Ranspach-le-Bas: A Family Heating Business Celebrates 50 Years of Activity

The company Habé et fils, based in Ranspach-le-Bas in Haut-Rhin, is celebrating half a century of activity in heating, plumbing and air conditioning. Founded in April 1976 by Marcelline and Léon Habé with their son Gilbert, this family business now employs around thirty staff members. Patrick and Alain Habé, two of the four brothers in the family, are still active and embody the transmission of artisanal expertise across the decades.

A Family Business Built by Four Brothers

The Beginnings of a Craft Adventure

Marcelline and Léon Habé launched the company on April 1, 1976 in Ranspach-le-Bas, accompanied by their eldest son Gilbert. At that time, oil heating dominated the residential market and the heating engineer's trade focused on installing conventional boilers and plumbing systems.

The company's activity covers three areas: heating, plumbing and air conditioning. A positioning that remains relevant fifty years later.

Four Brothers, Four Careers in the Same Trade

Jean-Claude, Roger, Patrick and Alain quickly joined the family business. The four brothers worked together for years before Léon Habé left his position as manager in 1987. Patrick then took over the reins of the company.

Today, Patrick still manages the business while Alain continues to work in the field. Gilbert and Jean-Claude gradually left the activity. Continuity is ensured.

Thirty Employees and Transmitted Expertise

A Stable Team That Spans the Decades

The company has around thirty employees. Some have been part of the company's history for many years. This stability reflects a transmission of concrete skills: installing an efficient heating system, diagnosing a breakdown quickly, advising a customer on choosing equipment suited to their home.

In the field, experience makes the difference. A heating engineer who has installed hundreds of boilers knows the pitfalls, complicated configurations, and peculiarities of old buildings. This expertise cannot be improvised.

What Fifty Years in the Trade Represents

In fifty years, the heating sector has changed completely. Oil boilers reigned supreme in the 1970s. Today, homeowners are turning to heat pumps, pellet stoves, gas condensing boilers or hybrid systems.

The heating engineer's role has also evolved. They no longer simply install a device. They advise on energy efficiency, guide customers through financial aid procedures like MaPrimeRénov' or Energy Savings Certificates, and direct them toward the most suitable solutions based on budget and housing.

Standards have multiplied. RGE certification has become mandatory to allow customers to receive public aid. Labels like Flamme Verte regulate wood-burning equipment. The trade requires continuous training to stay current.

The Sector's Evolution as Seen by Field Craftsmen

From Oil to Renewable Energy

In the 1970s and 1980s, a heating installation often came down to an oil boiler and cast iron radiators. Simple, effective, but energy-intensive and polluting. Town gas developed in connected areas, offering more comfort and fewer storage constraints.

Then wood energy made a comeback. Modern log stoves, high-performance inserts and especially pellet stoves won over homeowners. Wood offers an attractive cost per kWh and an ecological image. Provided you choose dry wood (moisture content below 20%) and store logs properly.

Heat pumps have established themselves in recent years. Air-to-water, air-to-air or geothermal, they promise significant long-term savings. But their installation requires real expertise: precise sizing, model selection based on insulation, fine adjustments to optimize efficiency.

Today, hybrid systems combine multiple energy sources: a heat pump for most of the season, backed up by a gas boiler during severe cold. Or a pellet stove supplementing an electric installation. Custom solutions replace standard ones.

Current Challenges for Professionals

Training teams in new technologies takes time and is expensive. A heating engineer trained in oil boilers must retrain in heat pumps, connected controls, solar thermal systems. Manufacturers offer numerous training courses, but daily workload leaves little room for training days.

Administrative procedures are becoming more complex. To receive MaPrimeRénov', the customer must file an application before work begins, choose an RGE-certified craftsman and meet precise technical criteria. The heating engineer becomes an intermediary between the customer, paying organizations and equipment suppliers.

Supply lead times pose problems. Some heat pumps or boilers must be ordered several weeks in advance. Shortages of qualified labor slow down projects. Companies sometimes turn away customers due to lack of availability.

In this context, local and family structures maintain an advantage: the trust relationship. A customer who has used the same company for years knows it will respond urgently if the boiler breaks down on a Sunday in January.

Why Family Businesses Endure in the Craft Sector

Transmitting a Concrete Trade

Passing from one generation to the next in heating means transmitting gestures, reflexes, field knowledge. How to properly bleed a heating circuit. How to diagnose a draft problem on a stove. How to advise a customer hesitating between two boiler models.

The four Habé brothers grew up in the business. They know the area's customers, the peculiarities of local houses, reliable suppliers. This collective memory is worth gold in a trade where every project is different.

Proximity as a Differentiator

A local company reacts quickly. When a boiler fails in the middle of winter, the homeowner calls their regular heating engineer. If the company is 10 kilometers away and already knows the installation, the intervention happens the same day. Large national chains struggle to offer this level of responsiveness.

Word of mouth still works. A satisfied customer talks about it. A well-done project shows: a silent boiler, radiators that heat uniformly, a gas bill that drops by 30%. Reputation is built on decades of serious work.

Fifty years of activity for the company Habé et fils means fifty years of trade, adaptations and trust earned from homeowners. An anniversary that testifies as much to the solidity of a family structure as to the profound evolution of a craft sector confronting the challenges of energy transition.