ASPE Grassroots Budget Meeting Announced

The ASPE Grassroots Budget Meeting will be held on Saturday, March 21 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. CST in the ASPE Chicago office. All chapter officers and any other Society members are welcome to attend either at the office or via webcast. If you plan to attend, contact Pam Formento by February 27.

CPD Exam Registration Is Open

The 2009 Certified in Plumbing Design exam will be held April 17 or 18 depending on the test taker’s chosen location. The deadline to register is April 3. Two practice tests will be available at www.aspe.org in late February.

Chicago Chapter Member Dies

It is with deep sadness to report the passing of Robert Weaver Jr. on February 5. Bob was sales manager at Riddile & Associates and an active member of ASPE’s Chicago Chapter for more than 10 years. His obituary can be found at www.countrysidefuneralhomes.com. 

Los Angeles Chapter Congratulates Plumbing Design Students

The ASPE Los Angeles Chapter board of directors wants to congratulate the 22 students who are participating in a plumbing systems design course at the UCLA Extension. This course offers a comprehensive education in plumbing design, which will make each student a better and more useful member of the building design team. At the end of this three-quarter course, all students with passing grades will receive a certificate of completion from UCLA Extension. The Los Angeles Chapter also thanks the sponsoring companies for participating in this important educational course.

Don’t Miss Your Chance to Present at the 2009 Technical Symposium

Share your knowledge and expertise at the 2009 ASPE Technical Symposium, Oct. 23–25, in Dearborn, Michigan. ASPE currently is accepting proposals for nonproprietary educational sessions.

Committee Members: Update Your Information

All Design Standards Committee and Working Group members are asked to update their contact information by e-mailing both David Dexter at david.dexter@korda.com or dexterdd@aol.com and Stacey Kidd at skidd@aspe.org.

EDUCATIONAL AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES

Dallas Advanced Plumbing Design Course Being Held Feb. 27–28

Sponsored by ASPE’s Dallas/Ft. Worth Chapter and TDI Industries, this two-day course will cover siphonic roof drainage, Sovent systems, chase clearances, and how to obtain LEED points. Cost is $150 for members and $250 for nonmembers. Visit www.dfwaspe.org for more information.

Virginia-area LEED Training Course Being Held Feb. 27

In conjunction with IES and Sustainable Design Consulting, ASPE’s Richmond Chapter is holding this day-long course to increase participants’ knowledge of green design and help prepare them to take the LEED accreditation exam. Participants must RSVP by Feb. 13. Contact Rob Grubbs for more information.

NEW! Northern California Product Show Is March 10

Join the ASPE Northern California Chapter at its 27th annual tabletop show at the Radisson Sacramento. Technical seminars will be held from 1:00 to 4:30 p.m. The Product Show runs from 4:30 to 7:00 p.m. This year's theme for the technical seminars is green technologies, specifically acoustics and vibration control for plumbing systems at 1:00 and rainwater harvesting/catchment system design at 3:00. The cost of both seminars is $50. Visit www.aspe-norcal.org for the seminar sign-up form and additional information.

NEW! Western Michigan Trade Show Is March 12

ASPE’s Western Michigan Chapter and PHCC are holding this show at the Elk’s Lodge in Grand Rapids. Seminars on fire protection and geothermal piping will be followed by a product show with drinks and appetizers included. Each seminar is worth two RUs. Seminar is free to ASPE members and $25 for nonmembers. Contact Ashley Baker at 616-796-0200 for more information and to RSVP. If you are interested in having a table in the trade show, contact Paul Sisovosky at 616-796-0200.

NEW! Dallas-area Clay Shoot Scheduled for March 13

This event is sponsored by ASPE's Dallas/Ft. Worth Chapter and ASHRAE’s Dallas Chapter. Enjoy an afternoon of lunch and shooting sporting clays with friends. The cost is $100 per person and includes lunch and shooting fees. Beginners are welcome, and a brief safety and instruction course will be held prior to shooting. For additional information, visit www.dfwaspe.org or contact Charles Crawford or 214-676-4134.

ASPE Webinar on LEED Points Strategies Is March 18

At 1:00 p.m. CST, ASPE will present the LEED Points Strategies webinar. Presenter David DeBord will provide the tools to assist your efforts to incorporate sustainable design practices into your projects, as well as introduce the specific requirements for LEED certification. It's free to ASPE members thanks to sponsor Bradley Corp. Register now at www.aspe.org. (Remember to save the confirmation e-mail since that is your link to enter the webinar.)

Phoenix Golf Tournament Scheduled for March 20

ASPE’s Phoenix Chapter is holding its annual golf tournament at the Starfire Golf Club. Registration deadline is March 9. Click here for a registration form.

Orlando Plumbing Design Workshop Being Held March 28

ASPE’s Central Florida Chapter is holding this day-long workshop at the RDV Sportsplex in Orlando. Cost is $125 for ASPE members, $175 for nonmembers, and $50 for students. CEUs are available. Click here for a registration form.

Buffalo-Niagara Trade Show Being Held April 8

The Buffalo-Niagara/PHCC trade show is being held from 2:00–7:00 p.m. at the Hearthstone Manor in Depew, New York. For more information, visit aspe.org/Buffalo-Niagara.  

Chicago Product Show Scheduled for April 16

ASPE’s Chicago Chapter’s Product Show is being held at the White Eagle Restaurant in Niles, Illinois. Technical seminars will run from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and the product show runs from 3:30–8 p.m. More than 500 products will be displayed in over 90 exhibits. Product show and all seminars are free. CEUs are available. For additional information, contact Frank Sanchez.

NEW! Dallas-area Casino Night Scheduled for April 18, 2009

The fifth-annual ASPE Dallas/Ft. Worth Chapter Casino Night will be held  at the Grapevine Municipal Golf Course Concourse. Doors open at 5 p.m., gaming starts at 6 p.m., and an auction begins at 9 p.m. In addition to Vegas-style gaming, dinner and non-alcoholic drinks will be served. A cash bar also will be available. The cost for this adults-only event is $30. Proceeds go to the DFW Chapter scholarship fund. For more information, visit www.dfwaspe.org.

NEW! Advanced Plumbing Design Course Being Held in Lubbock May 1–2

ASPE’s Dallas/Ft. Worth Chapter is holding this two-day course on laboratory system design and fire protection design. Cost is $150 for ASPE members and $250 for nonmembers. A special rate of $275 is being offered to take the course and join ASPE. A special $50 rate for students includes the class and student membership in ASPE. Each attendee will receive a copy of the class handbook and a certificate for 1.2 CEUs or 12 REUs. Contact Rick Lobb to register or visit www.dfwaspe.org. The ASPE Plumbing Engineering and Design Handbook of Tables is recommended for this course.

NEW! New Jersey Golf Outing Scheduled for May 7

ASPE’s New Jersey Chapter's annual golf outing will be held at The Architects Golf Club in Phillipsburg, New Jersey. The golf tournament raises funds for the chapter and is an exciting networking and social venue for local members and guests. All teams that register as Platinum Sponsors will be entered in the Corporate Challenge. The team that finishes with the lowest net (Calloway) score will be crowned the Tournament Champion and receive the coveted Maloney & Curcio-PVI Perpetual Cup. Contact Golf Chairman Fred Holzapfel for information on registration or sponsorship.

NEW! Southern California Golf Tournament Scheduled for May 8

ASPE’s Orange County and Los Angeles Chapters will be hosting their annual Spring Classic Golf Tournament at the Los Serranos Golf Course in Chino Hills, California.  The LA and Orange County Chapters would like to thank Speakman Company for participating in this year's tournament as the premium corporate sponsor.  Visit www.aspeoc.com for more information.

INDUSTRY NEWS

NFPA Launches New Initiative to Help Bring Safety Home with Fire Sprinklers

The National Fire Protection Association has launched the Fire Sprinkler Initiative: Bringing Safety Home. The Fire Sprinkler Initiative will provide materials and resources to people and organizations working to encourage the adoption of requirements for automatic fire sprinklers in new one- and two-family homes. The Fire Sprinkler Initiative will include a variety of proven and effective ways that home fire sprinkler advocates can communicate the impact and importance of sprinkler requirements. Visit the Initiative’s website for materials advocates can use when talking to community leaders, elected officials, and others to get home sprinkler requirements in place, either through ordinances or adoption of model safety codes.

National Green Building Standard Approved

The National Green Building Standard, known as ICC-700, was approved as an American national standard. It provides guidance for safe and sustainable building practices for residential construction, including both new and renovated single-family to high-rise residential buildings. This is the first and only green standard that is consistent and coordinated with the International Code Council’s family of I-Codes and standards. The Code Council is finalizing its Green Building Technologies Certification program for building officials, inspectors, planners, zoning personnel, mayors, city council members, developers, and other interested parties. The exams will be available in March. In addition, the International Code Council Board has approved the creation of a Sustainable Building Technology Committee to support the Council’s many ongoing efforts in green, sustainable, and safe construction.

IAPMO Standards Council Issues New Decisions

One decision approved Tentative Interim Amendment UPC-001-09to the 2009 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC), resulting in the removal of text from Section 211.0 regarding the definition of “insanitary” and the addition of an exception to Section 405.2 regarding “non-water urinals” because non-water urinals do not have a visible seal as described in this section, therefore an exception was added to correlate language. The Council similarly voted favorably to approve the extraction of revised text from the 2007 edition of ASHRAE 62.1: Table 6-1 titled Minimum Ventilation Rates in Breathing Zone. This updated table will replace the previous version published as Chapter 4, Table 4-1 in the 2006 edition of the UMC.

NSF Certifies First Geothermal Pipes to New Canadian Standard

NSF International has certified the first geothermal pipes to Canadian Standards Association’s (CSA) standard C448: Design and Installation of Earth Energy Systems for Commercial and Institutional Buildings. NSF is the only organization that certifies polyethylene (PE) piping for geothermal end use. CSA C448 is North America’s only government-recognized design and installation standard for geothermal systems, systems that use the earth as a heat source and heat sink. NSF’s certification program was developed to incorporate all of the critical aspects of geothermal piping, including performance, physical, health effects, and quality control requirements. To achieve NSF certification, both Trinus Pipes and Tubes Ltd. and Vanguard Pipe and Fittings Ltd. had to fulfill the requirements of NSF/ANSI 14: Plastic Piping System Components and Related Materials and CSA B137.1: Polyethylene (PE) Pipe, Tubing, and Fittings for Cold Water Pressure Services in addition to the requirements of CSA C448. Both companies also underwent a rigorous facility audit that verified formulation and manufacturing processes, use of authorized raw materials, quality control requirements, sampling of product for monitoring testing, product marking, and product complies with standards and NSF policies.

New Method Monitors Critical Bacteria in Wastewater Treatment

Researchers have developed a new technique using sensors to constantly monitor the health of bacteria critical to wastewater treatment facilities and have verified a theory that copper is vital to the proper functioning of a key enzyme in the bacteria. The new method senses minute changes in chemistry related to bacterial health and yields results immediately, unlike conventional technologies, which require laboratory analyses taking at least a day. This immediacy could make it possible to detect when bacteria are about to stop processing waste and correct the problem before toxins are released into waterways. Click here to read more.

HDPE Pipe Receives 100-Year Service Life Approval

Advanced Drainage Systems has received a 100-year service life approval for its N-12 corrugated HDPE pipe. The designation, given by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), approves N-12 pipe for use in most FDOT applications. Utilizing the most extensive testing protocol in the pipe industry, FDOT granted approval for 18-inch through 48-inch ADS N-12 pipe under the Class II 100-year service life designation.

Ohio Construction Conference Being Held Feb. 17

Sponsored by McGraw-Hill Construction, this day-long conference connects owners, designers, contractors, and suppliers. Up to nine hours of continuing education/professional development hours can be obtained by participating in the full day of conference activities. Click here for more information and to register.

2009 Rochester Engineering Symposium Being Held April 28

Sponsored by Rochester, New York’s engineering societies, the event will be held at the Clarion Riverside Hotel in Rochester. Courses in all engineering disciplines will be offered, and up to seven professional development hours can be obtained. Visit www.roceng.org for more information.

ASHRAE Publishes Load Calculations Manual

Load Calculation Applications Manual focuses on two methods for calculating cooling loads in non-residential buildings: the heat balance method and the radiant time series method (RSTM). The manual features in-depth examples and the latest data for building materials, windows, weather, and internal heat gains. The accompanying CD contains spreadsheets that compute the factors needed by the RSTM and compute cooling loads with the RSTM. To order, visit www.ashrae.org/bookstore.

Moen Adds Sustainability Section to Website

Moen has created a new section on its website: www.moen.com/sustainability. It provides detailed information on the company’s water-efficient product portfolio, as well as additional green resources and information on current industry programs.