IAQ Radio

Rick Sims & Pete Consigli - Florida Hurricane Response/Recovery, HVAC Pro’s Perspective & Andy Äsk Building Science Symposium Preview

This week we welcome Rick Sims and Pete Consigli for a report on Hurricane Ian recovery, HVAC industry update and the Andy Ask Building Science Symposium aka Winter Break. It’s always great to have the Restoration Industry Global Watchdog join us and this week we also welcome his SW Florida HVAC expert and friend Rick Sims. This show will not only give us some insight into the current events in Florida but will go into some HVAC related issues that are front and center in the industry today.
Rick Sims is a Florida mechanical contractor with over forty years experience in dealing with Climate Zone One moisture levels. Rick serves on the Mechanical Technical Advisory Committee for the Florida Building Commission and teaches code related topics all over Florida. Rick has been teaching HVAC professionals since 1987. Rick has collected field data for Andrew Ask for many years and has assisted in research projects involving use of dehumidifiers with central air conditioning systems.
Pete Consigli is a Restoration Industry Association (RIA) Certified Restorer (CR) and Water Loss Specialist (WLS) and has been a member of the Restoration Industry Association since 1977. Over the years he has been an active volunteer and filled various association leadership roles. Pete is RIA’s “Resident” Historian and an archival resource to the industry. In 2008, Pete received RIA’s most prestigious honor for excellence in restoration, the Martin L. King award. In 2012 RIA made Pete the second honorary member to its association, only the third such honor in RIA’s 75 years.
The RIA recognized Pete in 2021 at their 75th Diamond Anniversary Convention in Orlando, Florida by naming its new scholarship program, “The RIA Pete Consigli Educational Scholarship Award” in his honor. RIA presents the award at its Annual Convention and Exposition. When asked, Pete advises the RIA education committee and staff on matters impacting the restoration industry and its members. In his 5th decade in the industry Pete enjoys his reoccurring role on IAQradio+ as the “Restoration Global Watchdog. He is well-known as the Building Science Summer Camp’s “Executive Chef Emeritus.” Pete and long-time friend Cliff “The Z-man” Zlotnik, CR, WLS, CIEC are Consigliere’s (advisors) to the Moisture Mob!
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Lisa White - Grid-Building Interaction, Microgrids and Passive Building

This week we welcome Lisa White, Associate Director at the Passive House Institute US. This show is a great follow up to our recent discussions about the internet of things, sensors and the electrify everything movement. Lisa did a well received presentation at Summer Camp with thoughtful insights on how changes to the grid can be coordinated with changes in buildings to take advantage of the moment.
Lisa White is the Associate Director and a technical lead for Phius (Passive House Institute US). Ms. White has been with Phius since 2012. She led the building certification review team for seven years and is an instructor for Certified Passive House Consultant (CPHC®️) training and WUFI®️ Passive energy modeling software training. She holds a degree in Environmental Sustainability with a minor in Architecture from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a Master’s in Energy Engineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Allison A. Bailes III, PhD - A House Needs to Breathe… Or Does It?

This week we welcome Dr. Allison Bailes of Energy Vanguard to talk about his new book A House Needs to Breathe….. or Does It?. We will talk about his thoughts on proper ways to make homes comfortable, healthy and energy efficient. Dr. Bailes is widely known for his excellent writing in the Energy Vanguard blog.
Allison A. Bailes III, PhD, is founder and owner of Energy Vanguard in Decatur, Georgia. Like many in the field of building science and green building, he is multi-faceted: His academic credentials in physics (BS, MS, MST, and PhD all in that field) give him a solid foundation in the science that underlies buildings. Having taught physics at the high school and college levels, he’s adept at explaining technical concepts in a way that people new to green building can understand. In addition, he has practical, hands-on experience. He built a high-performance home out of structural insulated panels, doing much of the work himself, and ran a home performance contracting business. Numerous homes in the Atlanta area had their ducts sealed and crawl spaces encapsulated by Dr. Bailes himself. Between his first and second businesses in this field, he gained more green building experience by working as the regional manager for the EarthCraft House program in the Southeast. What Dr. Bailes has become most known for in recent years, though, is writing the Energy Vanguard blog. In it he covers everything from building science fundamentals to HVAC particulars to big-picture topics like energy security and peak oil. The blog has gained a wide readership in a short time and is often cited and linked to from other websites.

Serene Al-Momen, PhD - CEO of Senseware - Sensors, IoT and IAQ; Putting the Pieces Together

This week on IAQ Radio+ we welcome Dr. Serene Al-Momen CEO of Senseware to discuss Sensors, IoT and IAQ; Putting the Pieces Together. We have recently had several shows about sensors and IAQ and we saw the Denver Public Schools Superintendent discussing his dashboard during the White House Summit on IAQ. This week we tie it all together with an IT specialist that has figured out a way to let any building take advantage of the sensor revolution.
Dr. Serene Al-Momen holds a Ph.D. degree in IT and is a certified PMP, SCM, ITIL, and SCJP. In building Senseware from the ground up, Dr. Al-Momen found a niche group of building owners, engineers, GC’s and energy consultants that were all at a disadvantage by not having wireless, instant access to real-time facility and site data. As co-founder and CEO of the high-growth technology company, Dr. Al-Momen worked to provide a modern IoT-enabled technological solution to an age-old issue in an industry that was previously ignored by the IoT sector—the commercial and industrial real estate industry.
Today, she continues to monitor the IoT landscape for opportunities and is known for pushing her team to stay one step ahead of the competition. During COVID-19, Senseware's real-time indoor air quality solution grew in popularity across industries including schools, commercial offices, medical, and entertainment venues. Dr. Al-Momen has helped over 200 spaces reopen safely after COVID-19. She has filed and received 43 patents for her work and has been named one of Forbes top 50 women-led startups who crush tech.
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Mark Ames - AIHA Director, Government Relations - White House Summit on IAQ Takeaways

This week we welcome Mark Ames, AIHA Director, Government Relations to discuss the recent White House Summit on IAQ. Mark was there and we will try to distill the 3.5 hour summit into this show. For the full video of the event go to: https://youtu.be/q1HCG1aXaBg
Since 2003, Mark has led the government relations activities of major national and global nonprofit associations, representing educators, school leaders, engineers, and workplace and community health and safety professionals. Mark currently serves as the head of government relations for AIHA, where he works with legislators, regulators, nonprofits, and leaders at some of the world’s largest companies to identify and solve critical problems facing businesses, workers, and communities throughout the nation.
Mark is the Vice-chair ASAE’s Government Relations and Advocacy Professionals Advisory Council, serves on the Board of Directors for the [Re]build America’s School Infrastructure Coalition, and is the author of The 30-Minute Leader: Your Guide to Influence, Power, and Transformation, available on Amazon.

Nate Adams - Electrification, Heat Pumps, IAQ & The Inflation Reduction Act

This week we welcome back one of our favorite regular guests Nate “The House Whisperer” Adams for a show called electrification, heat pumps, IAQ & The Inflation Reduction Act.
Nate “The House Whisperer” Adams is the author of The Home Comfort Book and has helped numerous clients make their homes healthier, more comfortable, and able to run on clean electricity. He and his partners have adapted that upgrade process into the HVAC 2.0 program which gives HVAC contractors a business model to deliver the same results for their clients while enjoying their work more and being more profitable.
His focus on residential electrification retrofits earned him the moniker “The Father of Electrify Everything” from Panama Bartolomy, CEO of the Building Decarbonization Coalition. He splits his time between living on the Cuyahoga River in Hiram Ohio and in a former West Virginia coal mining village with his wife and young daughter.

R Subramanian, PhD - An International IAQ Perspective & Low Cost Monitor Review

This week we welcome Dr. R. Subramanian for his international perspective on IAQ and to discuss how to evaluate and use low cost sensors. Dr. R Subramanian is a mechanical engineer who does research in atmospheric chemistry and environmental science. His PhD is in Mechanical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in the IAQ Radio hometown of Pittsburgh, PA. Dr. Subramanian is currently working in Qatar and joins us from there today.
Dr R Subramanian (“Subu”) is a Senior Scientist at the Environment and Sustainability Center (ESC) of the Qatar Environment & Energy Research Institute (QEERI), where he leads QEERI’s research on sensors for air quality and climate, with applications in outdoor air quality monitoring and forecasting, IAQ management, and measurement of GHG emissions. He is also a research fellow at the Kigali Collaborative Research Centre (Rwanda) and an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh, PA, USA).
His recent accomplishments include leading the development of the Real-time Affordable Multi-Pollutant (RAMP) monitor, co-leading the deployment of a 50 RAMP network in and around Pittsburgh, PA, and establishing the Africa qualité de l’air (AfriqAir) monitoring network in many cities across Sub-Saharan Africa. Currently, he leads the air quality checks program for the FIFA World Cup 2022.

Erik Malmstrom - Christian Weeks - How to Achieve Sustainable Indoor Air Quality – Part 2

This week we welcome Erik Malmstrom and Christian Weeks to discuss a new document on How to Achieve Sustainable Indoor Air Quality: Part 2 A Roadmap to Simultaneously Improving Indoor Air Quality & Meeting Building Decarbonization and Climate Resiliency Goals. This is a multi layered “Clean First” approach to IAQ which they feel is the key to the low-energy, high-IAQ, climate resilient buildings of the future. 
Erik Malmstrom is CEO of SafeTraces, a Bay Area-based provider of the only indoor air quality verification that actively measures pathogen risk, via patented aerosol tracing technology, in order to optimize safety and sustainability for enterprise real estate clients. Previously, he held senior roles at the White House, Farmers Business Network, and Cargill, is a co-founder of CrossBoundary - a leading frontier market investment advisor, and is a combat veteran and graduate of U.S. Army Ranger and Airborne Schools. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a joint M.B.A. – M.P.P. from Harvard Business and Kennedy Schools.
Christian Weeks is the CEO of enVerid Systems, a leading provider of sustainable indoor air quality (IAQ) solutions. Christian has over a decade of experience in energy efficiency and IAQ. Spurred by the lessons gleaned from the pandemic and the pressing need to reduce carbon emissions and make buildings more resilient, Christian is passionate about helping commercial buildings attain the traditionally conflicting goals of healthy indoor air and energy efficiency.
Christian advocates that buildings take a system-level approach to achieving these goals, what he terms Sustainable IAQ. He recently spearheaded a collaboration with other leading IAQ and energy efficiency organizations to detail the Clean First framework, a four-step process for achieving low energy, high-IAQ, climate resilient buildings. The seven collaborators – 75F, Awair, enVerid, GIGA, Oxygen8, Planled and SafeTraces – published in August 2022 a white paper geared for building owners and operators, architects, energy efficiency consultants, mechanical engineers and contractors called
“How to Achieve Sustainable IAQ: A Roadmap to Simultaneously Improving IAQ, and Meeting Building Decarbonization and Climate Resiliency Goals.”

Marwa Zaatari, PhD & Christian Weeks - How to Achieve Sustainable Indoor Air Quality

This week we welcome Marwa Zaatari, PhD and Christian Weeks to discuss a new document on How to Achieve Sustainable Indoor Air Quality: A Roadmap to Simultaneously Improving Indoor Air Quality & Meeting Building Decarbonization and Climate Resiliency Goals. The document was a collaboration between a group of industry companies that want to promote a layered, system-level "Clean First" approach which they feel is the key to the low-energy, high-IAQ, climate resilient buildings of the future.
 
Dr. Zaatari is an ASHRAE Distinguished Lecturer, a member of the ASHRAE Epidemic Task Force Commercial team and will serve on the USGBC board of directors starting January 2021. She is a member of several ASHRAE Committees, voting member of Standard 62.1, Chair for TRG4 Indoor Air Quality Procedure, Vice Chair of MTG.HWBE Health and Wellness in the built environment, Vice Chair of TC2.3 gaseous removal contaminants, Voting Member Standard 145.2 laboratory test method for gas-phase air cleaning systems, IAQ2020 Conference organizer, LEED Committee member, and ex-Chair of LEED IAQP Working Group.
Dr. Marwa Zaatari is Partner at D ZINE Partners. She leads the research of “Air as a Service” around indoor air quality, filtration and air cleaning systems, and IAQ measurements to design and operate buildings for optimal energy and people efficiency.
Dr. Zaatari has extensive experience in identifying and quantifying the sources, fate, and transport of indoor air pollutants, building energy and environmental management, assessing performance-based procedures of HVAC ventilation and air cleaning, and developing and applying models for energy efficiency, indoor air quality, exposure assessment, and economic impacts of indoor air pollution.
Prior to founding D ZINE Partners, Dr. Zaatari was Vice President of Building Solutions at enVerid Systems since 2015, and currently serves on the Board of Advisors. She leads the design of ventilation and filtration/sorption systems in buildings, integration into HVAC systems, and was responsible for managing customer-site installation and ongoing operations and field service.
Dr. Zaatari earned a PhD in Architectural and Environmental Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin with a focus on the built environment and a master’s degree in engineering management from The American University of Beirut, Lebanon with a focus on energy management.
 
Christian Weeks is the CEO of enVerid Systems, a leading provider of sustainable indoor air quality (IAQ) solutions. Christian has over a decade of experience in energy efficiency and IAQ. Spurred by the lessons gleaned from the pandemic and the pressing need to reduce carbon emissions and make buildings more resilient, Christian is passionate about helping commercial buildings attain the traditionally conflicting goals of healthy indoor air and energy efficiency.
Christian advocates that buildings take a system-level approach to achieving these goals, what he terms Sustainable IAQ. He recently spearheaded a collaboration with other leading IAQ and energy efficiency organizations to detail the Clean First framework, a four-step process for achieving low energy, high-IAQ, climate resilient buildings. The seven collaborators – 75F, Awair, enVerid, GIGA, Oxygen8, Planled and SafeTraces – published in August 2022 a white paper geared for building owners and operators, architects, energy efficiency consultants, mechanical engineers and contractors called
“How to Achieve Sustainable IAQ: A Roadmap to Simultaneously Improving IAQ, and Meeting Building Decarbonization and Climate Resiliency Goals.”

Ruth Ann Norton - Green and Healthy Homes Initiative - What Success Looks Like

This week we welcome Ruth Ann Norton President & CEO of the Green & Healthy Homes Initiative for a discussion on healthy homes, the new funding in the Inflation Reduction Act and what a successful organization looks like.
Ruth Ann Norton, President & CEO of the Green & Healthy Homes Initiative, joined the organization in 1993 and has led its development into one of the nation’s most effective and foremost authorities on healthy housing and its impact on the social determinants of health and racial equity. An expert on lead poisoning prevention, healthy homes and the intersection of climate, energy and health, Ruth Ann directs GHHI’s national strategy, policy framework and services to integrate climate, healthcare and healthy housing as a platform for improved health, economic, educational and social outcomes for low-income communities.
She broadened the organization’s mission by designing the GHHI comprehensive model in 2009 in partnership with HUD and CDC that is built on a framework of cross-sector collaboration. GHHI works in over 75 partner jurisdictions to implement its model that effectively integrates resources to comprehensively deliver lead hazard reduction, healthy homes, energy efficiency and housing rehabilitation interventions. She has been at the forefront in building the business case for healthcare investments in housing to address the social determinants of health and racial equity.
Ms. Norton serves as a member of: the EPA Children’s Health Protection Advisory Committee, the National Leadership Academy for the Public’s Health, the National Council of State Housing Agencies’ National Advisory Group, the Ohio Asthma Council, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Center For Population Health Information Technology Advisory Board. She is Chair of the Maryland Lead Poisoning Prevention Commission and is also a federally appointed Liaison Member to the CDC’s Lead Exposure and Prevention Advisory Committee.