November 2019

Disclaimer Note

Chapters are not authorized to speak for the Society.

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This Month's Meeting

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President's Report

We set a record for the most participation in our Halloween Costume Contest!  Not just the chapter board members dressed up, but two additional chapter members!  It was great and I hope more of you will plan to participate next year!

I’ve written a couple times about plumbing issues that I ran into at my home.  This most current one, helped me realize that even with all of my knowledge and understanding of plumbing systems, sometimes that amounts to a hill of beans when it comes to actual installation and maintenance experience.  My washing machine standpipe was modifed by a previous owner and I figured it wasn’t properly vented.  After many lazy years of not fixing it, I repiped the standpipe and included an air admittance valve.  It looks great, but it didn’t really fix the problem.  A couple weeks later it clogs up.  I got my little 25’ snake out to try to clear the line and at about 23’ I hit the clog and couldn’t do anything more.  So I figured, that I’m smart and rented a 50’ auto-feed snake from a local home improvement superstore.  I got it all set up and started running the snake down the drain line, hit the clog and nothing.  I pulled it out and switched the snake head, that should do it!  Nope.  I know what needs to be done, the basic concept of how to do it, but I lacked the practicle experience to know it I’m going the bust through the clog or just bust the pipe.  I gave up trying to do it myself and called a plumber.

And as I think about this, how many times do I run across issues at work as a BIM modeler/coordinator for a contractor that I think, “Doesn’t that engineer understand the concept of ‘constructability’!?!  It can’t be installed like that!”  Which leads me to wonder how many times have my co-workers installing the system thought, “Doesn’t that BIM guy understand the concept of ‘constructability’!?!  It can’t be installed like that!”  I guess that my book smarts in knowing plumbing systems doesn’t mean it I’ll have street smarts to install repair or maintain those system.

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Special Announcement

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Member Spotlight

My name is Daniel George and I am from Salt Lake City UT. I am the third of five children in my family and yes, I love being the middle child. Despite what some say about middle children, I’m pretty sure that I am the favorite of all the kids. I lived in Argentina for a few years and learned a lot about myself and the world around me. That is an experience that I wouldn’t trade for anything. After living in Argentina, I studied Mechanical Engineering at Utah State University and graduated in 3 years as Summa Cum Laude while taking pre-med classes in addition to my engineering coursework. After USU I received a position at VBFA. I am continually growing as an engineer and as a professional with this remarkable company. I never realized how important plumbing was until I became a plumbing design engineer.

Some of my hobbies are rock climbing, ballroom dancing, piano, guitar, volleyball, golf, slalom skiing, spending time in Lake Powell and on boats, and really anything outdoors. I feel privileged to be a member of this ASPE Intermountain Chapter and look forward to learning a lot and giving what I can to this industry.

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VP Technical Article

Kyle seems to have been working too hard at hardly working, while at the same time hardly working at working hard, to write an article for this month.  WIth Kyle's history of diligent service to the chapter, I'm sure he has a reasonable and understandable reason for not submitting an article.  But this gives me the opportunity to tease him.

Let me tell you a "true" (nodge, nodge, wink, wink) story about Kyle.  Growing up Kyle had the dream of being a professional wrestler.  His wrestler name is Captain Silly Pants.  Friday night he'll be dressed to kill, down at Dino's Bar 'n' Grill.  The drink will flow and the blood will spill.  And if Kyle wants to fight, you better let 'em. 

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Special Announcement

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VP Legislative Article

Fall is here in full force and winter is just around the corner.  Hopefully you all have your leaves raked and your winter preparations complete.  I always have an abundance of leaves and this year is no exception.  With my recent shoulder surgery, raking leaves has proven too difficult so my kids have had to pick up my slack.  I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving and I hope everyone travels safely if you are going anywhere for the holidays.  I thought I would share some winter driving tips from AAA:

Cold Weather Driving Tips

• Keep a bundle of cold-weather gear in your car, such as extra food and water, warm clothing, a flashlight, a glass scraper, blankets, medications, and more.
• Make certain your tires are properly inflated and have plenty of tread.
• Keep at least half a tank of fuel in your vehicle at all times.
• Never warm up a vehicle in an enclosed area, such as a garage.
• Do not use cruise control when driving on any slippery surface, such as on ice and snow.

For more info, visit AAA’s winter driving page:

https://exchange.aaa.com/safety/driving-advice/winter-driving-tips/#.Xcr6HFdKiUk

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VP Membership Article

Have you ever gone mountain biking? This last summer I spent many hours riding mountain bikes mainly in the Eagle Mountain area. I believe I am getting good at it. Every time I ride, I turn on this app called Strava which tracks the time, distance, and elevation of your mountain bike ride. It is a great tool to keep track of my progress and helps me see if I am getting better. As I learned more about this new hobby of mine, I realized that Utah is a paradise for mountain biking. People from all over the country come to Utah with the sole purpose of riding mountain bikes. There is a specific trail down in Moab called The Whole Enchilada which is said to be one of the best mountain bike rides in the world. I shared with a friend of mine, who is a mountain bike addict, my interest in riding all 27 miles of The Whole Enchilada. To my surprise he did not recommend I ride this trail just yet. He helped me understand that I am not quite ready for this trail. But if I put forth the effort and prepare myself, I can successfully ride and enjoy this trail. The Whole Enchilada will have to wait a little longer, but it is definitely one of my goals to complete this trail.

What are some of your professional goals? I believe that in order to succeed or become proficient in anything in life, it requires a lot of hard work and dedication. Professional athletes spend many hours everyday improving their skills to optimize performance. The same applies to playing video games, riding mountain bikes, solving math problems, or just about anything in life. It is not different with our line of work. If we want to succeed and become the best we can be in our professions, it requires hard work and dedication. We must have a clear goal in mind and take the necessary steps to achieve such goals and pay the price. One of the hardest things in mountain biking is the climb. Riding uphill can sometimes feel like your lungs are about to explode and everything in your body is telling you to stop. This is the part when you push yourself to the limit and pay the price, and as a result become a better rider. As we continue to grow in our careers and continue to pay the price, we will become experts in our fields and benefit those around us. ASPE can be a great asset during this process as it provides us with the tools and training necessary to continue to learn and grow as professionals.

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Special Announcement

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Affiliate Liaison Article

I really enjoy the month of November.  I love recognizing blessing and showing gratitude throughout the whole month.  We start with Veterans Day and finishing the month with Thanksgiving.  

Some history and facts on Veterans Day:

• Veterans Day occurs on November 11 every year in the United States in honor of the “eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" of 1918 that signaled the end of World War I, known as Armistice Day.
• In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower officially changed the name of the holiday from Armistice Day to Veterans Day.
• In 1968, the Uniform Holidays Bill was passed by Congress, which moved the celebration of Veterans Day to the fourth Monday in October. The law went into effect in 1971, but in 1975 President Gerald Ford returned Veterans Day to November 11, due to the important historical significance of the date.

Veterans Today

The military men and women who serve and protect the U.S. come from all walks of life; they are parents, children, grandparents, friends, neighbors and coworkers, and are an important part of their communities. Here are some facts about the veteran population of the United States:

• 2 million living veterans served during at least one war as of 2018.
• 9 percent of veterans are women.
• 7 million veterans served during the Vietnam War.
• 3 million veterans have served in support of the War on Terrorism.
• Of the 16 million Americans who served during World War II, about 496,777 were still alive as of 2018.
• Connecticut was home to the highest percentage of World War II veterans as of 2018 at 7.1 percent.
• 2 million veterans served during the Korean War.
• As of 2017, the top three states with the highest percentage of Veterans were Alaska, Maine and Montana, respectively.
• Veterans Day commemorates veterans of all wars.

Source: History.com

Thank you so much for all that have sacrificed for our freedoms.  Have a great November

Scott Elkins “Do a check up from the neck up and quit your stinking Thinking”

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AYP Article

Happy November, everyone! I had a great experience this past week that opened my eyes to how big the AYP ASPE community really is. Last week I was on a conference call with all members of the ASPE AYP in the western United States. The call included AYP members from Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Texas, and Utah. It was enlightening to discuss what other chapters are doing to get people out to activities and help one another network and progress in their professional goals.

The first suggestion was to combine our ASPE AYP activities with those of the ASHRAE young professionals. Because plumbing and heating and air are often coupled together in the work place, why not do the same in our socials? I thought this was a great idea, so from time to time in my monthly articles I will be posting about ASHRAE young professional events with which we will be coupling.

Also on that same call, I learned about the ASPE mentoring program, which is a great avenue to help network and promote professional goals. The ASPE website says this about the mentoring program:

“This program, which is available to all members of the Society, has been designed to connect ASPE members who have a particular skill set (mentor) with individuals (mentee) who are searching to acquire the same skills to develop and make progress toward their personal and professional goals.”

If involvement in the ASPE mentoring program interests you see the ASPE website for more information. The more I learn about ASPE and the great community we are, the more excited I am to be a member. Looking forward to seeing you all at the ASPE Christmas activity as well as the next AYP activity!

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