Pump Engineer spoke with Jeff Hawks, President of the SSPMA, to learn more about the aims and responsibilities of the organization.
Jeff Hawks is the President of Champion Pump Company, Inc., which is based out of Ashland, Ohio and is one of the member companies of the SSPMA. Jeff has been involved with the SSPMA since 1995, when he was a Sales Manager at one of its member companies. Since then, he has assisted in the development of the organization, holding a board position for many of the years that he has been associated with it. Board positions of the SSPMA are made up of volunteers from member companies and there is a direct aim to have each member company represented. More often than not, members are owners, engineers, marketing managers, product managers and sales managers of the member companies. The organization currently has 10 regular members: Barnes Pumps; Champion Pump Company, Inc.; Eco-Flo Products; Franklin Electric; Goulds Water Technology; GP Enterprises; Liberty Pumps; Pentair Water; Superior Pump Company; and Zoeller Company. In addition, there are also 6 associate members: AK Industries; Alderon Industries; John Crane, Inc; LevelGuard; SJE-Rhombus; and Topp Industries, Inc. Currently, Jeff is President of the SSPMA and explains exactly what that role entails: “The role of President is a two-year term and, typically, the acting Vice President steps in as President when the term is up. As President, I have a variety of responsibilities, mainly presiding over the meetings, handling interviews, signing documentation and working directly with our Managing Director, Blake Jeffery.”
The approval to authorize an association of sump pump manufacturers was given on June 12th, 1956 by the four men who were to become the key movers and shakers in the early stages of SPMA (Sump Pump Manufacturers Association)’s development. Recognizing the need for a forum in which the industry could deal with the increased potential threat of regulation of its products by municipal and federal code bodies, the four men scheduled a meeting of other companies. Their purpose was to make sure that the industry had the chance to have a voice in determining the code terminology and engineering requirements that would affect them all. They also felt the need for increased
safety education, public relations and statistics for the industry. Now an important body in the pump industry, the SSPMA has a mission which focuses on representing the industry in a manner consistent with high standards of practice, by educating the industry in the proper application, use, installation and maintenance of the products and
services offered by its members. The organization also offers direct event training for contractors, homeowners and other industry professionals. “We lobby different organizations that have big events to allow us to provide seminars, which are often given by volunteers from our member companies,” elaborates Jeff. “We will be presenting 5 topics in Indianapolis at the WWETT (The Water & Wastewater Equipment, Treatment & Transport) Show, which will take place at the end of February, 2017. The topics being covered are:
• Understanding pumps and common pumping issues
• Practical sizing guidelines for sump, sewage and grinder pumps
• Basic electrical theory as it relates to onsite septic controls
• Troubleshooting pumps, panels and switches with digital multimeters
• Best installation practices for trouble-free pump controls
The SSPMA also provides free information that can be downloaded from their website, as well as posting YouTube videos to help educate the industry. Some topics covered are: grinder pump pamphlet for homeowners & industry professionals; effluent pump training video for onsite wastewater treatment; introduction to sump pumps; sump pump troubleshooting chart; guide for installation for new or replacement sump pumps; and sizing guidelines for new or replacement sewage pumps.
To read the full interview with Jeff Hawks, please contact the editor of Pump Engineer, Deirdre Morgan.