IAQ Radio

EPISODE371 - Nate Adams Energy Smart Home Performance

This week on IAQ Radio one of the modern day pioneers of the Home Performance industry Mr. Nate Adams joins us for the hour. Nate started out in outside sales for a fiberglass insulation manufacturer. He then started a retrofit insulation contracting business in 2009, Energy Smart Insulation, earning the Department of Energy's Century Club award in 2012, one of only 97 contractors nationwide.
Nate grew frustrated with the fact that all too often he was not truly solving the problems he was called to solve and the unsustainable treadmill of small, unfulfilling jobs that is typically the life of an insulation contractor. Searching for a better way, Nate has spent the last two years developing and honing a sales process to sell the large, complicated Home Performance jobs typically required to solve homeowner problems at their root. These jobs typically involve air sealing, insulation, and new HVAC equipment and often result in large IAQ improvements. Average job size has risen from $2500 to over $15,000 with much higher client satisfaction and personal job fulfillment.
Nate blogged throughout this painful transition on the Energy Smart Blog and his work was picked up by the Journal of Light Construction where he frequently writes the Energy column, GreenTech Media, Green Building Advisor, Energy Vanguard, and more. He has spoken at industry conferences, most recently about using energy modeling to sell larger jobs. The focus on results has also lead Nate to focus on measurement, and he has found that energy savings are predictable in these projects. These energy savings are a good proxy for a successful job and a happy client. It could also lead to a larger market and unlocking large scale financing. This discovery has lead Nate to advocate for measured results in the Home Performance industry via the One Knob blog.
Nate would like to see the Home Performance industry finally fulfill its promise to make the nation's homes healthier, more comfortable, longer lasting, and less expensive to operate while providing fulfilling, high paying jobs and leaving a better world for our children. LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE370 - Richard Rue, Building Science & Measured Performance

This week on IAQ Radio we welcome Richard Rue the Founder of EnergyWise Structures, a company dedicated to the study, integration and application of cutting edge technology for reducing energy consumption. The EnergyWise Analysis predicts remarkable savings (usually over 70%) of heating and cooling costs when building ultra-energy-efficient structures compared to conventional construction. The development of this program began in 1979 as the brain child of ex-NASA engineers who designed the heating and cooling systems for the original Mercury, Gemini and Apollo space capsules. Richard became involved early on with these engineers and participated in a house that was written up in the 1981 NASA periodical called "Spin-Off". Over thirty years of direct work with these engineers is the foundation of Mr. Rue's education in ultra-energy-efficient construction. With considerable research and testing, the original program for EnergyWise became a functional reality. The program evolved to keep pace with HVAC and building systems advances. The EnergyWise computer program is proprietary and was co-authored by Richard L. Rue P.E., and William B. Poucher, PhD.
Richard is a past member of ASHRAE & ASTM. He served on various ASTM committees to establish testing standards in the insulation industry. Richard has been interviewed for recent articles published in RSI, Energy Design Update, Permanent Buildings and Foundations, Automated Builder and ConcreteHomes periodicals. He is a mechanical and thermal consultant, and an active public speaker for such groups as the various Home Builders Associations, the Portland Cement Association, Insulating Concrete Form Association, S.I.P. Panel manufacturers and various GEO-Thermal/HVAC manufacturers. Join us and guest Richard Rue to LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE369 - Flashback Friday Episode 69: McGregor Pearce plus Vicki Warren

What could possibly be interesting about mold and mildew, you ask? Itâ??s all in the content and the presentation style of the person discussing the subject. IAQ Radio is delighted to have internationally known and acclaimed expert on the subject McGregor Pearce of St. Paul, Minnesota, for a 3rd appearance on our program. Mac is an environmental health consultant specializing in indoor air quality problems. He has investigated mold in homes, commercial buildings, hospitals, clinics and skyscrapers. Mold and mildew are at the root of a number of health problems and contribute to building degradation. Mac makes mycology marvelously interesting.

EPISODE368 - Norton Kravetz Zarker -Green & Healthy Building Initiative

This week in IAQ Radio we welcome the The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) President/CEO Ruth Ann Norton and The GHHI Director of Maryland Program Services Mark Kravatz. In addition during the second half of our show we welcome Building Performance Institute (BPI) CEO Larry Zarker. The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) is dedicated to breaking the link between unhealthy housing and unhealthy children. GHHI replaces stand-alone housing intervention programs with an integrated, whole-house approach that produces sustainable green, healthy and safe homes. As a result, they are improving health, economic and social outcomes for families across the country. BPI is an important partner in this effort, this year GHII was selected by EPA to receive the prestigious Environmental Leadership Award in Asthma Management.
Ruth Ann Norton serves as President & CEO of GHHI, a national nonprofit founded in 1986. A dedicated advocate for healthy housing, she broadened the mission of the organization, formerly the Coalition to End Childhood Lead Poisoning, by designing a groundbreaking national program built on a framework of cross-sector collaboration to efficiently deliver green, healthy and safe homes in communities throughout the United States.
Mark Kravatz is the Director of Maryland Program Services for Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI). In this role, he collaborates with public and private sector partners to optimize and expand resources for GHHI and is responsible for program planning and supervision, contracts and grants management and partner relationship management. He also oversees production of bid proposals, grant applications and reports and integration of data capture throughout program implementation.
Larry Zarker is CEO of the Building Performance Institute (BPI) a partner organization to GHHI. With over 30 years of experience in the residential buildings sector, Larry has managed the national expansion of BPI's standards, credentialing and quality assurance programs. Mr. Zarker has been BPI's CEO since 2006 and under his leadership active certifications have increased from 1,000 to more than 25,000 nationwide. He has also led the expansion of BPI's network of independent testing organizations that deliver BPI exams from 40 organizations in 2008 to more than 200 organizations today.
LEARN MORE about the award winning program and the partnership between the Green and Healthy Homes Initiative and the Building Performance Institute this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE367 - RIA & IICRCA Conference with O'Haleck, Violand, Consigli

This week on IAQ Radio we will be coming to you live from the Rio in Las Vegas where for the first time ever the Restoration Industry Association (RIA) and the International Inspection, Cleaning, Restoration Council of Associations (IICRCA) co-located their conferences. Radio Joe and the Z-man will be joined by RIA President Scott Stamper and/or RIA 1st Vice President Chuck Violand and IICRCA Chairman Bryan O'Haleck. All of these fine gentlemen have been guests on IAQ Radio in the past and we look forward to bringing them back to get their views and perspective on this weeks events. We want to know what they learned and can pass on to listeners? What new announcements were made? Are there any new trends in the exhibit halls? How was attendee response? Why were there so many Aussies here this week and what we can expect in the future? We will also be joined by the restoration industry global watchdog Pete Consigli with his unique perspective on this weeks activities and events. This show will immediately follow a widely anticipated debate/discussion on changes to the IICRC S500 Professional Water Damage Restoration Standard. We will add a few words on how the debate went from the perspective of the moderators and our guests. LEARN MORE about news and events from this weeks RIA and IICRCA Conferences and get insights from industry leaders this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE366 - Shelly Miller PhD - The Microbiome of Water Damaged Buildings

This week on IAQ Radio we continue our focus on the theme "research to practice" with Shelly Miller, PhD. Dr. Miller is an Associate Professor at the University of Colorado Boulder in the Mechanical Engineering Department and faculty in the interdisciplinary undergraduate Environmental Engineering Program. She is also the Conference Chair for the Healthy Buildings 2015 America Conference that will be held in Boulder, Colorado July 19-22, 2015. Healthy Buildings is a unique forum for built environment researchers and professionals to engage with innovative projects, products and services and to meet and collaborate with colleagues working on the pressing global challenge of making buildings healthy, energy efficient, and sustainable.
At the University of Colorado Boulder Dr. Miller investigates indoor air quality, assesses exposures to air pollutants, and develops and evaluates air pollution control measures. Her current research projects include weatherization of homes and indoor air quality, understanding the role of ventilation systems in the transmission of infectious agents in buildings and intermodal transportation, engineering controls for reducing exposures to infectious diseases, studying ultraviolet germicidal coil cleaning technology, source apportionment of particulate matter and associated health effects, characterization of indoor air quality and the microbial communities in homes, and investigating urban air quality issues including industrial odor episodes. Dr. Miller has received funding for her research program from the US EPA, CDC, NIOSH, NSF, NIH, ASHRAE, HUD, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and various private foundations and industry sponsors. LEARN MORE about the mircobiome of water damaged buildings, Healthy Buildings 2015 and much more this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE365 - David G. Mason The "Saniclean" Process: A Conversation with a

This week on IAQ Radio we will be discussing Saniclean: The Ultimate Cleaning Process! David Mason is the Senior Consultant, and President of Atlantic Restoration Services, providing disaster recovery services across the United States. Atlantic offers complete building and contents de-contamination services, and repairs property damage. He is a consultant for forensic building investigations, litigation support and for property damage restoration, and is a qualified professional for arbitration, subrogation, appraisals and court proceedings. He holds the RIA CR, WLS and CMP certifications along with the ACAC CIEC certification. Mason has spoken internationally on restoration and microbial remediation topics regarding the use of engineering controls and containment for remediation projects. Atlantic Restoration has Command Centers with warehouse facilities, along with contents processing plants, in Atlanta and West Palm Beach.
Mr. Mason has grown what was a tree cutting service into a full service restoration company with offices in Atlanta and West Palm Beach. His business evolution lead to his pioneering work and the development of the Saniclean process. His work within the cleaning and restoration industry and volunteer time with industry associations such as RIA lead to engaging people that had a wide range of medically related issues and affiliations that required a detailed and meticulous cleaning process. Through Dave's interaction with allergists, Occupational Medicine MD's and Indoor Environmental Professionals he built a reputation that expanded beyond his core markets in Georgia and Florida. The Saniclean process assures a healthful, hygienic indoor environment with exceptional indoor air quality. SANICLEANING focuses on the REMOVAL of contaminants, NOT the application of chemicals. LEARN MORE more about Mr. Mason, the Saniclean process and working with the numerous people that need a healthful, hygienic indoor environment with superior indoor air quality.

EPISODE364 - Astley, OHaleck, Wheelwright, Rozsa

This week on IAQ Radio we are facilitating a roundtable discussion about some current and future events in the inspection cleaning and restoration industry. We welcome executive leadership from the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) and the International Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Council of Associations (COA) to discuss current events, the COA's first co-located conference, and industry unification. The IICRCA's first convention The Event, takes place in Las Vegas May 6-8th. The Event is co-located with the RIA Convention at the RIO Hotel and Convention Center. Two weeks back we previewed the RIA Conference and talked about industry unification with RIA Exec. Director Mark Salvitelli. This week we follow up with the leaders of IICRC and IICRCA the following executive leaders will joining us for the hour:
Maury Astley -IICRCA President & CEO -Maury is a Certified Association Executive (CAE) with a long history of association management in the telecommunications and health care industries. In August 2014 Maury was selected as the President and CEO of IICRCA.
Bryan O'Haleck -IICRCA Chairman -Bryan is a thirty year veteran of the cleaning and restoration industry who has served on numerous industry boards and committees. He is the first elected Chairman of the Council of Associations.
J. David Rozsa -IICRC Executive Director and Chief executive officer of Metacred, Inc. Metacred is an Association Management Company (AMC) that specializes exclusively in the credentialing facet of association work. Mr. Rozsa is also a Certified Association Executive (CAE) and a past member of the Board of Directors of the Institute for Credentialing Excellence (ICE, the parent organization of the NCCA).
Tony Wheelwright -IICRC Chairman & IICRCA Vice Chairman -Prior to his retirement Mr. Wheelwright ran a multi-truck cleaning and inspection service for 36 years. He and IICRC Past Chair Darrell Paulson have been the architects behind the formation of the Council of Associations and many of the other progressive changes at IICRC.
We look forward to updating listeners on the changes occurring at IICRC, the first Council of Associations "Event" and the future of the inspection, cleaning and restoration industry. LEARN MORE this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE363 - Jack A Gilbert B.Sc. Ph.D. Argonne National Laboratory

Dr Jack A Gilbert earned his Ph.D. from Unilever and Nottingham University, UK in 2002, and received his postdoctoral training at Queens University, Canada. He subsequently returned to the UK in 2005 to Plymouth Marine Laboratory at a senior scientist until his move to Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago in 2010. Dr Gilbert is Group Leader for Microbial Ecology at Argonne National Laboratory, Associate Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution and the Department of Surgery at University of Chicago, Associate Director of the Institute of Genomic and Systems Biology, and Senior Scientist at the Marine Biological Laboratory. Dr. Gilbert uses molecular analysis and sequencing tools to test fundamental hypotheses in microbial ecology. He has authored more than 160 peer reviewed publications and book chapters on metagenomics and approaches to ecosystem ecology (www.gilbertlab.com). He is currently working on generating observational and mechanistic models of microbial communities in natural, urban, built and human ecosystems. He is on the board of the Genomic Standards Consortium is a section editor for PLoS ONE and senior editor for the ISME Journal and Environmental Microbiology. Among other projects, he leads the Earth Microbiome Project Home Microbiome Project Hospital Microbiome Project and co-founded American Gut. In 2014 he was recognized on Crain's Buisness Chicago's 40 Under 40 List.
Dr. Gilbert was mentioned in a few interviews recently when we got into discussions on the microbiome of the built environment. He is a prolific researcher and speaker we are thrilled to have been able to schedule him this week. LEARN MORE about what's really happening in our indoor environments this week on IAQ Radio!

EPISODE362 - Marc Selvitelli -RIA Ex. Director - Conference Preview

The Restoration Industries annual convention is coming up in May and this year they are co-locating with the Insitute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Council of Associations (IICRCA) inaugral event. RIA has also been active with recent initiatives including the new Certified Restorer (CR) Curriculum, revised 2016 educational offerings, fire standards, Accounting and Financial Management Guidelines, Standardized Contracts, Asbestos Fact Sheet, Ebola Guidelines and more. Joining us the week to discuss all this and industry unification efforts is Marc Selvitelli, CAE, Executive Director of the RIA. Mr. Selvitelli has worked directly with RIA leaders and volunteers to help guide and execute on the organization's strategic initiatives, programs, and policies. He comes to RIA from NAIOP: The Commercial Real Estate Association, where he has spent the last eight years as Vice President of Membership and Chapter Relations. He also previously served as Executive Director of the National Association of Community Credit Unions and Senior Director of Strategic Planning for the National Society of Professional Engineers. Selvitelli also served as Director of Industry Relations and Regional Field Operations for the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). His expertise includes membership recruitment, financial management, conference and event production, and advocacy and policy development. Mr. Selivtelli holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science from The Pennsylvania State University in State College, Pa. He also holds the Certified Association Executive (CAE) credential from the American Society of Association Executives. LEARN MORE about what's planned for the annual convention, industry unification and RIA initiatives this week on IAQ Radio.