The International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials has revised the regulations governing the development of the 2017 Water Efficiency and Sanitation Standard (WE Stand) to include alternates for its Technical Committee members.

Revised at the request of Technical Committee members themselves, the regulations now allow for additional members to be named as alternates. The alternate will have the same participation rights as the principle Technical Committee member in the principle member’s absence. An alternate’s vote, however, will be counted only when the principle member does not exercise his/her voting privileges.

“This change enhances our WEStand Technical Committee by ensuring that every particular type of expertise is represented in the event one of the principle members is unable to participate in a meeting or balloting,” said Dan Cole, IAPMO’s technical services manager.

WE Stand, which will use as its basis the water and sanitation provisions within IAPMO’s 2015 Green Plumbing and Mechanical Code Supplement, draws upon IAPMO’s core competency and industry expertise in plumbing systems for the purpose of providing comprehensive requirements to optimize water use practices attributed to the built environment while maintaining protection of the public health, safety and welfare.

IAPMO is employing a voluntary consensus development process accredited by the American National Standards Institute for the development of WE Stand, enabling anyone to have a voice in the development of the standard. In September 2015, IAPMO was granted Audited Designator status by ANSI in the development of the standard. Accordingly, WE Stand will be designated as an American National Standard immediately upon finalization, without the need for review by the ANSI Board of Standards Review.

IAPMO urges its members and other interested parties to get involved in the code development process to ensure effectiveness in preserving the public health, safety, and welfare through fair and balanced development of its codes and standards. Manufacturers, potential users of the standard, installers and maintainers, labor representatives, design professionals, enforcing authorities, and consumers all benefit from a cooperative effort in developing codes and standards.

For questions about submitting proposals for the WEStand, contact Dan Cole at (708) 995-3009 or dan.cole@iapmo.org; or Maria Bazan at (708) 995-3007 or maria.bazan@iapmo.org.