Thank you to all who joined us for the 2022 WPC General Meeting. Below is a recording of the presentations from the event.
AGENDA
| TIME | EVENT |
| 10:00am
(Eastern USA) |
Meeting Opening
Chairman, Tom Bigley Minutes of Previous Meeting and Business Arising Chair’s Report: Tom Bigley Financial Report: Shayne La Combre
|
| 11:00am
(Eastern USA) |
Panel discussion:
Moderator – Christoph Lohr, The IAPMO Group (USA) Panelists: The Impact of High-Performance Infrastructure: Rich Benkowski, UA Department of Education (USA) Rainwater Harvesting: S. Vishwanath, Professor (India) Australia’s Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards Scheme: David Jongeneel, Assistant Director in the Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) Section
|
| 12:30pm
(Eastern USA) |
Close of WPC General Meeting |
PRESENTERS
The Impact of High-Performance Infrastructure
Richard Benkowski
UA Department of Education Consultant
United Association International Training Fund
Bio
Rich started his United Association (UA) career in Monaca, PA in 1976. Over the years, he has served as a UA instructor in various capacities, teaching a wide range of subjects relevant to the plumbing and mechanical contracting industries. These include courses in Water Quality Management, Infection Control Risk Assessment, Medical Gas, Heating/Ventilation/Air-Conditioning/Refrigeration (HVACR) Systems and Controls, Advanced Rigging, OSHA, Plumbing Codes & Installation
Rich earned a bachelor’s degree in Labor Education from the George Meany Center for Labor Studies. He currently works for the UA Department of Education as a Training Specialist conducting research and curriculum development with primary responsibilities in Water Quality Management, Sustainable Technology, Energy Efficiency and HVACR Systems.
Rich also does research to create professional development programs for energy efficiency and water conservation initiatives that increase the awareness and skillsets of UA members who construct, maintain, and service high performance buildings. Professional memberships include American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers and IAPMO. He is also a USGBC Accredited Professional with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.
Currently a member of the following committees:
- ASHRAE SPC 514
- IAPMO Uniform Mechanical Code Technical Committee
- AHRI A2L Transition Committee
- Ferris State University HVAC Advisory Committee
- UA Water Quality Task Force
- IAPMO Legionella Task Group
Rainwater Harvesting
S. Vishwanath
Professor (India)
Bio
Vishwanath is a Civil Engineer and an Urban-Regional Planner by qualification.
He has 36 years of experience in the water sector including designing rainwater harvesting systems, groundwater recharge systems, wastewater recycling systems, composting toilets and ecological sanitation systems. He has also worked on committees which have crafted water policies and wastewater policies for the state.
He is an Adjunct Professor and teaches a course on the theme – “Water” at the Azim Premji University, Bengaluru. (http://azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/SitePages/vishwanath-s.aspx ) .
He is a Trustee with the Biome Environmental Trust (www.biometrust.org ) which works with communities in reviving lakes, agricultural systems , wells and wastewater reuse systems.
He also is part of the Technical Approval Committee for projects of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board.
Australia’s Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards Scheme
David Jongeneel
Assistant Director in the Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) Section
Bio
David is Assistant Director in the Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) Section. David has over 20 years regulatory and policy experience in Local, State and Federal government across a number of disciplines including waste management, environment assessments and fuel quality management. He is currently responsible for national compliance operations of the WELS scheme and is a member of a number of Australian Standards committees relating to plumbing and whitegoods products and labelling.