Why Is the ASPE/PCA Technical Symposium Such a Great Value?

Attendees to the 2009 Technical Symposium receive all of these terrific benefits:

• Free admission to the Plumbing Engineering and Contracting Product Exhibition, with a complementary tailgate-style buffet
• 25 educational sessions taught by experts practicing in the plumbing engineering field
• The opportunity to earn 15 educational contact hours
• A plethora of invaluable take-home materials to reference and share with colleagues
• The chance to win one of a dozen new laptops
• Networking opportunities to meet with engineers and contractors from around the country
• A CPD Review Course for those studying for the CPD Exam, plus a copy of the CPD Review Manual
• Free breakfasts, lunches, and snacks
• A hands-on session on BIM software
• A wine and cheese party to mingle with colleagues
• A travel stipend for those driving to the event
• The best per-night room rate available at the Hyatt Regency Dearborn

What are you waiting for? Register today!

So You Want to Be an Expert Witness?

On September 16 at 1 p.m. CST, Mark Passamaneck will present ASPEís next webinar on how to become an expert witness. Attendees will learn successful procedures to follow during investigation and how to determine the necessary depth of investigation to avoid disqualification and meet the standard of care. Cost is $69.95 for ASPE members, $129.95 for nonmembers. Participants can earn 0.1 CEU or 1 PDH. Click here to register.

Have you visited ASPE e-Learning Courses?

If you're looking to increasing your skill set, learn a new procedure, or just want to increase your opportunities for advancement, ASPE e-Learning is the most convenient and affordable way to achieve those goals. We offer a complete set of e-learning courses to help you increase your knowledge or earn CEU/PDH credits.

ASPE Archived Webinars Offer CEUs

Click here to access ASPE archived webinars, which allows you to view and listen to previously recorded events at a time that is most convenient for you. Pay a small fee to earn quick CEUs.

EDUCATIONAL AND NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES

NEW! California State Central Plant Tour Being Held September 2

ASPEís Northern California Chapter and ASHRAEís Sacramento Valley Chapter are touring the State Central Plant in Sacramento at 5:15 p.m. A social event will follow the 90-minute tour. Contact Richard Lingo to RSVP by September 1.

September 10: Philadelphia Golf Outing

ASPEís Philadelphia Chapter is holding its golf outing at the Northampton Country Club in Northampton, Pennsylvania. Cost is $100 per golfer and corporate packages are available. For more information or to register contact Bill OíDonnell or visit www.aspephila.org.

September 10: Minneapolis Plumbing and Hydronics Product Show

The ASPE and ASHRAE Minnesota Chapters are holding this all-day event at the Earle Brown Heritage Center. Free seminars on solar thermal water heating and geothermal heating systems offer CEU credit. For more information or to register, contact Becky Soderholm.

NEW! Central New York Golf Outing Being Held September 14

ASPEís Central New York Chapter is holding its annual golf outing at The Links at Sunset Ridge in Marcellus, New York, starting at 10 a.m. Cost is $60 for golf, cart, hot dog at the turn, and steak dinner following the event. Contact Dan Gehl with any questions.

NEW! Washington, D.C., Golf Outing Being Held September 14

ASPEís Washington, D.C., Chapter is holding its golf outing at the Worthington Manor Golf Club in Urbana, Maryland. Cost is $150 per person for golf, lunch and dinner. Many sponsorships are available. Contact Pat Becker for more information.

September 21: Philadelphia Plumbing Design School

The ASPE/ASSE Plumbing Design School will be held every Monday from 6:30ñ9 p.m. at the office of Lime Contractors in Philadelphia until Feb. 1, 2010. Tuition is $650. Areas of study include plumbing terms, codes, hydraulics and math, centrifugal pump fundamentals, domestic hot water design, backflow prevention, storm, sanitary, and vent design, purified water systems, and graywater and storm water reclamation. Contact Nelson White for more information.

September 21: British Columbia Golf Outing

ASPEís British Columbia Chapter is holding its golf outing at the Green Acres Golf and Country Club in Richmond, British Columbia. Cost is $125 per player (includes dinner). Contact Peter Way to register.

September 22: Tampa Bay Rays Baseball Outing

ASPEís West Coast Florida Chapter is holding a joint meeting with ASHRAE followed by an evening of baseball in the Rays Party Suite. Cost is $30 per person. Space is limited. Contact Rob Shorey for more information.

NEW! Los Angeles Plumbing Design Course Starting September 24

ASPEís Los Angeles Chapter and UCLA Extension announce a three-semester course on code and engineering fundamentals, advanced plumbing design, and systems applications at the UCLA Westwood Campus. Students must have a minimum of one-year in plan check or plumbing system design. Contact Haig Demergian for more information.

October 1: Dallas-area Product Show

ASPEís Dallas/Ft. Worth Chapterís Product Show will be held at the Ruthe Jackson Center in Grand Prairie, Texas. The theme is ìGreen Building Design and Technology.î Click here for more information.

October 2: Dallas-area Golf Outing

ASPEís Dallas/Ft. Worth Chapterís Fall Golf Classic will be held at Prairie Lakes Golf Course in Grand Prairie, Texas. Click here for additional information and registration forms. Hole sponsorships are available.

October 15: Philadelphia Product Show

ASPEís Philadelphia Chapterís product show will be held at the Ramada Philadelphia Airport hotel in Essington, Pennsylvania from 1:45ñ7 p.m. Free one-hour CEU seminars on Revit and rainwater harvesting will be held. Click here for more information.

NEW! Chicago Design Course Starting October 16

ASPEís Chicago Chapter is presenting the 10-week course ìAdvanced Plumbing Systems and Equipment Selection.î Classes will be held on Tuesdays from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Cost is $650 for ASPE members and $825 for nonmembers. Click here for more information. Registration deadline is September 18.

INDUSTRY NEWS

Trouble with NFPA 99?

At the 2009 NFPA Technical Meeting, an amending motion was made and passed to return the entire NFPA 99 (2010): Standard for Healthcare Facilities back to committee. In August, the Standards Council reviewed an appeal by a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists to reject this amending motion. This appeal was rejected. During the complete revision cycle, all members of the healthcare facilities standard committee did extensive and valuable work in reorganizing and rewriting NFPA 99. However, the membership debated and voted that the entire document was not yet ready for issuance and that further work was necessary. This was enhanced by an advisory ballot submitted by members of three of the seven technical committees, although not binding. The Council now requires further processing of the 2010 edition of NFPA 99, and it will be reentered into the 2011 revision cycle. The 2005 edition shall be in effect for the next three years. Click here for more information.

Homes Linked to 50 Percent More Water Pollution than Previously Believed

According to a new study reported recently at the 238th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society, the typical house in residential areas of California is an alarming and probably underestimated source of water pollution. The study explains that runoff resulting from rainfall and watering of lawns and gardens washes fertilizers, pesticides, and other contaminants into storm drains and eventually into bodies of water. Current models may underestimate the amount of pollution contributed by homes by up to 50 percent because past estimates focused on rain-based runoff during the wet season. Pollutants detected in outdoor runoff included ant-control pesticide products.

IAPMO Releases Report on Comments for 2009 Uniform Solar Energy Code

IAPMO has uploaded to its online download center the 2009 Uniform Solar Energy Code (USEC) Report on Comments book. Published within this document are the final ballot results from the June 12, 2009, meeting of the USEC Technical Committee. This document contains the comments received on proposed changes, the committeeís action, and the committeeís statement explaining any non-affirming votes. The ROC will be available for public review for 21 days.

Nine New England Communities Face Actions to Improve Storm Sewer Pollution

The EPA recently filed complaints against one New Hampshire and eight Massachusetts communities for failing to meet permit requirements designed to ensure that sewage and other pollutants stay out of storm sewers that drain to local rivers, ponds, and coastal waters. The EPA has found that illegal sewage connections are major contributors to pollution in New England's rivers and streams and is in the process of reissuing storm water permits for communities in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. A draft permit for New Hampshire communities was issued for public comment in December 2008, and a draft permit for Massachusetts communities is expected later this year. These permits will include enhanced requirements to identify and eliminate illegal sewer connections. Click here for more information.

UK Engineers Find Unusual Pipe

Water engineers made an unusual discovery in Manchester, England, recently. United Utilities employees who are renewing pipes on Oxford Road in the city center were surprised to find a four-cornered pipe when removing the old plumbing system. Dating back to 1907, the cast-iron object has an oblong cross section rather than being the usual round shape. The pipe will be donated to the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester because it is so rare.

NASA Satellites Unlock the Secret to Northern India's Vanishing Water

Groundwater in India is disappearing, but where is it going? Based on observations from NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment, hydrologists have found that it is being pumped and consumed by human activitiesóprincipally to irrigate croplandófaster than the aquifers can be replenished by natural processes. They found that groundwater levels have been declining by an average of 1 meter every three years (1 foot per year). More than 109 km³ (26 miles³) of groundwater disappeared between 2002 and 2008ódouble the capacity of India's largest surface water reservoir, the Upper Wainganga, and triple that of Lake Mead, the largest manmade reservoir in the United States. The loss is particularly alarming because it occurred when no unusual trends in rainfall occurred. In fact, rainfall was slightly above normal for the period.

USGBC Announces LEED for Homes Affiliate Program for Local Green Building Programs

The LEED for Homes Affiliate Program allows regional green home building programs to promote the growing green residential market by partnering with USGBC as a LEED for Homes Affiliate. It is designed to work flexibly and smoothly with other third-party green home providers. The first two green home building programs that have signed on to be LEED for Homes Affiliates are the Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas and Minnesota GreenStar.

Revised ASSE Series 5000 Is Now Available

ASSE Series 5000 (2009): Cross-connection Control Professional Qualification Standard is the only such standard approved by ANSI. It features two new standards: Fire Sprinkler System Cross-connection Control Tester Professional Qualification Standard and Backflow Prevention Program Administrator Professional Qualification Standard. It also defines the minimum performance requirements for testing backflow preventers that meet the requirements of ASSE standards and covers the minimum performance requirements needed to be ASSE certified as a backflow prevention assembly tester, a backflow assembly repairer, and a cross-connection control surveyor.

WaterSmart Innovations Conference Being Held October 7ñ9

The WaterSmart Innovations Conference and Exposition will present a wide range of professional sessions in several education and training tracks at the South Point Hotel and Conference Center in Las Vegas. Click here for a complete list of sessions and speaker biographies.

CIPHEX Roadshow Starts October 22

The 2009 Roadshow starts in Winnipeg (October 22) and then travels to Saskatoon (October 27), Regina (October 29), Edmonton (November 3), and Vancouver (November 5). Each show features a product exhibit and a free seminar.

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

High-efficiency, Dual-flush Back-outlet Toilet

Caromaís Sydney Smart back outlet HET is one of the first back-outlet dual-flush toilets to be WaterSense labeled. It features dual flush technology, using 1.28/0.8 gallons per full/half flush, a large trapway to help eliminate blockages, and washdown technology to push waste from the bowl.

Transition Union for ABS Systems

Asahi/Americaís ABS to Air Pro transition union allows for fast replacement of damaged or failing sections of an ABS line. It allows an easy changeover from an existing ABS compressed air piping system to Asahi/Americaís specially formulated PE100 Air-Pro compressed air piping system, without taking down the entire line.

Variable-speed Pump Controller

Goulds Pumpsí S-Drive simplex variable-speed pump controller is designed for use with submersible well and aboveground centrifugal pumps in irrigation, agriculture, and rural water applications, as well as for building water boosters. The variable-frequency controller adjusts motor speed to match the hydraulic needs of the system to maintain pressureóobtaining up to 70 percent energy savings over fixed-speed pumps.

Enclosed Safety Shower

Bradleyís newest enclosed safety shower offers an insulated fiberglass structure, superior fire ratings, and reliable chemical and corrosion resistance. The combination eye wash and drench shower ships with a scald- and freeze-protection valve, and it delivers a uniform 23-gpm flow, providing a superior wash-down in a short amount of time.