Industry News
We would like to take this opportunity to give a special thanks to this edition's sponsor -- Autodesk. Autodesk is a world leader in 2D and 3D design software for manufacturing, building, construction, engineering, and media and entertainment. The company’s flagship product, AutoCAD software, has become synonymous with CAD and is a fixture in design shops worldwide. They have industry-leading 3D solutions for industrial design and manufacturing; architecture, engineering and construction; as well as media and entertainment.
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Renovation & Retrofit for MEP Engineering Screencast
Buildings are the single largest source of energy consumption today. Over 50% of commercial buildings built prior to 1980 have not had any energy related renovation, presenting a significant opportunity for MEP engineers.
With Autodesk® BIM solutions, MEP engineers can improve building performance and enhance predictability and reliability for renovation and retrofit projects, help avoid clashes and minimize system interferences by simulating system performance before construction begins. Learn more!
View this presentation and hear about a real-world example that shows how MEP engineers leveraged the power of BIM for a renovation and retrofit project.
To view the on-demand screencast, please click here.
NFPA Conference & Expo headed for Vegas
Chicago — Presented by ROC-NFPA, LLC, the 2010 NFPA Conference & Expo begins Monday, June 7 and concludes Thursday, June 10, at Mandalay Bay. More than 5,000 fire and life safety professionals are expected to attend.
More than 300 industry-leading suppliers will be exhibiting in the 120,000-sq.-ft. expo.
The annual conference and expo is the most important fire, security, electrical and life safety event for professionals who work daily to save lives and protect property. Meeting outcomes not only affect the profession but the public, as many important safety and building codes will be voted on during the Association Technical Meeting, June 9 and 10.
This year’s conference features more than 130 education sessions, as well as pre-conference one, two and three-day seminar offerings. Concurrent conference tracks focus on building and life safety, codes & standards, detection & suppression, electrical safety, emergency preparedness/business continuity, fire and emergency services, fire protection engineering, loss control / prevention, green trends, public education and research.
The General Session beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Monday, June 7 will open with remarks from Jim Shannon, NFPA’s president and Paul M. Fitzgerald, NFPA’s chairman of the board of directors. Gerry McCambridge, creator and producer of the prime-time network television show “The Mentalist” will entertain the crowd with his talents, including interpretations of body language and non-verbal communication.
In the featured presentation on Tuesday June 8, “Putting the “Fire” Back in the U.S. Fire
Administration—Shaping the Future,” Kelvin Cochran, US Fire Administration will discuss the Administration’s national initiatives.
In addition to the educational opportunities, participating attendees can benefit from interaction with the supplier community and see demonstrations of the latest fire and safety-related products and services. For the latest information on the conference, visit www.nfpa.org/conference.
Working group forming for the revision of ASSE Standard Series 7000
Westlake, Ohio — The American Society of Sanitary Engineering is forming a working group for the revision of the current ASSE Standard Series 7000, a Professional Qualifications Standard for Plumbing Based Residential Fire Protection Systems Installers and Inspectors.
The first working group meeting for the Series 7000, the only plumbing-based residential fire protection systems installers and inspectors professional qualifications standard approved by ANSI, will be held on Thursday, April 15, 2010 at the Embassy Suites in Cleveland. To be a member of this working group, interested parties must submit an application. All of those interested should direct their inquiries and applications to Ron Murray, ASSE Series 7000 Working Group Chair/ASSE International President, or Marianne Waickman, ASSE Professional Qualifications Coordinator.
The ASSE Series 7000-2008 consists of two standards: the 7010 Standard and the 7020 Standard. The current 7010 standard applies to individuals who provide layouts, details, and calculations for plumbing-based residential fire protection systems for one and two-family dwellings and install such systems. The current 7020 Standard applies to individuals who inspect plumbing-based residential fire protection systems for one and two-family dwellings.
DOE issues new efficiency standards for water heaters, direct heating equipment
Washington — AHRI has received an advance copy of the Department of Energy's Final Rule for revising the federal minimum efficiency standards for residential water heaters, direct heating equipment, and pool heaters. It expects publication in the Federal Register shortly. It should be noted that compared to the proposed levels AHRI informed you about back in December, the new minimum standards for lower-volume gas storage units is a little lower than what was originally proposed, while the new minimum standards for higher volume electric and gas storage water heaters are appreciably higher than the original proposed level. In the case of higher-volume electric storage units, for example, the final rule sets a minimum efficiency level more than twice as high as what was originally proposed and will, de facto, require heat pump technology.
The pool heater revised minimum is lower than the level proposed in December. The final direct heating equipment requirements are lower than the proposed levels but still increase the current requirements.
The revised efficiency standards are:
Residential Water Heaters
Gas Storage Water Heater
Electric Storage Water Heaters
Oil Storage Water Heaters
Gas Instantaneous (Tankless)
Current Federal Minimum: .62
Revised Federal Minimum: .82
Direct Heating Equipment
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