IAQ Radio

EPISODE422 - Mark J. Mendell, Ph.D - FLASHBACK FRIDAY EP 193

This week IAQ Radio will be flashing back to January 21, 2011 for a show we did with Mark J. Mendell, PhD. of the Lawrence Berkeley Lab and the California Dept. of Health. When looking back at shows to replay this one stood out so we remixed the sound, tweaked a few things and will replay it today.
Mark Mendell, Ph.D., is currently a Staff Scientist/Epidemiologist in the Indoor Environment Group at EETD, and an Air Pollution Research Specialist at the California Department of Public Health. Dr. Mendell is on the editorial board of the journal Indoor Air and a member of the International Academy of Indoor Air Sciences. He was formerly at the Centers for Disease Control/National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, where he was head of the National Occupational Research Agenda Team on Indoor Environments. Dr. Mendell holds a BA from Cornell University; a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture from the University of Oregon; and a PhD in epidemiology from the University of California at Berkeley, School of Public Health. Dr. Mendell has worked for 20 years in the field of environmental epidemiology, focused on health effects related to indoor environments in buildings. His work includes field research to help understand relationships between specific factors and conditions in buildings and health effects in occupants, and critical reviews of the literature that summarize what we know, how well we know it, and what we do not know, about specific environment/health relationships in buildings. His research interests include health risks associated with buildings, ventilation systems, moisture, and microbial growth; effects of indoor environments in schools on health and performance of students, and effects of indoor chemical exposures in residences on asthma and allergies.
LEARN MORE about indoor environments and the health effects related to mold and moisture this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE421 - John P. Lapotaire, CIEC

This week on IAQ Radio we welcome John Lapotaire who just last month became President of the Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA). IAQA has had its ups and downs recently and we look forward to hearing from him about the strategic vision for the future. We also want to hear more about his thoughts on Florida's mold licensing program and the state of the IAQ and mold industry in general. John has an outspoken opinions on these and other issues we look forward to the interview.
John, together with his wife Lydia, have owned and operated Orlando, Florida based Indoor Air Quality Solutions, since 2001. John is a Building Envelope & Indoor Environment Consultant specializing in building product failure investigations, forensic water intrusion investigations, and building envelope failure investigations for commercial and residential structures. John and his wife Lydia also provide indoor environmental assessments and mold & odor investigations.
John has presented to many professional organizations on subjects that include Spray Polyurethane Foam Insulation, Building Envelope Failures Investigations, Indoor Environmental Assessments, Green Building and IAQ, LEED Buildings and IAQ, and Reducing VOC's in New Construction. In addition to being the new IAQA President, John has volunteered on committees for the AIHA, NAHB, USGBC, ACAC and NADCA. LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE420 - FLASHBACK FRIDAY - Janet Stout, PhD. Legionella Issues

This week we flash back to a tremendous show we did in early 2013 with Janet E. Stout, PhD. Dr. Stout is director of Special Pathogens Laboratory, and a research associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. A clinical and environmental microbiologist, Dr. Stout is internationally recognized for more than 30 years of pioneering research in Legionella.
Credited as the first to demonstrate the link between Legionnaires disease and the presence of Legionella in hospital water systems, her seminal discovery in 1982, shifted the focus from cooling towers to water distributions systems as the primary source for Legionnaires disease. This changed the direction of research and expanded the water treatment industrys approach to controlling Legionella. Since then, Dr. Stout has evaluated every major Legionella disinfection technology used today.
An advocate for prevention, Dr. Stout was instrumental in developing the first U.S. prevention strategy for hospital-acquired Legionnairesdisease in 1993. Later adopted by the Veterans Health Administration and others, the guideline continues to serve as a national model for Legionella prevention. In addition to Dr. Stouts numerous research articles published in major medical and scientific peer-reviewed publications, she co-authors the Legionella chapter in Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control , Harrisons Principles of Internal Medicine, and the Manual of Clinical Microbiology.
Active in scientific and professional associations, Dr. Stout serves on the Legionella standard committee for the Cooling Technology Institute and on the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers committees for Legionella Guideline 12 and the ASHRAE Legionella standard. LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE419 - Bill Spohn & Nate Adams - IAQ & Energy Instruments and Monitor

This week on IAQ Radio we will be discussing tools of the trade for IAQ and Energy professionals and an interesting comparison of home IAQ monitors. Our guests are Bill Spohn, PE President of TruTech Tools, LTD and Nate Adams of Energy Smart Home Performance. Bill works every day determining which tools of the trade his customers need and Nate is in the field plus has produced a recent paper on home IAQ monitors. The two of them will make for a great tag team to discuss the topic.
Bill Spohn has designed, marketed and sold a wide array of test and measurement products in the last twenty-five years. He was design-engineering manager at Bacharach, Inc. for 10 years and HVAC Product Marketing Manager at Testo, Inc. for 10 years. Since 2009, he has managed and is now President, CEO and majority owner of TruTech Tools, LTD. He regularly presents technically complex topics to a wide range of audiences on the applications of testing and measurement instrumentation in building science, weatherization, and HVACR. He has worked on BPI, RESNET, GAMA, AHRI, OMA, RSES, NATE, and ACCA Technical Committees,and holds three US patents in instrumentation design. He also consults in instrumentation design,development and application along with expert witness work on HVAC equipment, heat exchanger, carbon monoxide and related issues. Bill is majority owner of www.TruTechTools.com and runs a consulting business, William P. Spohn, LLC, which engages in HVACR Expert Witness work, technical education and e-commerce consulting. Bill's BS & MS in Mechanical Engineering are from the University Of Rochester.
Nate Adams is the founder of Energy Smart Home Performance outside Cleveland Ohio. Energy Smart started out as an insulation contractor for existing homes, but has evolved into doing Comprehensive Home Performance retrofits. Their projects are somewhere between a simple attic insulation job and a deep energy retrofit.These projects are sweeping in scope with thorough planning process and careful attention paid to what problems the client wants to solve, what the house needs, and what fits within the homeowner budget. No two projects are alike.Through substantial air tightness and insulation upgrades, and sometimes HVAC replacement, homes are made far more comfortable. Nate became concerned that they weren't always far more healthy. Over the last two years he has dug into how his work affects the Indoor Air Quality of client homes and is beginning to draw some conclusions. He has recently completed a comparison of seven new or newer consumer grade Indoor Air Quality testing devices, and has found several of them useful in his practice. They are particularly useful for before and after studies as well as continuous optimization, which is making small adjustments to deliver better comfort and healthier conditions for clients. LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE418 - FLASHBACK FRIDAY - EPISODE 228 - Jean Cox-Ganser, Ph.D

This week IAQ Radio will be flashing back to December 9, 2011 for a show we did with Jean Cox-Ganser, Ph.D. Dr. Cox-Ganser is the Research Team leader for the Field Studies Branch, Division of Respiratory Disease Studies, NIOSH. For the past 15 years she has been a principal investigator for research studies on the respiratory health effects of dampness and mold in office buildings and schools, and is author or co-author on over 20 peer-reviewed publications, book chapters and reports resulting from this research. From 2002-2005 she was Team leader of the NIOSH National Occupational Research Agenda Indoor Environment Team. In 2009-2010 she was a member of the International Scientific committee for ASHRAE's IAQ 2010 Conference - Airborne Infection Control - Ventilation, IAQ and Energy, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She was also a member of the Conference Scientific advisory group for the 6th International Scientific Conference on Bioaerosols, Fungi, Bacteria, Mycotoxins in Indoor and Outdoor Environments and Human Health, September 6-9, 2011 - Saratoga Springs, New York.

EPISODE417 - LIVE from The Violand Executive Summit!

This week IAQ Radio returns to the Violand Executive Summit to do a live show for the third year in a row. The folks at Violand have lined up a great group of young business owners that are doing big things in the restoration world. We will interview these "Young Guns" and see what is helping them be successful in a tough industry during a difficult time. Join us to LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio! Joining us will be:
Josh and Justin Tubero's company is Alliance Disaster Kleenup, Wheeling IL. We understand that they couldn't be any more different and work together exceptionally well as owners to run an extremely efficient and profitable company. Their company was recently rated as one of the top 100 companies to work for in their state.
Dean Stamper - Regency DKI, Michigan. is the son of a well-known and accomplished person in restoration. We all learn from our mistakes. One of the hardest things for a parent or boss to do, is to stand-by and watch as someone less experienced makes the same mistakes the older or more experienced person made.
Zach Reets - Is a member of a well-known family in the industry, Zach runs Champion Cleaning Services.
Katie Smith - Is a 2nd Generation owner of PHC Restoration in North Carolina. She and Josh Smith are the only husband/wife Certified Restorers in the world. She serves on the board of RIA, chairs the RIA Membership Committee, and is current President of MSPCA.
Mitch Caron - General Manager of his family's large WINMAR franchise. Mitch is a rising star in the industry and a leader in both RIA's Young Restorers Council and Canadian Council.
Shawn Folks - Shawn is a 2nd generation owner of Guaranteed Restoration in Baton Rouge. Formerly the largest STOP Franchise in the country, Shawn has taken the company independent and continues to grow the business at an impressive rate.
Jocelyn Dornfield - Is the Manager at A&J Restoration, Kent Rawhouser the owner, contributes much of his company's current success to her efforts. She is also serving on the RIA's Young Restorers Council, is the brains and brawn behind the Restoring Kindness movement, and recently launched her own social media marketing company called Three65 Marketing to help restoration companies with their marketing efforts.
Jarrett Dixon and his wife Whitney founded and have run Master Restoration in Clearwater, Florida since 2008 and have built an extremely impressive company focused on highly trained employees and a dedication to customer service.
Dayron Rodriquez - Cuban immigrant who escaped to this country with nothing (and I mean nothing) and is in the process of building an impressive cleaning and restoration company. He started with no capital and limited English. He is now killing it in the Louisville, KY market. This is an American success story. He owns Rodriquez Cleaning Services.
Matt Hensley - Manager at Total Restoration Services in Indianapolis. Total Restoration is a very fast growing and extremely well-run company that has several 30 and under sharp individuals at high levels within the organization. Matt serves on the Young Restorers group of RIA and will be a leader in this industry for a long time. Indianapolis is a competitive market for restoration services.
Alissa Nitzsche - Her and her husband Grant own one of the fastest growing ServPro franchises in the country. They were completely new to restoration when they started and figured out the game really quick.
Joe Donley - Was about to take over the family business when his father passed and the company fell apart. He and his wife had to start over completely new with a brand new company. They have spent the last several years building from the ground up and made Claria Clean into a restoration leader in the St. Louis market.
Clifford Stratton II - Owner of Regent Restoration DKI in Dallas TX. His father is in the construction business in San Antonio but Clifford has built this company on his own. He is young and aggressive and his company continues to double in size every year. He is a firm believer in Executive Development and training. Construction is in your blood.
Blake Moak and his wife Jillian of Century Construction are crushing it in Houston. They are DKI and Contractor Connections members and recently purchased a ServiceMaster franchise in San Antonio. Their entire team is under 40. These guys are taking restoration by storm.

EPISODE416 - The 5th Annual SLOAN Microbiology of the Built Environment

This week Radio Joe is live from beautiful Boulder Colorado and Colorado University at the 5th SLOAN Microbiology of the Built Environment Conference. The conference is a gathering of the leading researchers in the world that study the microbiome of the built environment. A diverse group of scientists from around the world have been meeting for the past five years to present their findings and collaborate on how the microbiome of the indoor environment can be defined, investigated, maintained and when necessary remediated. Joining us live from the conference were Carl Grimes, Ulla Harvenin Shaughnessy, PhD, Sarah Kwan, PhM, EIT and PhD Candidate at Cal Berkeley Iman Sylvain.
This event has been a fascinating glimpse into the work that scientists and researchers are doing to help us better understand the microbiome of our indoor indoor environment. The research being discussed in Boulder this week will shape the future of the indoor environmental quality industry for years to come. Join us today to learn more about the microbiome of the built environment and the future of the IAQ industry from this diverse group of long time industry veterans, association leaders and the next generation of IAQ researchers. LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio!
This event has been a fascinating glimpse into the work that scientists and researchers are doing to help us better understand the microbiome of our indoor indoor environment. The research being discussed in Boulder this week will shape the future of the indoor environmental quality industry for years to come. Join us today to learn more about the microbiome of the built environment and the future of the IAQ industry from this diverse group of long time industry veterans, association leaders and the next generation of IAQ researchers. LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE415 - Howard Wolf and Monica Aquino

This week on IAQ Radio we welcome two industry veterans to discuss their take on how restoration claims management should be be handled, how the revised IICRC S500 fits in, when and how projects go legal and more.
Howard Wolf has been involved with the cleaning and restoration industries since 1984. He has worked his way through a series of progressively more responsible positions in the industry and has responded to large losses since Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Mr. Wolf has also always been deeply involved in the industry as a volunteer, currently, he is the Chairman of the IICRC Standards Committee, an accredited ANSI writing body.
In 2001 Mr. Wolf started HW3 Group, LLC, a firm committed to serving the restoration industry. HW3 Group is a firm that supports the disaster restoration industry with management, administration, claim preparation, logistics, dispute resolution, and technical expert consulting.
Monica Aquino is the Managing Partner of HW3 Group, LLC. She has been involved in the claims preparation and claims management industry since 1999. She began as an analyst and claims coordinator, and then moved into claim management and development of programs for large clients. Monica has managed claims for some of the largest property claims in the country and has particular expertise in the hospitality, complex multi-tenant and large retail industries.
Monica has managed claims with values up to and exceeding $500M. She leads teams in preparing claims analyses for various aspects of the claim, interfaces closely with clients to understand loss damages/business needs and collaborates with insurer representatives to present claims and request partial payments until final settlement is negotiated. Her perspective on these issues is one our listeners will appreciate and learn from.

EPISODE414 - Steve Pascoe Greenville, SC School District School IEQ Issues

This week on IAQ Radio we have a man in the field interview with the facilities coordinator at the Greenville, SC School District. Steve Pascoe has a crew of _ people helping keep the lights on and the IAQ acceptable in over 200 buildings in mixed humid Greenville, SC. Radio Joe is teaching in Greenville at the Greenville Technical College, Buck Mickel Center. Over the years Steve and Joe have worked together training Steveâ??s crew and teaching others about indoor environmental quality. Steve started out in Technical School and has worked his way up the ranks to become facilities coordinator. The ups and downs of managing this many buildings, the war stories and the hard knocks have given Steve a depth of experience and knowledge our listeners will appreciate. LEARN MORE on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE413 - Brett Singer Ph.D. - IEQ Research to Practice Series

This week we are excited to welcome Dr. Brett C. Singer to IAQ Radio. Dr. Singer is the Staff Scientist and Group Leader of Indoor Environment in the Energy Analysis and Environmental Impacts Division of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). He is also a Principal Investigator in the Whole Building Systems Group in the Building Technologies and Urban Systems Division. Dr. Singer conceives and leads research projects related to air pollutant emissions and physical-chemical processes, and pollutant exposures in both outdoor and indoor environments, aiming to understand real world processes and systems that affect air pollutant exposures. The recent focus of Dr. Singer's work has been indoor environmental quality and risk reduction in high performance homes, with the goal of accelerating adoption of IAQ, comfort, durability and sustainability measures into new homes and retrofits of existing homes. Key focus areas of this work are low-energy systems for filtration, smart ventilation and mitigation approaches to indoor pollutant sources including cooking. Dr. Singer co-developed the Population Impact Assessment Modeling Framework (PIAMF). He holds a PhD in Civil & Environmental Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.