Making a Difference with Your Career

There’s something special about believing in what you do every day. 

In a previous life, I was a union auto worker.  I spent seven years as a cog in the production lines of a “Big Three” automotive manufacturing plant.  It was a good enough job.  We were well compensated, and the job was not overly difficult.  At the end of the day, I clocked out and didn’t think about the job until the start of my next shift.  I thought I’d spend 30 to 40 years of my life in that routine.  Everything was fine.  Unfortunately, my bubble of contentment finally burst when vehicle sales slowed, and the overtime dwindled.  I realized that I was there for the pay check and not much else.  Suddenly, 30 to 40 years of the same old routine didn’t seem so appealing. 

Five years ago, I made the decision to leave the relatively safe haven of the UAW and look for something new.  I had no idea what it was, but I believed in the existence of a better alternative.  Almost immediately, I was able to begin my employment with APTech Group. (Commercial break – APTech is leading manufacturer of solid form water treatment chemicals used to treat the water in cooling towers and boilers. Check us out at www.endurosolv.com.)

Initially, I was a part-time employee while I took classes.  For the first year, it wasn’t much different than my previous jobs.  Then I started to pay attention to what was happening here.  The more I learned, the more I wanted to be a part of this organization.  Oddly, the job wasn’t that much different than the one I had left.  It was still manufacturing.  However, the message was different.  

Producing components of a vehicle that I could see on the street was good and I still remain loyal to that brand.  Manufacturing a quality product like EnduroSolv® solid water treatment chemicals that is more environmentally responsible than the dangerous liquid alternatives is even better.  It has also made for a more interesting and fulfilling career path.

When it comes to your water treatment solutions, don’t settle for just good enough; give us a chance to be better. Like I was able to do with my career.

Posted on behalf of Andy Kinnett

Buildings Drink Deeply

According to the US Green Building Council (USGBC), commercial buildings use 13.6% of our nation’s potable water, about 15 trillion gallons per year.  Saving water has become a priority and will graduate to a necessity in the next decade.

Boilers and cooling towers are big building water users and good targets for conservation strategies, starting with professional water analysis and treatment.  Heating and cooling water reduction is a double bonus, because not only is water saved, but the energy to heat, cool and pump it, too.  In fact, the USGBC’s LEED 2009 for Existing Buildings provides a credit for implementing chemical water treatment for cooling towers.

More ambitious owners and facility management professionals are taking it a step further, utilizing non-potable water sources, like condensate and roof runoff rainwater, as makeup water.  Properly treated, both are excellent substitutes for municipal or well water.  Added infrastructure costs are a factor, but the investment can have a reasonable payback, especially when the rising cost of water and sewage is projected out over five plus years.

Check your local building codes for compliance, but more and more communities – and not just in southwest states – are encouraging rainwater harvesting and other non-potable water strategies.  Your APTech Group distributor’s water experts and our factory resources are at your service, too.  Start evaluating conservation strategies today before water issues escalate.

Posted on behalf Lew Bonadies, LEED AP, Sustainability Director, APTech Group