Page 4 - ebook

Editorial
Welcome to the September/October 2019 Plumbing SA Issue
New staff members at MPA SA
I would like to welcome two new staff members onto the MPA SA team. Firstly, I must say a big thank you to Marilyn Sheffield who worked for the association for 10 years who resigned to take up a position with Mates in Construction.
Marilyn served as a Field Officer with dedication and passion and worked tirelessly to assist in building the Group Training Scheme. We wish her all the best with this new opportunity.
Troy Swan is our new Field Officer and has already made an outstanding start with renewed vision and enthusiasm driving good ideas and structure to the group training team.
Troy is a qualified plumber with vast experience and comes with an outstanding reputation. We are really looking forward to see the GTS flourish with a new team member.
Sharmin Paynter is starting mid - September and personally I am really looking forward to this new role.
Sharmin is coming into the organisation as an Industry Engagement Manager. This newly created role is about membership, growth and retention with an emphasis on building member value.
Also, industry engagement and marketing / communication via all the mediums available to us today.
The aim is to take the Association to new levels and ensure our sustainability is paramount for the future of our industry.
I welcome both Troy and Sharmin to the team.
Cross - Connections – this is serious!
As the leading Association in the plumbing industry in South Australia and Northern Territory, it is one of our responsibilities to educate the trade when there are significant risks to the community especially
in relation to safe drinking water. The recent press release around a cross connection between recycled water from a wastewater treatment plant and safe mains water infrastructure is of high concern and raises the question of why such an important process is not undertaken by specifically trained plumbers.
The plumbing industry has changed over the past 20 years and there is now technology and products entering the market at an increasing rate. The world is becoming savvier on the use of its prized commodity “WATER”, so when the risk of error is exasperated then there needs to be an action plan around minimising risk.
MPA SA lobbies a number of Government agencies around certain processes such as having endorsements on your license (after specific training), this isn’t a move to increase “Red tape”, this is a move to keep the community healthy and alive. We want endorsements on plumber’s licenses that cover:
- Cross Connection Testing
- Thermostatic Mixing Valves
- Solar Installations
- Backflow Prevention
- Relining of Plumbing & Drainage Pipework
These are all pertinent topics and are specialised fields that require specialised training.But what would we know? In relation to the Cross-Connection article you will find it on page 14. Master Plumbers Australia wins grant to assist members of each State and Territory.
Digital Grant
Master Plumbers Australia and New Zealand is one of 15 industry associations that will each receive an Australian Federal Government grant to provide their members with ‘trusted digital advisory services’. The Association will receive the grant over a two-year period through the Small Business Digital Champions Project, which is an initiative of the Department of Jobs and Small Business.
Continued...
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