The International Association of Plumbing & Mechanical Officials (IAPMO) group is a US based organisation founded in 1926 to protect public health through better plumbing and water management practices. IAPMO India, established in 2007, hosted a Stakeholder Meeting titled “Let’s Talk Safety, Quality, & Sustainability (SQS)” on 11th November 2022 at the Bangalore International Centre as part of its 15th anniversary celebrations. Participants included water & plumbing industry leaders, government officials, academicians, and thought leaders from built environment sector & city administration.
Dr Nimish Shah – Managing Director, IAPMO India spoke about the IAPMO group and highlighted IAPMO India’s significant contributions over the past 15 years. IAPMO India develops plumbing and mechanical codes and standards, provides certification services and independent laboratory testing services, and conducts programmes for skill development in water treatment, plumbing, and mechanical (HVAC) sectors. Speaking about an important milestone in IAPMO India’s journey, he cited the development of the Water Efficient Products – India (WEP-I) standard and its impact in the form of water savings of over 2 billion litres annually. Contributing to protecting public health by ensuring drinking water quality and safety, IAPMO pioneered standards for domestic water purifiers to target removal of microbial contaminants including bacteria, viruses, and parasites.
Tom Palkon – Executive VP & Chief Technical Services Officer, IAPMO group spoke about its global presence and activities in areas of water treatment, hygiene, sanitaryware, plumbing, mechanical, and built environment through their world-class work in codes and standards development, testing and certification, and training and education. Dr Shah and Mr Palkon took this opportunity to highlight IAPMO India’s commitment to the country’s sustainable development journey through its vision and mission of Safety, Quality, & Sustainability. IAPMO India has several initiatives that are in sync with sustainable development goal (SDG) 6 that aims to ensure availability and sustainable management of ‘clean water and sanitation for all’.
Gurmit Singh Arora – National President, Indian Plumbing Association (IPA) spoke at length about the strong collaboration of IPA and IAPMO India, which made possible the initial pioneering work on the Uniform Plumbing Code – India (UPC-I) and further drove their involvement in India’s development journey in the last 15 years. He highlighted the country’s many challenges and the continuing role of IAPMO, IPA, and Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) in shaping a better world.
Among other key stakeholders who spoke about their long-standing partnership with IAPMO India were Suresh Redhu – CTO, Eureka Forbes Ltd.; Neeraj Gupta – Director, R&D, AO SMITH & Ex-President, Water Quality Association, India; Shobha Regunathan – Founder, The Build ED; Shannon Olsson – Global Director, ECHO Network; and Bhavyaa Sharma – Urban Company.
These presentations were followed by a panel discussion on the topic ‘Codes & Standards: Its Crucial Role in Nation’s Sustainable Development Journey’. The panel included experts Simly Das – Director, R&D, Brita; Manish Kelshikar – Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, Woloo; Mahesh Prabhu – Member, Apex Advocacy Committee, ISHRAE; Santhosh Reddy – Director, R&D, Lixil; and Dr Veena Srinivasan – Water Expert & Senior Fellow, ATREE. The panel discussion (and audience participation) brought attention to crucial areas requiring action and opportunities for potential collaborations in various areas of plumbing, mechanical, water efficiency, energy efficiency, microbiology, health, hygiene, sanitation, and sustainability. The discussion about the city’s water woes, ironically a shortage of clean domestic water on one hand and an excess of untreated wastewater on the other, brought into focus an urgent need for mechanisms to provide clean safe drinking water and safe disposal and reuse of treated wastewater.
IAPMO India — with its scientific legacy and dedicated staff with unmatched capabilities — is all set to provide the necessary knowledge and solutions in this journey towards a healthy, safe, and sustainable future. For more details, visit https://www.iapmoindia.org
