Uponor

In March, we celebrate Women’s History Month to honor the heroic and historic accomplishments of women in all areas of accomplishment. In plumbing, we look to Lillian Baumbach, the first female master plumber in the United States. Women, like Lillian, paved the way for modern female plumbers and other tradeswomen. The best form of honor is respect. There is no better way to respect tradeswomen than acting like a true ally.

What is an ally? An ally is an individual, contractor, manufacturer and/or retailer who stands with and for tradeswomen.

Women constitute a mere 1.5% of the construction trades industry workforce. With numbers so low, it’s easy to feel alone and isolated in your work environment. Below, find some tips to being an ally.

An ally:

• Mentors – Providing sage advice to apprentices and young people in the skilled trades helps them feel welcomed in their work environment. This extends to facilitating networking and social events.
• Does not assume – When in doubt, ask. Also, do not assume stereotypes about women or women who work in the skilled construction trades. Having low expectations of tradeswomen is another gaffe. Do not assume tradeswomen possess less experience or cannot complete the same tasks as a tradesman.
• Isn’t shy – An ally calls people out and does not tolerate inappropriate and demeaning humor or remarks. Additionally, get involved with women’s committees. Both men and women can support women in the trades. An ally can also get involved with policy. Share information about the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, sexual harassment training, and pregnancy discrimination.
• Doesn’t mansplain – This should go without saying.
• Encourages all voices – Keep an open mind. As a leader, create environments where all voices can be heard and appreciated.

It’s not simple, but it’s worth it. Allies, like tradeswomen, come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and creeds. An ally is a powerful tool for recruitment and retention of tradeswomen. Rest assured, tradeswomen will still be here with or without allies. But, they help to improve the workplace for all.

Guest Blogger – Allie Perez founded Texas Women in Trades in 2013, an organization working to bring more women, minorities, and young people to the trades. She also serves as the VP of Marketing and Operations at George Plumbing Co. in San Antonio and on the National Taskforce for Tradeswomen as the Communications Committee Co-Chair. A graduate of New York University, Allie has contributed to trade periodicals for more than seven years. To contact her directly, email texaswomenintrades@gmail.com.

American Red Cross and Water Mission to each receive $15K to help those impacted across the state.

Apple Valley, Minn. — With a purpose of rethinking water for future generations, Uponor North America, the recognized leader in sustainable building and infrastructure solutions, is donating $30,000 to Texas relief efforts.

The American Red Cross Central and South Texas Region along with Water Mission are each receiving $15,000 from Uponor to help support their efforts in providing resources, supplies, and plumbing repairs for the millions of Texans impacted by the deep freeze in mid-February.

To date, the American Red Cross has deployed more than 280 volunteers and has supplied more than 81,000 meals, 16,400 cleaning and comfort kits, 7,700 overnight stays, and 1,300 contacts for those with physical, mental, and spiritual health needs.

In addition to food and shelter services, one of the greatest needs is plumbing repairs in homes and businesses. According to Water Mission Strategic Partnership Director Rogers Hook, P.E., the need for plumbing repairs is dire and the resources are limited.

“I spoke with a CEO of a major plumbing company in Austin, and they were already short on plumbers because of the explosive growth in the area,” says Hook. “They have more than 1,000 jobs on the calendar, which are all emergency calls to get water restored. They’re estimating it will take up to two months to meet the demand.”

To help with the immediate need, Water Mission developed a “do-it-yourself kit” for homeowners to temporarily fix leaks until professional plumbers could arrive and repair the damaged plumbing systems.

“Our hearts go out to those in Texas impacted by the extreme weather and the damage caused to homes and businesses,” says Bill Gray, president, Uponor North America. “We understand the importance of clean, healthy water and proudly stand behind the trade professionals who work hard every day to ensure our plumbing systems are delivering this life resource consistently and reliably. We are honored to financially support the American Red Cross and Water Mission as they help Texans in need and work to reestablish clean-water resources throughout the state.”

Apple Valley, Minn. — Uponor North America (Uponor), a pioneer and leading provider of PEX (crosslinked polyethylene) piping products, launched its new Complete Polymer Solution for commercial-piping applications in the U.S. The innovative platform for this important announcement is a special, 90-minute, virtual event for customers, specifiers, installers, and other buying influencers in the commercial plumbing and mechanical field.

The online unveiling included the official launch of two important initiatives: Uponor’s new PP-RCT mechanical piping system for commercial HVAC projects; and the new Uponor Construction Services, offering enhanced, professional estimation, design, and building information modeling (BIM) services to support the design and installation of plumbing and mechanical piping systems.

“Our new PP-RCT and Construction Services offerings, combined with our traditional PEX piping solutions, deliver a complete polymer solution for a wide range of commercial plumbing and mechanical projects,” says Bill Gray, president of Uponor North America. “From half-inch diameter PEX to 12-inch diameter PP-RCT, our piping solutions meet the performance, durability, and safety needs of the entire commercial structure. In addition to these industry-leading piping products, Uponor Construction Services can provide the systems design and engineering expertise to ensure a project is fully supported from kickoff to post-construction.”

Empire Pass Condos, Park City, Utah, AquaPEX and PP-RCT install 2019, Thermal Engineering, PNA

PP-RCT piping system: Uponor PP-RCT (PolyPropylene, Random copolymer with modified Crystallinity and Temperature resistance) has higher temperature and pressure ratings than PP-R pipe, as well as lower levels of expansion and contraction.

Proven reliable for commercial hydronic heating, chilled-water cooling, and distribution piping for radiant heating and cooling applications — including snow melt, turf conditioning, and permafrost prevention — PP-RCT is 80 percent lighter than steel pipe. That makes it not only easier, but also safer, to install than metallic pipe systems. It also offers higher resistance to corrosion, rust, and scale buildup and quieter operation than metallic piping materials.

In addition, contractors will be able to bid projects with more certainty and confidence, as polymer piping offers stable pricing that doesn’t fluctuate with market changes unlike alternative piping materials.

Uponor initially announced its entry into the North American PP-RCT market in September 2019 through a partnership agreement with Pestan North America. As a result, Uponor is now marketing approximately 270 pipe and fitting products in the U.S. in sizes up to 12 inches in diameter and with plans to expand up to 24 inches. All Uponor PP-RCT pipe and fittings come protected by a 10-year warranty.

“With this new piping system, we are also offering comprehensive training and expert technical support — both online and through our nationwide network of in-person sales professionals — to help contractors learn our PP-RCT system,” says Gray. “This includes making pipe connections with special heat-fusion equipment, via our partnership with McElroy Manufacturing, the leading manufacturer of fusion equipment.”

Gray went on to say that whether their customers select virtual or hands-on training, Uponor’s professional guidance helps installers master best practices for both PP-RCT and PEX, helping to keep their projects on schedule and within budget.

Construction Services: Continuing its 27-year history of offering PEX piping system design for both residential and commercial radiant heating, cooling, and plumbing, residential fire safety, and commercial hydronic piping, Uponor has expanded this offering to become Uponor Construction Services, featuring regionally based designers, as well as a team of BIM experts.

 Using the latest design and estimating tools, the Uponor team of skilled and experienced designers and project managers offers a deep menu of design and construction services at no charge, including:

• Square-foot budget estimations
• Material take-offs
• Piping material cost comparisons
• Design development
• Radiant heating and cooling loop layouts
• Pipe sizing and load recommendations

In addition, Uponor Construction Services provides fee-based, system design services (plansets in PDF, Revit^®, and fabrication models), quoted to meet the particular needs of individual projects, at prices below standard industry system-design rates.

Other fee-based services from the BIM Services team include:

• Record modeling
• Estimating
• As-built modeling
• On-site support
• Project controls
• Modular construction
• Kitting and prefabrication
• BIM content

All of these services integrate directly into the user’s software platform and workflows, providing an integrated partnership with an end goal to deliver a well-designed project that is properly coordinated and fully supported.

“Evolving our Construction Services offering was in response to customer feedback and their growing expectations related to project efficiency, accuracy, quality, and consistency to better meet schedules and budgets,” says Gray. “We saw an opportunity to become a more involved partner from the very start of a project through construction onto completion and beyond. With this project-spanning partnership, we are confident we can help improve customers’ productivity and profitability.”

Since the evolution of Uponor Construction Services and the PP-RCT partnership announcement with Pestan in 2019, Uponor has provided PP-RCT piping systems and design expertise for several commercial projects in the U.S. The largest and most notable of these is a recently completed hybrid snow-melt system, involving both 1,900 feet of Uponor PP-RCT and 36,000 feet of Wirsbo hePEX™ pipe, for a 305-foot pedestrian bridge on the Utah Valley University campus in Orem, the largest public university in the state.