017). "The Big Ass mural on Winchester Road was once the talk of the town. But that's changing | Lexington Herald Leader". Kentucky.com. Retrieved March 29, 2018.
  7. Staff, WKYT News. "Sale of Lexington-based "Big Ass Solutions" is official". Retrieved March 15, 2018.
  8. "Working at Big Ass Fans". Glassdoor. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
  9. Jordan, Jim (July 10, 2000). "Postmasters Butt in Over Fan Firm's Cards". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  10. "The Economist, April 1, 2014: Big Asspirations". economist.com. Retrieved February 12, 2015.
  11. Jordan, Jim (November 27, 2006). "Fun with Fans". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  12. "Reliable Plant, April 20, 2014: Big Ass Fans Moves Into New Facility". reliableplant.com. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  13. "Lexington Herald-Leader, January 18, 2010: Big Ass Fans Comes to Airport". kentucky.com. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  14. Truman, Cheryl (September 5, 2012). "Fanny mail: Complaints find way into video". Lexington Herald-Leader.
  15. Pullen, John Patrick (August 19, 2015). "How This Fan Company Is Proving It Has More Than Just a Good Name". Entrepreneur. Retrieved August 4, 2016.
  16. Burlingham, Bo. "The Best Small Companies In America, 2016". Forbes. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  17. "Big Ass Solutions". Fortune. May 24, 2016. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  18. "EPA honors Big Ass Solutions with 2016 ENERGY STAR® AWARD for Excellence in Energy-Efficient Product Design >> Big Ass Fans".
  19. "2016 Top Green Providers >> Big Ass Fans".
  20. "Inc. Names Haiku with SenseME as Best in Class Design » Big Ass Fans". Inc. Names Haiku with SenseME as Best in Class Design » Big Ass Fans. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  21. "Forbes Again Names Big Ass Fans Among America's Most Promising Companies » Big Ass Fans". Forbes Again Names Big Ass Fans Among America's Most Promising Companies » Big Ass Fans. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  22. "World Architecture News Honors Haiku with SenseME » Big Ass Fans". World Architecture News Honors Haiku with SenseME » Big Ass Fans. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  23. "Big Ass Light High Bay LED Named Plant Engineering Product of the Year » Big Ass Fans". Big Ass Light High Bay LED Named Plant Engineering Product of the Year » Big Ass Fans. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  24. "Consulting-Specifying Engineer Honors Big Ass Light High Bay LED » Big Ass Fans". Consulting-Specifying Engineer Honors Big Ass Light High Bay LED » Big Ass Fans. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  25. ""Best Places to Work in Kentucky", 14 April, 2015: Best Places to Work in Kentucky Rankings Announced" (PDF). bestplacestoworkky.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 16, 2015. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  26. "Big Ass Fans: Number 2437 on the 2015 Inc. 5000". Inc.com. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  27. ""Energy Star", 10 January, 2015: ENERGY STAR Most Efficient 2015". energystar.gov. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  28. "USGBC, 17 September, 2014: Announcing the Best of Building Award winners". usgbc.org. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  29. "FX Awards, 5 September, 2013: FX Awards Product of the Year". zmags.com. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  30. "Popular Science, 19 January, 2012: Best of What's New". popsci.com. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  31. "Plant Engineering, 16 April, 2012: 2011 Product of the Year". plantengineering.com. Retrieved February 11, 2015.

Further reading
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