Please do not forget the February 1, 2012 meeting will be at Steven’s Steakhouse and will start at the same time. We would appreciate if you can RSVP by January 30, 2012 by 5:00P.M., so we will have a better count of the attendees. Please send your RSVP to any Board Member or to our Corresponding Secretary, Thura Zin at Thura.zin@arup. com. Se e you all at the meeting.

We would like to thank our Guest Speaker, Mr. Daniel Sanchez, for a very informative presentation on “Understanding the 2010 City of Los Angeles Fire Protection Code Changes”. I would also like to apologized for the mix-up on the topic, as the plumbing code changes was not included in the presentation. I will make sure to bring another speaker to discuss the City of Los Angeles plumbing code changes.

We would also like to thank Mr. Terry Dooley, Founder and Member of the Board of Directors of the ACE (Architectural- Construction-Engineering) Mentor Program for Los Angeles and Orange Counties, for a short presentation on what the program is all about. The organization is still looking for assistance from the MEP portions of the local industry to serve as volunteer mentors to introduce high school students to our affiliated fields. If you or your company is interested in this volunteer program, please do not hesitate to contact Mr. Dooley at 818-784-4532 or e-mail him at ctdooley@sbcglobal.net.

We also wanted to thank all of you that attended the meeting at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. I am very glad to announce that there were 84 attendees. As you are all aware of, this is just a “Test Run” for another meeting venue. We will be sending you an evaluation form containing a few questions about the new venue and we would appreciate your honest opinion. You could also send any input, by sending an e-mail to any of the board member. Thanks again for your support of ASPE-LA.

We, the Board, would like to present to you the following 2012 ASPE-LA Technical Program:

1. Mr. Matthew Blanchart of Yardley Pumps & Vacuum will be doing the technical presentation on “Medical Gas 101” on the February 01, 2012 meeting.

2. Mr. Neal Shapiro a Senior Environment5a Analyst of the City of Santa Monica Office of Sustainability & the Environment Watershed Management Section will be doing a presentation on “Watershed Management Program & Storm Water Quality”, at the March 7, 2012 meeting.

3. Mr. David Kennedy, Past President of the Fluoride Information Officer International Academy of Oral Medicine & Toxicology, will be doing a presentation on the “Impacts of Fluoride to Drinking Water”, at the April 4, 2012.

4. Another change for the May 2012 meeting - in lieu of the May 2, 2012 meeting, there will be a seminar and field trip to the Acorn-Vac Plant on May 4, 2012, a Saturday. There will be a 2-1/2 hour technical seminar on “Vacuum Plumbing Systems Design” followed by the plant tour showing the vacuum plumbing system installation at the Acorn-Vac Plant. The seminar will be on a first-come, first-serve basis, as the classroom is limited to a maximum of only 30 people. Details of the seminar and field trip including registration form is attached in the ASPE-LA Newsletter. If you are interested, please send your registration form to me.

5. Mr. Mark Speros of Kerr Engineering & Sales, Inc. will be doing a presentation on “Plumbing Design Challenges for Base Isolated Buildings” on June 6, 2012.

6. For the July meeting, it will probably be moved to July 11, 2012, as the first Wednesday falls on July 4th, which is a holiday. Final date will be announced in this newsletter. Watch out as there might be another field trip to one of the latest building addition in downtown Los Angeles.

I would also like to inform the membership of the recipient of the ASPE-LA Chapter’s Scholarship Program for the year 2012. She has complied with all the requirement of the scholarship’s criteria and the Board was very impressed with her essay about her interest in the Plumbing Design Profession as well as becoming an active member of our local chapter. She is no other than Ms. Raheleh Haddadi.

ON THE NATIONAL FRONT, the following is an EXCERPT TAKEN FROM THE PIPELINE, dated January 12, 2012 Vol. 5, No. 1, as reported by Gretchen P ienta.

2012 CPD Exam Registration Is Open
The Certified in Plumbing Design program is the only international certification program for engineers and designers of plumbing systems. The 2012 CPD Examination will be held at testing sites across the country on April 19 or April 20, and engineers interested in sitting for the exam can learn more and register online at aspe.org/CPDCertification.

Reprint Sale!
ASPE’s Illustrated Plumbing Codes Design Handbook is so popular that we had to order more. If you don’t have your own copy yet, purchase it now and receive 10% off the regular price for a limited time. (Offer good through January 31, 2012.)

Note: Though the deadline had past, you can still attend this workshop. Save $100 on the ARCSA/ASPE Rainwater Harvesting Workshop. The ARCSA/ASPE Rainwater Harvesting Workshop will be held February 14- 15 in Rosemont (Chicago), Illinois. Make sure you register by this Saturday, January 14, to take advantage of the earlybird price.

ASPE and PERC Need Your Help to Conduct Critical Drainline Research. The Plumbing Efficiency Research Coalition, of which ASPE is a member, needs funding to move forward with its research project on the effects of lowflow fixtures on drainline carry. ASPE has achieved one-third of its donation, and we still need our members and chapters to help us achieve our goal. Remember: the top chapters will be recognized at the 2012 ASPE Convention and EPE. Learn more about the project and how you can help here. ASPE thanks those members and chapters who have already donated to this important research project.

Share Your Knowledge at the 2012 ASPE Convention ASPE is currently taking submissions for technical sessions at the 2012 Convention and EPE taking place in Charlotte, North Carolina, October 27-31.

ASPE’s CEU Provider Program Adds Credibility to Professional Development Programs. ASPE's CEU Provider Program offers professional development providers the opportunity to issue ASPE continuing education units for their educational programs, which can help increase their programs’ visibility and desirability among the more than 650 Certified in Plumbing Design professionals.

Alfred Steel Scholarship Applications Are Due by January 31. The Alfred Steele Scholarship is awarded to full-time students enrolled in an engineering degree program at a college, university, or technical school and is limited to ASPE members and their immediate families.

Nominations for the ASPE College of Fellows Are Due by January 31. The Kenneth G. Wentink College of Fellows honors ASPE members who have made significant and exceptional contributions to the plumbing engineering profession, the Society, and the plumbing industry.

2012 National Engineers Week Is February 19-25 Are you participating in National Engineers Week? If you can’t find time during the scheduled week in February, ASPE can help you coordinate an event later this semester. Contact Pam Newman or visit aspe.org/EngineersWeek for more information.

All ASPE members also got an e-mail from William Hughes, current ASPE President and Jim Kendzel, Director/CEO of ASPE regarding PS&D Magazine. For those that have not received the e-mail, below is the excerpt:

Dear ASPE Member:
Today we are starting a new chapter of ASPE history. The ASPE Board of Directors has decided to join into an agreement with TMB Publishing in which the TMB publication Plumbing Engineer® will become the official magazine of ASPE. This decision to cease publication of ASPE’s Plumbing Systems & Design magazine and join with TMB Publishing is the result of a deliberate and carefully thought-out process that took over one year and included input from Chapter Presidents, Affiliate organizations, industry experts, and others. On behalf of the ASPE Board of Directors, I want to thank everyone who provided their input and helped the Board make such a critical decision.

The decision to partner with TMB was based on several factors: • The partnership will provide ASPE with an improved financial position;
• Plumbing Engineer magazine has a significant and long standing positive relationship within the plumbing engineering community and especially with those organizations that advertise their products and services; and
• Plumbing Engineer’s subscription numbers are significantly higher than Plumbing Systems & Design, providing greater exposure of ASPE.

Since its inception, Plumbing Systems & Design (PS&D) magazine has received high praise from ASPE members and subscribers for the quality of technical content presented in each issue. This agreement will not affect the quality of articles and technical information that you are accustomed to in PS&D magazine. Our agreement with TMB represents a true partnership in which ASPE, through its Technical & Research Committee, will have an active role in reviewing technical articles and submitting additional articles, ensuring a high level of quality. In addition, Gretchen Pienta, our current PS&D Managing Editor, will be the ASPE Managing Editor for Plumbing Engineer magazine, providing further assurance that you, the members, continue to receive quality content. ASPE also will have space in each issue to accommodate communications with our membership.

Your Board of Directors realizes that this decision will receive different reactions from our membership—some members will applaud the decision, while others will disagree. To those of you who disagree, we ask that you understand that the decision was not an easy one and to continue to support ASPE moving forward. We are confident that the decision made was the best one for ASPE.

The Board of Directors is looking forward to seeing this partnership grow and develop for the betterment of both organizations. Please click here to read the press release that was issued today for more information.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me, other board members, or Jim Kendzel, Executive Director/CEO of ASPE.

Sincerely, William F. Hughes Jr., CPD, LEED AP, FASPE, ASPE President

As always, do not hesitate to e-mail any board member for any particular topics that you may want to see in any of our technical programs. See you all at the next meeting.