Global News: September
Res-Kem announced that after extensive training at the Clack Corporation headquarters, it has added the Clack line of valves to its expansive line of equipment.
North America
Associations join WQRF campaign
The Water Quality Research Foun-dation (WQRF) would like to thank the following regional and state associations for their ongoing effortsand support for the foundation: Colorado Water Quality Association, PacificWater Quality Association, Water Quality Association of Wisconsin, Michigan Water Quality Association, Florida Water Quality Association and Minnesota Water Quality Association. Collectively, these six associations have pledged more than $140,000 (USD) to the Investing in Your Future Campaign. To date, more than $2.8 million has been raised for the campaign. Thank you to our 100+ partners.
Treatment demand to rise
According to the latest market study from Freedonia Group, Consumer Water & Air Treatment Systems, demand in the US for consumer water and air treatment systems is expected to rise 5.5 percent an-nually to $2.3 billion in 2019, as the hous-ing recovery strengthens and consumer spending activity continues to improve. Rising home sales will also support the market, since many consumers purchase or upgrade water and air treatment sys-tems when they move into a new home. POU water treatment and portable air treatment systems will continue to ac-count for the majority of value demand. Demand for whole-house systems will rise more rapidly through 2019, as new home construction rebounds from an extremely low 2009 level. Water Treatment Chemicals concludes that demand for water treatment chemicals in the US is forecast to rise 3.2 percent per year to $7.5 billion in 2019, with volume reaching 15.5 billion pounds. Gains will be supported by increasing water recycling and reuse. Greater reliance on membranes and other water treatment equipment types that work best when water has been pretreated with chemicals will further support demand. Additionally, rising water quality standards and environmental concerns will prompt the use of more expensive specialty chemicals that can be used in lower doses and are less hazardous.
Sprite ready for new California standards
Sprite CEO David Farley recently attended the California Energy Com-mission, where standards were adopted requiring that all shower heads not exceed two gpm (7.5 L/m) maximum fowrate. This will apply to fxed and hand-held shower heads, as well as horizontal body sprayers manufactured on or after July 1, 2016. The current state standard is 2.5 gpm (9.4 L/m). The new standards are expected to save more than 2.4 billion gallons (9.08 billion liters) of water in the firstyear. The company has already introduced its first WaterSense filtered showerhead.
Water scarcity addressed in videos
Genesis Water Technologies, Inc. re-cently introduced a new corporate video focused on the global water scarcity challenges the world is facing. Climatic effect may have a great impact on the world’s water supply, from droughts to flood and natural disasters. The video discusses the impact that global water scarcity challenges have upon the availability of clean water resources around the world and the sustainable, customized solutions being deployed. It is available for global viewing in English at www.genesiswatertech.com and is also available in Spanish. Other local language versions will be introduced based on feedback gathered from local partners worldwide as required.
CMAHC sponsored by NSPF
The Council for the Model Aquatic Health Code (CMAHC) announced that the National Swimming Pool Founda-tion® (NSPF®) has invested as a Found-ing Sponsor of CMAHC to assist the fledgling non-profit organization. This much-appreciated support will help keep the Model Aquatic Health Code (MAHC) sustainable, current and complete and is a welcome continuation of NSPF’s leadership that started with their early support for development of the MAHC. CMAHC is member-driven and sponsor-supported. The council is seeking organizations and companies who want to align with the CDC and share a mission that makes aquatics the best it can be, promoting healthy fun and exercise at safe aquatic facilities. For more information on sponsorship, visit the website, https://cmahcorg/index.php
Manufacturing Day in October
In October, thousands of manufacturers, colleges and trade schools across the country will celebrate Manufacturing Day by opening their doors and inviting young people to experience modern manufacturing. The annual national event, executed at the local level, is designed to dispel the prevalent misconceptions about this industry and also to address the serious skilled labor gap that now exists. It is estimated that nearly two million manufacturing jobs will go unfilled over the next decade due to manufacturers’ inability to find talent with the required skills. Numerous manufacturing jobs will be available to those with the desired talents. The fourth annual event on October 2 is designed to show a new generation of young people how today’s manufacturing is all about advanced technologies, state-of-the-art facilities and fast-paced work environments. It’s also an opportunity to show parents the kind of work that takes place in manufacturing plants. By participating, more young people are anticipated to be interested in following a manufacturing career path.
Asia
Flow control market tricky
According to a report from the McIlvaine Company, the recent Chinese stock market meltdown has many flowcontrol and treatment product and service suppliers re-evaluating their forecasts for this country. The impact on Chinese-based suppliers has to be viewed in a differentlight than the impact on the international supplier. N064 Air/Gas/Water/Fluid Treatment and Control: World Market outlined the problems. The concern is that China will follow the same path as Japan. The difference with China is that the market value is 23 times earnings, so this is somewhat encouraging. Growth is not going to be as robust in the next decade, as it was in the last. In general, the news is worse for local suppliers than for international. The demand for primary metals, power and heavy industrial products will not grow at previous rates. International suppliers may find that prices will not fall but instead rise. Some Chinese suppliers may have been involved in margin trading by using their stock as collateral for additional bank loans. The lower stock value will put severe pressure on such suppliers and lower-quality producers are likely to disappear.