Industry News - March 2023

Uponor announces two new vice presidents

Uponor North America has named Erica Amévo as vice president of human resources and Matt Bahr as vice president of sales. Amévo will be based in Minneapolis, and Matt will be based in Washington, D.C. Both positions will report to Andres Caballero, president, Uponor North America, and will also be members of the company’s Senior Management Committee.

2023 grout school dates announced

Avanti Grout, CUES and Logiball are partnering for their annual two-day Municipal Sewer Grout School in Tavares, Florida. An emphasis will be placed on grouting, grouting safety, operating the equipment, testing and troubleshooting equipment, making sure the chemical grout mix has the right mixture and determining how much grout is used per joint or lateral. The classes are suitable for all experience levels. The school will present technical information on lateral and mainline test and seal packer operation and maintenance, mixing and optimizing AV-100 acrylamide grout performance, review and demonstration of new NASSCO/ICGA grout specifications, live infiltration and grout sealing demos, and new grout testing and monitoring information and methods. To register, go to www.conta.cc/3w6mR2n.

PPI announces updates to its design calculator 

The Plastics Pipe Institute has announced a major update to its Building & Construction Division’s Plastic Pipe Design Calculator, a free software tool for the design of plastic pressure pipe and tubing systems using CPVC, HDPE, PEX, PE-RT, PP-R and PP-RCT. The calculator is intended to be used for applications such as plumbing, water service, fire protection, hydronic piping (liquids), radiant heating and cooling, snow and ice melting, geothermal ground loops, district heating, chilled water and turf conditioning. The latest updates in Version 3.0 of the calculator include the addition of more than 50 new pipe sizes, methanol as a fluid choice for geothermal designs, sodium chloride and calcium chloride brine solutions.

Mark Ingrao represents PHCC at executive director input meeting

Federated Insurance welcomed 14 executive directors of the nation’s contractor industry associations to an input meeting on Nov. 14 and 15. Chief Executive Officer Mark Ingrao represented the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors–National Association at this event and shared his thoughts on the current challenges and opportunities for PHCC members. Six PHCC chapter executives also participated, providing input from their geographic areas: Jeff Beiriger, PHCC of Wisconsin; Brenda Dant, PHCC of Indiana; Joyce Frank, PHCC of Ohio; Mike McGraw, PHCC of Pennsylvania; Gina Scumaci, PHCC of Connecticut; and Tracy Threlfall, PHCC of California. Other construction trade associations also were represented.

General Pipe Cleaners names Grieb assistant national sales manager

General Pipe Cleaners, a division of General Wire Spring, has named Angela Grieb assistant national sales manager. During her 17 years with General, she expanded and diversified her position as executive sales coordinator by updating and modernizing company administrative practices, maintaining key customer contacts and participating in sales and marketing efforts. A graduate of Clarion University of Pennsylvania, Grieb previously served in production, shipping, sales and marketing positions with two other manufacturers. 

“We wanted the person who would be the absolute best choice for the job, and Angela checked all the boxes,” Dave Dunbar, national sales manager, says in a release. “She knows the product, she knows the industry, she knows the sales reps, and she knows how to get things done at General.”