The 2018 Uponor Convention was the site of the first official training session for an initial group of 100 professional plumbing installers who qualified to join the Uponor Pro Squad. More than 2,500 additional plumbers will participate in training in coming weeks via online and in-person sessions. The day-long training workshop, held Thursday, April 5, at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, was designed to enable the group to promote, sell, install and service the new Phyn Plus smart water assistant + shutoff. The device made its simultaneous debut in January at the International Builders’ Show in Orlando, Fla., and the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
“This training was an exciting and important milestone in the launch of Phyn Plus,” said Dena Mayne, vice president, Marketing & Customer Experience, Uponor North America. “Not only did it mark the official commercialization of the device in North America, but the session also enabled us to help this network of professionals advance the plumbing industry into the digital era by using data and insights to change the way consumers think about the water in their homes.”
The Pro Squad members who attended the two-day Convention represented national coverage of the 30 initial target markets across the U.S. and Toronto. These markets are urban areas that the company has identified as having the highest prevalence of leaks, water usage and aggressive water conditions. Targeted cities include New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas/Fort Worth, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Houston, Atlanta, Phoenix, Toronto, and Minneapolis, among others.
To date, more than 2,600 professional plumbers have joined the Pro Squad network since recruitment began in October 2017. For members who did not attend the Convention, Uponor will provide training online as well as in-person workshops hosted by company technical, sales and marketing subject-matter experts. Licensed plumbing professionals interested in joining the Uponor Pro Squad can apply via uponorprosquad.com.
One of the newest participants in the Uponor Pro Squad network is plumbing and HVAC contractor Rich Trethewey, the plumbing and heating expert on the national home-improvement show “This Old House” and its two popular spinoffs, “Ask This Old House” and “Inside This Old House.” Trethewey, who attended the training session in Las Vegas, will feature the Phyn Plus device on a This Old House episode scheduled to air in the fall.
“I am delighted to be a part of this Phyn Plus launch and really excited that this important technology will be delivered through the hands of plumbing professionals,” said Trethewey. “Water is the precious resource for life on our planet, and Phyn Plus can make a big difference to conserve it.”
The new Phyn Plus smart water assistant + shutoff is designed for the single-family residential market. The device is installed on a home’s main water line and automatically measures tiny changes in water pressure, 240 times per second. Its function is to: (1) identify and alert homeowners the moment a leak is detected via a smart phone app; (2) mitigate costly damage through an automatic shutoff; and (3) diagnose potential problems in plumbing systems before they become an issue.
Homeowners interested in obtaining a Phyn Plus device should visit www.phyn.com to find a local Pro Squad member. If there isn’t, yet, a Pro Squad member listed in their area, Uponor will work with the homeowner to find a local plumbing professional interested in joining.
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