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Fleet card benefits: How an HVAC company grew their business
Alfred Manuel (Manny) Muniz has been in the HVAC business for most of his career. He started in 2011 when he was a service manager for a heating and air company in Northern California. In 2020, he decided to strike out on his own and form his own HVAC business. One of the first things he did when he got started was to equip himself and his one employee with fuel cards. This is the story of how Mr. Muniz grew Full Metal Mechanical to expand beyond California, and to grow to a staff of seven, with the help of the fuel card account he opened on day one.
Full Metal Mechanical: A history of building a business
Muniz began his career in 1999. From the start, he focused on learning and developing new skills. He started as a technician, learned installation, learned refrigeration, and advanced up the ladder. Soon he became a regional director of a multi-state company overseeing a five-state territory.
When COVID hit, Mr. Muniz started his own handyman business to supplement his full-time job. Friends and colleagues asked him why he was taking on more work. “I just like working with my hands,” Muniz said. “I feel accomplished when I work with my hands and I love working with younger generation technicians.”
Mentoring others can bring great satisfaction when managing a business
Teaching technicians who were just starting out, and witnessing their satisfaction when they mastered an installation or a repair, brought Muniz a deeper satisfaction in his work. “Just seeing their faces when we completed a job and watching them realize, ‘My God, okay, this is how it works.’ was a complete pleasure.”
In his side business, Muniz noticed there were often projects he took over where he had to fix the shoddy workmanship of prior laborers. When discussing this with his peers, they suggested he could help prevent poor craftsmanship if he were to become a project manager (PM). Muniz took this advice to heart and enrolled in the University of California, Davis project management program.
How unforeseen events can sometimes impact our career paths
Muniz’s enrollment at UC Davis corresponded with the pandemic. Projects slowed down or came to a complete stop as shelter-in-place orders rocked the world. Muniz decided he needed to gain better agency over his career. He enrolled in contractor school on top of his classes for the project management degree. “After a grueling 12 months working nights and weekends as a handyman and going to school full-time Monday through Friday for both degrees, I graduated with a PM certification and a contractor’s license and began a full-time job as a project manager.” A year later, Muniz opened Full Metal Mechanical.
In the early days of Full Metal Mechanical, Muniz hired a trusted technician with whom he’d worked for many years. It was an exciting time. Of course, he felt the weight of bringing in new business, paying his bills, managing existing accounts, and all the requisite burdens of a small business owner, but running his own shop was deeply gratifying.
Building a small business with staying power
Full Metal Mechanical is a full-service HVAC-R and Cooking Equipment Company. Muniz created a niche for his business that sets it apart from other HVAC companies, however. Full Metal Mechanical’s staff are equipped to provide comprehensive repair support to their customers. This goes beyond just HVAC. “I taught my team that if we walk into a restaurant or a commercial building, we do basically everything in that building. We can fix anything. We can fix fryers, ovens, plumbing, beer coolers, wing coolers, produce coolers, HRA units, thermostats, the whole nine yards.” This adds value to the work they do and enhances what Muniz offers to his customer base: Full Metal caters to the idiosyncratic needs of each facility, saving his customers money and time.
Muniz’s business plan means it’s easy to find work in every season of the year. “We’re working 60 to 80 hours a week in the summer and then we’re working 40 to 50 hours a week in the winter. There’s no downtime. All the technicians that work for me love it because there are no ups and downs. It’s always a straight, steady stream of income coming in.”
After five years in business, Muniz is expanding into Nevada. He has grown the company from that original team of two people to a team of seven with two more coming on board soon. In the first quarter of 2025, Muniz opened a branch in Las Vegas and hired a technician to oversee the Nevada territory. Muniz says having a fuel card gave him the confidence and the capital to expand.
How a fuel card can help you improve and expand business operations
When Muniz first started with WEX, he had a small spending limit. He was a trustworthy and reliable customer and over the years WEX gradually increased his spending limit. “When I first opened my business I went to WEX for my fuel card and WEX was great the way they handled everything. When I applied for my first fleet card, WEX sent me a letter in response to my application and said, ‘Hey, we’re only going to start you on this amount of money, but as you grow, you’ll see that we’ll automatically increase your credit limit without you even asking.’ And that’s just what happened. I paid my bills on time every month and little by little my credit limit went up.” An expanded credit limit allowed Muniz to add more technicians and grow his business.
With every increase, Muniz was given more leeway to add technicians and to increase his fuel budget. “Having a reliable fuel card provider who has set me up with the credit I need and the fleet management tools I need makes it easier for me to grow my business.” With the security of WEX’s fuel card, expanding Muniz’s business became a reachable goal. “It’s nice to know that now that I’ve branched out beyond California and into Nevada, I don’t have to worry. I have the fuel card limit I need to cover that additional territory, and that’s a good feeling to have.”
Additionally, Muniz will have peace of mind managing the business from his office in Northern California because of the tools that come with WEX’s fuel card. “I’m able to control and see everything from afar and not have to worry about what my technicians are spending on fuel, where they’re fueling, whether they’re engaging in a lot of idling. All of these things I can monitor from the WEX app, and manage my team accordingly.”
Future growth and expansion with the help of a reliable fuel card provider
Muniz’s customers are clamoring for Full Metal Mechanical to continue to grow. “One of my biggest customers is Inspire Brands, based out of Atlanta. They own all the Jimmy John’s and Buffalo Wild Wings restaurants, along with six other restaurants under their umbrella. We do a lot of work for them.” Inspire Brands is one of several customers hoping for Muniz to expand his business into other states in which they operate.
Muniz also sub-contracts for a large construction business that is growing and wants Muniz to grow with them. “We’re working on a four-plex apartment building that’s getting demolished and converted into a four-plex condo. We do all the new construction on that. So the request from us on that is installing what they call the mini split systems into each apartment or each condo, installing bathroom exhaust fans, kitchen exhaust fans, and then ensuring that we are meeting the code requirements for those units.”
The challenges of commercial vehicle management as a small business owner
Fleet management requires strong organizational skills. Muniz has worked for companies where he managed fleets of over 50 vehicles, so managing six commercial vehicles does not put his head below water. Regardless, Muniz says that managing his fleet remains one of the biggest challenges of running his business. This is where Muniz’s project management training becomes invaluable.
Muniz knows from experience that the longevity of his fleet of vehicles is directly correlated to how strictly he maintains an all-encompassing vehicle maintenance schedule. “Whether they need new tires or brakes or whatever the parts are that are up for replacement, I’m very big on maintenance. I know I’ll get increased longevity from these vehicles if I care for the fleet and keep the vans up-to-date and I mean, we drive. One of my foremen just last week, in a week he drove over a thousand miles. So, we drive.” Oil changes, tire rotations—any trick in the book that will keep a vehicle running longer—are on Muniz’s maintenance schedule.
Fraud prevention with a fuel card program
In 2023, one of Muniz’s technicians lost their fuel card. Muniz called customer service and immediately reached an agent who helped him shut down the card. The same agent helped Muniz set controls on all of his cards to prevent fraudulent activity, and the agent taught him how to cancel a card quickly and easily using WEX’s mobile app. All of Muniz’s drivers’ cards now have fuel spend controls in place for an extra layer of security.
Benefits of a fuel card with 98% acceptance rate
WEX fuel cards are accepted at 95% of fueling stations nationally. This is a game-changer for Muniz. “I just love the efficiency, the amount of fueling stations that we’re able to use. We got it down pat—my guys know exactly which gas stations to use.” His drivers are always on the lookout for the most cost-effective gas savings, and because the fleet cards they use are accepted so widely they are always able to pump at the least expensive fueling stations. The WEX Connect app is a convenient way to plan your fueling based on the least expensive fuel in your area.
A fuel card to encourage employee trust and engagement and reduce attrition
In past work experiences, Muniz notes that drivers were required to pay with their own money for expenses, to hold onto receipts, and then to get reimbursed. At Full Metal Mechanical, employees don’t have to go through that hassle. “The fleet card makes them feel trusted and entrusted. The fact that somebody’s giving them a card so they don’t have to pay out of their own personal pocket to get reimbursed at the end of the week is a huge benefit in the eyes of my staff.” And the card saves time for Muniz too. “It’s easier for me to give them all fuel cards too because it removes the headache of me having to collect all the travel receipts and then reimburse my staff, using a W9 for the fuel they used for the week.”
Engendering trust by being trusting
Additionally, by giving his staff a fuel card, he is showing them he respects them and trusts them. “The way other companies do it implies that they really don’t trust their technicians,” Muniz says. By giving employees fuel cards, Muniz shows them that they are a part of a team. This was important to the new technician Muniz recently hired to manage his Nevada operations. “It was one of the biggest things he told me is just being trusted. He said he had a hard time with the company that he left to come work for me, not being trusted.”
The employee in question had been loyal to his prior employer for over eight years. He climbed the ranks to become a lead installer. There were still constant questions about what money he spent where and how much he needed to be reimbursed for fuel and vehicle repairs. Because Muniz started at the bottom rung of the business and climbed up through the ranks himself, he is keenly aware of what it feels like to wish you were treated with more respect. He keeps his employees’ needs in the front of his mind.
Fuel cards take the burden off of your drivers
The fleet cards are important too for technicians who are just starting out, and may not have a lot of cash in their checking accounts. “I’ve always put myself in the technician’s perspective: how—especially when they’re starting out, or they’re not making as much money—what can I do for them and for their families to make it easier for them? Giving them the WEX card is one way I can help.”
Muniz also gives his employees vouchers annually to buy new work boots. “Small things like that help and it makes it easier for me because with it comes employee loyalty.” One of the things Muniz learned from his Marine Corps training was how important it is to take care of your feet. One of the ways he carries this lesson with him is by caring for his employees and ensuring they always have access to the best footwear for the work they’re doing. He regularly purchases new boots for employees when he sees their boots wearing out. “I’ll say ‘Pick up your feet. Let me see your boots.’ And I look and I’m like, ‘Yeah, your boots are done.’ I go, ‘Here’s your voucher. Go to Boot Barn and go get some new boots.’”
Muniz also maintains an open-door policy at Full Metal. Any employee, at any time, is welcome to come to him and talk through whatever is on their minds.
How a fuel card can make managing a small business easier and free up your time to grow your business
Muniz also uses the fuel card as a tool to manage Full Metal’s budget. “Just watching the overall monthly statements I can log into my account at any time if I have questions or if something I’m seeing isn’t adding up—and that kind of easy access to my account information gives me peace of mind.”
One month, Muniz was surprised by an unexpectedly large fuel bill from one of his drivers. He was able to go back and look through his account on WEX’s customer site and see how far his driver had traveled, where he fueled, and calculate what the costs were to reconcile the account. Muniz could track all the data he needed with his fuel card app: he could see why the fuel spend was higher than the average monthly spend for that technician, and put his concerns to rest.
Muniz also loves the fact that he can check on his account while at his desk, and he can also check using the app while out on the road in his van visiting job sites. ”My overall experience with WEX has been a great experience. The company is easy to deal with, customer service is always great, and it’s just easy to use. At any time I can go into the tool and see who’s fueling, what’s pending. I mean, it’s just very easy to handle, and that’s just one less headache to deal with. Everything is taken care of for you and if you have any questions, then you just call.”
How military training equates to a strong work ethic and entrepreneurial skills
At age 18 Muniz joined the Marines. He served for eight years on active duty. During those years he learned many skills that he finds useful for running his own business. “Just the accountability, responsibility, and the organizational skills that they teach you in the military are enough to make it worth it.” Muniz says, “And then I pass that on to my techs and it’s almost like having kids. When you teach your kids to make sure that they pick up after themselves, they clean the vehicle, they take pride in what they drive, they take pride in what they do for work, those are all skills that will go a long way for them and for my business. One of the main things that the Marine Corps taught me was to always lead by example.”
Leading by example can be as simple as cleaning up a job site in the middle of a workday. “They see me if I’m stopping by to check up on an install. I don’t sit still. I’m up there walking around with a garbage bag, cleaning up after them, and they’re like, ‘Boss, boss, it’s all right. We’ll take care of it.’ And I respond, ‘No, no, no. It’s all right. I’m here. Let me just do this real quick.’ And then while I’m there I might coach them a little on their work as well: ‘Hey, you missed a spot of silicone on this end here.’ Or, ‘I would have drilled it this way. Just my opinion,’ So, that’s the biggest thing that the Marine Corps experience taught me that I bring to the table even now.”
Physical fitness stays with you from military training days
Physical fitness is still a central part of Muniz’s life. He is an avid Peloton cyclist as well as a half marathon competitor. He is hoping his next big race will be to run in the United States Marine Corps full marathon in Arlington, Virginia. Behind Muniz’s desk, fourteen half marathon medals are proudly displayed.
Alfred Manuel (Manny) Muniz used his project management skills, his Marine Corps training, and his natural smarts to propel his business forward. With the help of his WEX fuel card, Muniz is growing his business, one technician at a time. Muniz serves as an example to anyone who might someday open their own company—discipline, openness to learning, attention to detail, energy, strategic planning and shrewdness, and above all empathy for the people who keep the business running: employees. We wish him the best of luck on his newest venture.
“When I began my business, WEX was the only fuel company to give me an opportunity to use their fuel cards. They have always assisted me and my company in succeeding.”
—Alfred Manuel (Manny) Muniz, President, Full Metal Mechanical
WEX speaks the language of small business operators. Whether you’re looking to modernize your insight and reporting efforts, save on fuel costs or take advantage of the latest GPS tracking technologies, WEX offers solutions to simplify the business of running a business. To learn more about WEX, a dynamic and nimble global organization, please visit our About WEX page.
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