For the second year in a row, Scott DeWaal of Salt Lake City is Thermo King's Top Tech. DeWaal, of Peak Thermo King, beat 157 other dealer technicians this year.
"Investment in our technicians is key to our success as a business and to keeping our customers — and the industry — moving," says Joey DeLoach, dealer development leader for Thermo King Americas. "This skilled workforce is a necessity to protecting equipment health and delivering a gold-standard service that ensures food, medicines and all perishable assets are delivered safely."
[RELATED: Thermo King names 2025 Dealers of the Year]
The competition has three increasingly challenging phases, starting with a qualifier test, a proctored and timed knowledge test, and an in-person, hands-on competition for the final 10 contestants at Thermo King's Minnesota headquarters.
"The Top Tech Dealer competition spotlights the pride, skill and dedication our Thermo King dealership technicians demonstrate each day throughout our elite dealer network, and it strengthens our position as industry leaders," DeLoach says.
In the final round, technicians work under pressure to troubleshoot, diagnose and repair refrigeration units and auxiliary power units while being timed and judged. The top three technicians won an all-expenses-paid trip to the Thermo King dealer principal meeting where the results were announced.
DeWaal won $10,000 and a Dynasty Wrench trophy he'll present to the 2026 winner. Aaron Hunt, CSTK East in Philadelphia, took second place and Josh Carpenter from Thermo King Eastern Canada in Toronto came in third.
