| Greetings!
Ripples is the newsletter for the Midwest Chapter APSP delivering
information about chapter events, board meetings and other important local pool & spa industry information.
Next Midwest Chapter APSP Board of Directors Meeting
March 5, 2012 at 3:00PM
Parkway Chateau (attached to the Brat Stop)
12304 75th Street
Kenosha, WI 53142
Click here to view minutes from previous board meetings.
Click here to view our calendar of events.
Please be sure we have your up-to-date e-mail contact information so you receive important information from the Midwest Chapter APSP.
|
 Midwest Chapter APSP is now on Facebook by Jason Miller
| 
If you use Facebook, please be sure to look us up and like us! We want our members to have an opportunity to interact with the board of directors, each other and the general public! Plus, we want you to receive our updates via Facebook so you can ask questions, make comments and participate in the discussion!
You can click here to go right to our Facebook page!
|
| Annual Chapter Training Camp Returns in March 2012, Featuring Tom Shay! by Jason Miller |  In addition to being our guest speaker for the March Dinner Meeting on March 5th, Tom Shay will be teaching business management skills during our two day Spring Training event!
Tom Shay is a nationally recognized speaker and author who is regularly featured at the International Pool, Spa & Patio Expo as well as published in Aqua Magazine and Pool & Spa News as well as dozens of other publications.
March 6th will be dedicated to financial management with an opportunity to join in a hands on workshop that evening where you will have the opportunity to privately apply what you learned to your financials with Tom Shay's guidance.
March 7th will focus on other management skills including sales skills, business strategy and employee management/motivation.
Attendees will be able to attend one or both days for the same price.
For those of you who attended the OSHA Training and HAZMAT/DOT training we offered in 2010, this will be returning again in 2013 to satisfy the 3 year requirement for HAZMAT/DOT training.
|
|
CPO Course Offered in March
(Affordable $150 for Members) by Jason Miller
| 
The Midwest Chapter APSP recognizes that many of our members require a CPO® Certification in order to complete their work. In an effort to offer an affordable means to obtaing this certification, our chapter has organized this event with the help of our sponsor, Hayward Commercial to be held on Monday, March 26, 2012.
This CPO® certification program is the blended format that combines the online Pool Operator Primer™ and one day of the Pool Operator Fusion™ class of instruction.
After you register, we will send you the NSPF® Pool & Spa Operator™ Handbook and an online access code to the NSPF® Pool Operator Primer™. Once you complete the online NSPF® Pool Operator Primer™, you will print your Record of Completion certificate that is required to be elligable for participation in the classroom portion.
Next, you will participate in the one-day NSPF® Pool Operator Fusion™ class on March 26th, 2012 where you will also complete the CPO® test. Upon passing the test, you will receive a CPO® Certification.
|
|
Survey Results - New Dinner Meeting Format a Huge Success by Jason Miller
| 
Beginning on February 6, 2012, our meeting format changed! Our board of directors met from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM as normal.
Immediately following the board meeting, at 5PM, we enjoyed an open bar sponsored by SCP and Mike Rossi. At 6PM we enjoyed dinner followed promptly by guest speaker Peter Berg from the Great Lakes ADA Center who discussed ADA compliance. During a very informative discussion, attendees where able to ask difficult questions and receive honest answers. The Great Lakes ADA is an excellent resource our members can rely on for help with ADA compliance issues.
Each speaker qualifies for CE credits from APSP and will generally conclude by 8:30PM or earlier. Our next dinner meeting will be at the Parkway Chateau in Kenosha, WI on Monday, March 5th and will feature guest speaker Tom Shay, a nationally recognized speaker and author, who will discuss " Strategies to Win in a Challenging Economy". Drinks will be sponsored by Pentair Pool & Spa!
Our April meeting is scheduled for Monday April 9th and will also be at the Parkway Chateau in Kenosha, WI and will feature guest speaker Rebecca Wear Robinson, an Internationally recognized speaker, who will discuss ho " Drowning Prevention Programs are Good For Business". Drinks will be sponsored by Rich Weber of Weber/Moreton.
Meetings are held in Illinois and Wisconsin to make attendance as convenient to all members as possible. An invitation will be e-mailed to members and non-members leading up to each meeting. Member pricing is expected be very affordable, generally at or about $25 which includes the drinks, dinner and the speaker. As before, there are no meetings from May through July.
We hope you will be able to attend a meeting and that you find it enjoyable and informative. It is our goal to reach an average attendance of about 30 people. If you have any questions or suggestions, please let us know by e-mailing education@spa-pool.org. |
|
GRAC Update (Government Relations Action Committee) by Steve Sowa
| 
Some of you may not be aware that your chapter has a committee that deals with government regulations. This committee is called GRAC, Government Relations Action Committee. If you are having an issue or need clarification on code, this is the committee you want to contact grac@spa-pool.org
In Illinois we are having an issue with code interpretation on VGB main drain flow. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has chosen to enforce code that was is not written. The way the code is written currently is that the flow through the main drain must meet the capacity of the pump at the feet of head it was permitted at, at 1.5 feet per second. The IDPH has chosen to enforce that the main drain must flow twice the maximum capacity of the pump with zero feet of head at 1.5 feet per second. A few of our members have challenged the state inspectors and were told this is what Springfield wants. So those members came to us to try and solve their problem.
The committee researched the issue and found the complaint to be valid and found that IDPH would not change their position. Many of the pools that were recently shut down, were shut down because they did not meet this unwritten code.
The chapter turned this issue over to the National VGB committee. The National office has researched this and also found the complaint to be valid. The National office has been in contact with IDPH and has drafted a letter stating that there seems to be a misinterpretation of the code. Dialog will continue between the two parties, and hopefully a resolution will be here soon.
|
|
Golf Outing - Members: We Need Your Help by Larry Ryczek
| 
The current Midwest Chapter Board of Directors is constantly looking for ways to improve the programs and events we put together for our members.
With this goal in mind, we would like input from all our members so we can implement changes to improve our Midwest Chapter Golf Outing.
This event has been has been one of the Chapters most successful social/networking and fundraising activities for years but has experienced lower member turnout and support recently.
Please follow this link and participate in a short survey which will assist us in making the Golf Outing an outstanding event again.
|
A Message from our Midwest Chapter APSP President, Steve Sowa
| 
I hope everybody that came to the meeting on February 6th enjoyed the new format. Many of our members enjoyed the location and the guest speaker was well received. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Jason Miller and the Education committee for organizing this event.
Three years ago the National office came to us with a new charter agreement. The board read the charter agreement and objected to some of the wording in the dissolution section. I am happy to report that the local chapter board and the national board have come to an agreement on new wording and we will be moving forward with the signing of that agreement.
Keep reading our newsletter as we have many exciting events coming up.
Steve Sowa
APSP Midwest Chapter President
|
|
If you have suggestions for Ripples, the Midwest Chapter APSP Newsletter, would like to become a sponsor, have an article you wish to have included or simply have comments you wish to share, please contact the editor at ripples@spa-pool.org.
Sincerely,
Jason Miller
Midwest Chapter APSP
Board of Directors Member
Ripples Editor |
|
|
| Featured Article | | |
|
| Featured Article | | |
|
| Quick Links | |
Get Involved!
Our organization is what our members make it.
If you are ready to get involved as a board member, committee member or event volunteer, please let us know!
|
| Our Sponsors | |
The following sponsors have generously supported the Midwest Chapter APSP making events such as the golf outing, design awards, Christmas Party and training seminars possible.
Local chapters presently receive no proceeds from annual APSP dues which make funding such events a challenge.
So far in 2011/12, these sponsors have chipped in to support OUR LOCAL CHAPTER.
The next time you see one of their reps, please take a few seconds and thank them for their support. Let them know that you noticed their support and it is appreciated.
  
|
| Member Swap Shop |
If your company has something you would like to advertise for sale here, it's free! Just send a short ad of 50 words or less to ripples@spa-pool.org and we will list it in the next edition of Ripples.
Item For Sale
Almost new, never used, Wave Express Multi Test Strip Scanning System with cable and software for water analysis in your retail store. This one is the older version which when purchased was around $800-$900.
Sold as is to best offer.
Contact Jason Miller
at A-1 Pools. 262-334-9493 jmiller@a1poolfun.com
|
|
|
