VOICE JULY 2019
VIEGA PRODUCTS TAKE THE STAGE IN FARMHOUSE
MILES OF PIPE FITTED WITH MEGAPRESSG PRESS TECHNOLOGY USED IN MICROBREWERY CLIMATE MAT KEEPS WAREHOUSE COMFORTABLE
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CONTENTS WHAT’S HAPPENING AT VIEGA 03 A letter from the Vice President of Human Resources
30 Viega Toolbox app 31 Tech Talk RESIDENTIAL 06 Remodeled farmhouse uses Viega
13 Condos fitted with MegaPressG
14 Nonprofit uses PureFlow for apartments
VOICE COMMERCIAL 04 Stainless tough enough for car wash
10 Viega systems perfect for microbrewery
20 Old gas lines replaced at shopping mall
28 Health care facility installs snowmelt
INDUSTRIAL 18 Large workshop heats with Climate Mat
24 MegaPressG holds strong in acidic conditions
a publication of Viega LLC July 2019 Marketing Director Mark Brodie Creative Marketing Manager Molly Morrow Senior Content Marketing Editor Kristen White Graphic Designer Marcus Jessen Marketing Coordinator Lauren Reutter Contributing authors Jacob Demars, Dave Holden, Aaron White, Kristen White Contributing photographers Mark Waldron
ON THE COVER
Gina and Rodman Schley, stars of the PBS TV show Urban Conversion, recently renovated a Colorado farmhouse. The home features Viega PureFlow, radiant and flushing technology products. Renovations are featured on the third season of the show.
Future articles and tips Please send in your interesting stories and tips relating to Viega products for possible publication in future issues of Viega Voice to press@viega.us.
WHAT’S HAPPENING AT VIEGA
One of the biggest aspects of my job is to help us to continue to grow as a company without losing sight of what made us great in the first place – developing this great culture. A letter from the new Vice President of Human Resources It is truly amazing how quickly time flies here at Viega LLC. I have been here for just a couple of months, and it feels like it has already been a year – in a really good way! When I was asked to write the letter for the Viega Voice, I wasn’t quite sure what I was going to be able to contribute after only weeks on the job. I immediately went back to prior editions to see what others had written. Three very clear themes were common throughout. The first was humility. The second was a strong sense of pride in being a part of such a wonderful company that genuinely lives the values it espouses. The third was a fundamental focus on providing quality products, training and service to all of our customers. After noticing these common themes, I realized that I actually did have something to contribute, as these are the very reasons that I chose to join Viega in the first place. I am genuinely humbled by the responsibility that all of our colleagues have bestowed upon me as their HR leader, and I want you to know that I take this responsibility very seriously. Even though I am the newcomer, I can already see why people love to work for Viega and why customers continue to do business with us. The Viegener family, our executive leaders, our managers and
all of our colleagues have worked exceptionally hard to build a very strong corporate culture. This culture is without a doubt a competitive advantage in all that we do, and we must not lose sight of this as we continue on our path of constant growth. This dedication to building a winning culture was evident in a statement I read on our website prior to my joining the company. When I read that Viega measures success generation by generation vs. quarter by quarter, I was skeptical. However, I can see now that the conviction of everyone that I have spoken with and the obvious ongoing investment in the company is testament to the validity of that statement. That type of dedication in taking the time to build a great culture is both immensely profound and unique. It’s done with the singular goal of having the best-trained employees who subsequently make best-in-class products, enabling all of our customers to excel at what they do. One of the biggest aspects of my job is to help us to continue to grow as a company without losing sight of what made us great in the first place – developing this great culture. Easier said than done, but it’s a challenge that I am up for and one that I truly embrace. ■
TERRY SAMONA Vice President of Human Resources
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COMMERCIAL
PROPRESS STAINLESS TOUGH ENOUGH FOR EXTREME WEATHER CONDITIONS Not only are Viega fittings going into several locations of a car wash chain in Utah, but they’re replacing a competitor’s fittings in other locations that were previously piped. Cody Kimber, owner of Colf’s Plumbing, said the owners of Tagg-N-Go car wash were thrilled with how Viega ProPress Stainless fittings performed and looked in more recently completed locations. So much so that they asked Kimber to change out the first two locations that didn’t contain Viega.
Unfortunately, the second location of the car wash was done directly after the first, so they hadn’t yet seen the issues with the competitor’s fittings and sun exposure. As the fittings began to deteriorate, Kimber said they knew something different was needed at the third location.
“We felt very confident that Viega ProPress Stainless would be able to handle the weather conditions, and it worked great – flawlessly, without a problem,” Kimber said. “When the owners saw the finished product, they were sold just on the way it looked. They ended up liking it so much they wanted the first two car washes we plumbed to have the ProPress Stainless too.” At the Tagg-N-Go locations, ProPress Stainless is being used for the air lines. As typical with many car washes, the franchise includes a vacuum bay. However, less typical, the vacuum bay also has a compressed air system. “You pay for your wash and the racks pull you through the car wash where it does its thing,” Kimber explained. “Then you go into another bay where you have vacuum and air lines. You have the capability of vacuuming your car out, but there’s also compressed air to blow out, for the places the vacuum can’t reach or doesn’t work for.” And that’s where ProPress Stainless comes in. The first Tagg-N-Go locations are in southern Utah, where the temperature is regularly over 100 degrees in the summer and the piping is exposed to direct sunlight. It was thought that Aquatherm, the product originally used, would be enough to withstand the intense sun, but Kimber said they quickly discovered it didn’t do so well in the heat.
VIEGA.US/PRO 4 | Viega Voice | July 2019
There were new challenges with the third location, as it was located in a colder climate in Utah and lines would also be subjected to snow, ice and below-freezing temperatures. “I thought about stainless tubing,” Kimber said. “I’d seen other air lines run in stainless, and I knew that Viega had a stainless product, but I didn’t know then what the capabilities were with it. I called our rep (Marty Ellis), and he said ProPress Stainless would be perfect for the application. “Then I proposed it to the owners and said that we could save labor and time on installation, and that they’d save overall on the costs with Viega, and they were on board.” Piping at the car wash fared well through the winter, and upon seeing how flawlessly the Viega fittings worked, the Tagg-N-Go owners then asked Kimber to replace the fittings at the first two locations, confident that Viega could withstand the varied weather conditions.
WE FELT VERY CONFIDENT THAT VIEGA PROPRESS STAINLESS WOULD BE ABLE TO HANDLE THE WEATHER CONDITIONS, AND IT WORKED GREAT – FLAWLESSLY, WITHOUT A PROBLEM. – Cody Kimber, Owner, Colf’s Plumbing
At each car wash location there is about 80 feet of ¾" stainless steel 304 pipe. The lines include 15 drops for air stations, and each station splits, so it can service two vehicles each. Colf’s Plumbing used a variety of ¾" ProPress Stainless 304 fittings, including tees, 90-degree elbows and couplings. Inside the car wash there is some ProPress Copper used for water lines as well. Kimber said, “Anything that we can use ProPress on, we do. The labor savings outweighs any difference in cost – I can save so much.” Although Kimber hadn’t used ProPress Stainless before the Tagg-N-Go jobs, he had plenty of previous experience with Viega. He’s been using PureFlow products for a number of years, and ProPress for the last several years. His company does a lot of residential home builds, and he said they are all done with Viega PureFlow products. It’s what gave him confidence in choosing ProPress Stainless for the car wash projects. “Viega is more streamlined. It’s a great product,” Kimber said. “It’s straightforward and easy to put in, and it looks great.” ■
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RESIDENTIAL
FARMHOUSE GETS GREEN UPDATE Sustainability doesn’t have to mean sacrifice.
That’s a key point that Gina and Rodman Schley want others to take away from their home. Their remodeled old farmhouse in the Denver, Colorado, suburbs is beautiful, functional and sustainable. Viega products play a part in the sustainability. The home incorporates radiant heating and cooling, Viega Flushing Technology products, as well as PureFlow products, including the ManaBloc and PEX tubing. The Schleys star in the PBS TV show Urban Conversion. During its first two seasons, the show focused on the family’s foray into sustainability with things like growing gardens, beekeeping and learning about green energy. The challenge was to see how sustainability and green living concepts could be implemented into their lives. Eventually, the family, which includes two daughters, decided to move to a farm to embrace these concepts, while staying close to the city where Rodman runs a company and the family had an established life with friends, school and community. They ultimately purchased an old farmhouse in Arvada, Colorado, on three acres, and began a large-scale remodel. “So many people think that being sustainable means that you have to sacrifice. We don’t feel like we did at all,” Rodman said. “We live in a beautiful home with many cool, modern technologies, and when it’s all done our house will be LEED Platinum certified.”
“We want to show people sustainable options in action on a renovation project,” Gina added. “Often times, people think these technologies are only for new construction.” Moving to the farm also meant that Gina could pursue her dream of owning a cut flower farm. While she plans to grow flowers like lavender and dahlias, which do well in arid conditions, the couple knows that sustainability in their home ties into the farm. Being so energy efficient inside affords the ability to grow the fields of flowers while still maintaining a sustainable farm. As the Schleys began planning for their remodel, they partnered with multiple entities. The Arvada Economic Development Association is an underwriter, and other companies, including Viega, provided products. Radiant heating and cooling for the home was very attractive for the family, and Viega’s varied options proved to be just what they needed. Throughout the 4,000-square-foot home, there are three different types of radiant installation. In the upper level of the house, radiant was installed with Climate Trak under the subfloor to preserve existing hardwood flooring, while the main floor uses Climate Panel. The old garage that was converted into living space uses embedded tubing in the concrete slab. Greg DeSantis, Director of Automatic Company, LLC, performed the radiant installation at the Schley home and said it was the first time he’d combined all three types of installation methods in one project.
– Continued on page 8
6 | Viega Voice | July 2019
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RESIDENTIAL
“We use Viega for all our radiant projects,” DeSantis said. “The great thing about any type of radiant is its flexibility, and this was a great example of that. We could use what was best, depending on the location and existing structures in the home.” For the homeowners themselves, radiant was appealing because of its efficiency and health aspects. “Our oldest daughter has bad allergies, so we wanted to avoid forced air systems as they often contribute to more dust in the air,” Gina said. “Plus, the consistency of radiant heating is so much more attractive because of its energy efficiency, comfort and quietness. Furnaces aren’t kicking on and off in the middle of the night. That’s inefficient and somewhat noisy. With radiant, you heat your body versus blowing warm air at it. We also have peaked ceilings, so we’re not paying to heat those since radiant heat doesn’t rise [like forced air]. And radiant heat allows us to turn off specific rooms, like our guest bedroom, when we’re not using it.”
8 | Viega Voice | July 2019
The radiant system in the house has multiple zones on each level. Everything is tied together in a mechanical room that the Schleys said is fun to show visitors because of all of the intricacies. The setup also includes a Viega hydronic mixing block, which consists of a pump, a four-way valve and a programmable heating control. Radiant zones throughout the house make it easy to control each section according to use and location. The Schley family also put Viega Flushing Technology Systems to work in their home, installing in-wall carriers and flush plates for wallhung toilets. “I love that it opens up the space. We have some small bathrooms, but they don’t feel small,” Gina said. “And with the bowl up off the floor, it’s so much easier to clean. The flush plates look beautiful, and we know we’re conserving water even though it doesn’t feel like less water.” Finally, PureFlow fittings and PEX tubing provide the water system in the home. Using a Viega ManaBloc means that individual lines can be shut off, which Rodman said is attractive. “If I need to turn off the kitchen sink, it doesn’t impact the flower farm,” he said. “It’s not one big water main that turns everything off. I also like that with the flexibility of PEX, there are fewer joints than there would be with soldered copper pipe, so there’s less chance for failure somewhere in the system.” Learn more about the Schley’s project and show at UrbanConversion.com. ■
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COMMERCIAL
VIEGA PRESSES NEW MICROBREWERY INTO SERVICE It’s not just a brewery. Source Brewing is a destination, a place to enjoy a craft brew in a scenic location. And while you’re there, look overhead – you’ll see some Viega products adding to the décor. Source Brewing is a new destination-style microbrewery, and owner Philip Petracca uses locally sourced ingredients, the reason for the Source name. Located in Colts Neck, New Jersey, Source Brewing is in a 125-year-old converted barn. In trying to maintain some of the character of the barn, there are exposed beams.
10 | Viega Voice | July 2019
Design configurations made Viega a good fit for the project. Matt Fleming, Vice President of All Star Plumbing, knew he’d be running copper and carbon steel lines in the building. He also knew that some lines would remain exposed, so he suggested Viega, because of its clean look and for several other beneficial reasons. “The owners liked the look of it, with the exposed lines and such,” Fleming said. “When this job came up, I thought, ‘Let’s press everything in here and see how it goes.’ “We pressed steam and gas piping. Otherwise we would have been cutting and threading, bringing in oily pipe. In an effort to save time and provide a leak-free and clean product, we chose Viega. The fact that we can press on low-pressure steam is really helpful for us.” The flameless connection of Viega press technology was another benefit, since the crew was working in an old wooden structure. There was nothing to worry about, with no flame needed.
MY DAD WAS OLD SCHOOL, BUT ONCE WE STARTED GETTING THESE PROJECTS I TOLD HIM [VIEGA] WAS THE WAY TO GO, AND HE IMMEDIATELY SAW THE BENEFIT. – Matt Fleming, Vice President, All Star Plumbing
The brewery contains 12 tanks with glycol for chilling, and 2" ProPress fittings were used on those copper lines. The 2" carbon steel line feeding steam to three tanks was pressed with MegaPress fittings, and there are ¾" branches from the tanks also done with MegaPress. For the gas, a 1½" line equipped with MegaPressG fittings runs to the steam boiler. There's about 100 feet of 1" carbon steel line with MegaPressG fittings going to the mechanical room. Mike Glaser, President of Aqua Solutions, installed the water filtration system for the brewery. Nearly all of his Annihilator Ultra Systems are installed with ProPress, and have been for the past decade. He said he uses Viega, because he knows he can’t beat the product.
– Continued on page 12
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“Viega is always consistent,” he said simply. “The fittings don’t break, they are reliable, and we don’t have issues with ProPress. It’s a quality product and looks phenomenal with my finished installations.” The filtration system uses 31 ProPress 1¼" fittings, including 11 to create the custom bypass valve for Source. Water flows from a well drilled about 80 feet from the brewery. The water has iron and hydrogen sulfide, along with other impurities that the filtration system removes so the water is ready for use in the beer production. While Viega has been the go-to for Glaser and his company for years, everyone at All Star Plumbing is seeing more and more how beneficial Viega can be to projects. All Star is run by Fleming and his dad, Michael, the Founder and President. They have discovered the advantages, and now they’ve added breweries to the list. “We were doing work in surgery centers, and those have a lot of sterile areas. It’s really frowned upon to break out a torch and solder and make smoke,” Fleming said. “The Viega system is flameless and with the cleanliness and short downtime, it was a good option. “My dad was old school, but once we started getting these projects I told him [Viega] was the way to go, and he immediately saw the benefit. It was also great for hotel projects – if you have to replace something on the first floor and you have five floors above, you have to drain the whole system and it’s a nightmare shutting down a whole hotel for a day. With pressing, just cut the line, pop on a new fitting, press, and you’re back in business.” All Star Plumbing had previously been hired to plumb some other breweries around New Jersey, and Fleming said a lot of plumbers in the area aren’t too familiar with the specific needs of brewery plumbing, so the All Star name is now getting passed around as a company that’s well-versed in it. “This is the first brewery that we’ve done everything with pressing,” Fleming said. “We’re realizing the time savings and efficiency, plus the lack of leaks. We’re not a big company, but we have five other brewery projects now on the forefront!” ■
12 | Viega Voice | July 2019
RESIDENTIAL
IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
MEGAPRESSG AN EASY CHOICE FOR CONDOS In a brand-new condo development in Plymouth, Massachusetts, 155 condos will have gas serviced with the help of MegaPressG fittings. New England Plumbing Solutions was on the job for the development, all one- and two-bedroom condos. Each has a 1½" gas line running to it, and every bit of the project that is 2" pipe or smaller was done with MegaPressG. “It’s such a great product,” said Foreman Jim McCarthy, alluding to Viega’s MegaPressG XL line, coming in 2020. “We’re awaiting the 4" approval!” He said one of the biggest pluses for using Viega fittings is the ability to change or repair later, plus the time saved. “With threading, you have to unwind the thread if you need to make a change. Here, if something comes up, we can cut into it and use MegaPressG to put it right back on. We don’t have all that backtracked work, which saves us a lot of time,” McCarthy said. “Also, it’s so versatile. You don’t have to just start at one end and work toward the other. You can have guys on both ends, different floors, wherever, working on different parts.” McCarthy’s crew started work on the condos in August, and the build is scheduled to be complete in late 2020. “The time it takes with Viega, I can basically do it twice as fast as compared to threading,” he said. “There are no leaks if you put it in properly, so it’s a great product. Way better than anything else.” ■
PLYMOUTH, MASSACHUSETTS
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RESIDENTIAL
ABILITY TO PREFAB WITH PUREFLOW MAKES A DIFFERENCE While the company might have stumbled upon Viega to start with, it’s no accident that Nevada HAND uses Viega PureFlow when plumbing thousands of apartments across the Las Vegas area. Nevada HAND is a nonprofit dedicated to providing affordable housing solutions for Southern Nevada’s rapidly growing population. The company has been using Viega products for several years, switching over after issues with a competitor’s PEX-a type connection. In the beginning, Robert Feibleman, Executive Vice President, said he was simply looking for a product that wouldn’t have issues, and Viega was recommended through a friend. Later, Feibleman decided to dive deeper and get more of an education on the Viega product. “I learned about how it goes together – the background of the design and the simplification of everything,” he said. “What I came away with, after seeing it all, is that Viega seemed like it was really quite awesome. I got to put a tool in my hand and do a training session, and it was a nobrainer. It was impressive. There’s a lot of engineering that’s been done on the products.”
14 | Viega Voice | July 2019
As Executive Vice President, Feibleman oversees Nevada HAND’s construction activities, including the entitlement, design and construction. There are primarily two types of buildings Nevada HAND constructs – garden-style walkups for families and double-loaded corridor buildings with elevators for seniors. In 21 years, the company has constructed about 5,000 apartments, and as a nonprofit they remain the owner of the properties, so long-term quality and maintenance is a big concern. “We homerun every line that we can from a manifold,” Feibleman said. “At the end of the day it just makes good sense and is a best practice for us. We are hitched to [Viega’s] wagon, and this product will serve us well for the life of the buildings.” Nevada HAND has partnered with 20/20 Plumbing and Heating, Inc., for the installation work on their apartment buildings. 20/20 has a history with Viega, too, so the partnership is a strong one. And during the past several years, 20/20’s use of Viega products has increased steadily. – Continued on page 16
I GOT TO PUT A TOOL IN MY HAND AND DO A TRAINING SESSION AND IT WAS A NO-BRAINER. IT WAS IMPRESSIVE. THERE’S A LOT OF ENGINEERING THAT’S BEEN DONE ON THE PRODUCTS. – Robert Feibleman, Executive Vice President, Nevada HAND
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RESIDENTIAL
VIEGA.US/RETHINKPEX
“I’d say eight to 10 years ago, we were probably 80 percent competitor and 20 percent Viega. Today, that’s changed and I’d say in 2019 we’ll be 75 or 80 percent Viega,” said Joel Valentine, sales and estimator for 20/20. “Viega has done a great job servicing us, calling on us, following up, and that is huge. We’ve built a great relationship with Viega.” The other big reason so much of 20/20’s business is now Viega is one of the reasons it works so well for Nevada HAND’s builds – the ability to prefabricate. “Prefabbing is huge,” said Ruben Portillo, Field Superintendent for 20/20. “We pre-fab all the water systems for the units. We use manifolds and prefab the homeruns; that makes us quite efficient in the field. The process is simple and the material waste is controlled. We can probably install in half the time it would take otherwise, thanks to prefabbing. We don’t have to unbundle rolls and search for fittings in a box and all. We send it out to the units and the guys get it installed.” The buildings for Nevada HAND are largely the same, and that’s not by accident. Valentine said that doing things the same each time makes sense for Nevada HAND as the owner.
16 | Viega Voice | July 2019
“The location of the water shutoff, being in the corridor ceilings, and the main supply going into the unit – that’s always going to be in the same location,” he said. “It doesn’t matter the unit. That’s not by default – it’s by design. We can pinpoint where everything is.” In the apartments for Nevada HAND, 4" ProPress fittings are used to bring the water main into the building’s boiler room, and then copper lines distribute the water to each of the floors. Within the apartment units themselves, PureFlow fittings are used for the PEX lines. The most recent build the companies are working on is Flamingo Pines, which includes 66 one- and two-bedroom apartments, plus a common area. At completion, this project will have three buildings and 175 affordable senior apartments. Because Nevada HAND is dedicated to offering affordable living options, Feibleman said it’s important for him to find the best products that make the most sense, both during the building and for long term. “If we can find something that makes a system a little better for the long term, that’s good stuff,” he said. “It’s why we locate the manifolds in the corridor. When we walk into someone else’s project and see what will be concealed fittings all over the place, we see an exponential chance of leak points that can take an apartment out of service, accompanied by expensive repair costs. We are thoughtful to minimize that possibility.” ■
VIEGA HAS DONE A GREAT JOB CALLING ON US AND FOLLOWING UP, AND THAT IS HUGE. WE’VE BUILT A GREAT RELATIONSHIP WITH VIEGA. – Robert Feibleman, Executive Vice President, Nevada HAND
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INDUSTRIAL
CLIMATE MAT OFFERS AFFORDABILITY AND EFFICIENCY
18 | Viega Voice | July 2019
When you’re trying to maintain a comfortable temperature in a 45,000-square-foot workshop, it’s imperative to find a system that works well without costing a fortune to run. A steel manufacturer in New York state recently built a new workshop, approximately 85 feet by 480 feet, adjacent to an already existing building. Because radiant heating in the older building was working well to keep things at a comfortable temperature, it made sense to use radiant again. “It’s quite tall inside the building, so they wanted to keep the heat down near the floor,” said Victor Mangano, owner of T.M. Contracting. “They don’t keep the place at a high temperature, because there are large doors and people are in and out all the time. Having used radiant before is why they chose to use it again. It works.” When Mangano went to his local supply house to look at choices for the new building, Viega Climate Mat came up as a good option. He said he has used Viega radiant products before, but the Climate Mat was new for him. After deciding on the Climate Mat, Viega’s radiant design team came into the picture, creating the plans for the mats. The team and Mangano were presented with some unique challenges on the project. Although the building is a large, skinny rectangle shape, there is a portion of the building – a strip of space that runs the longer length of the building, almost down the middle – where radiant products could not be installed. “There is a three- to four-foot-wide concrete obstruction, for a crane and rail system, down the middle of the building,” explained Josef Marcum, Viega Radiant Design Engineer. “So we had to reconfigure the plan so that there was no radiant directly underneath it.” With the variances needed for the design, Marcum made a total of seven revisions on the project before the plan was settled. Revisions included different manifold locations and working around the obstruction area. “Viega had a number of designs for the building, and they were very helpful with the back and forth on it,” Mangano said. “Since we’d never installed the Climate Mat there was a little bit of learning that went into it in the beginning, but it installed so much quicker than a single piece at a time. That was very helpful.” He said installation took about two weeks, including hooking up all 19 manifolds, tying everything down and pressurizing the system before concrete was poured. Mangano said an average of four or five workers were on the job, depending on the section, and guessed it would have taken seven or eight workers to do the job in that amount of time had they used traditional radiant tubing instead of Climate Mat. ■
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COMMERCIAL
DOWN THE LINE: SHOPPING MALL RE-PIPED WITH MEGAPRESSG Nearly five miles of pipe. That’s what a crew from Limbach Inc. was tasked with replacing – a total of 24,500 feet of old carbon steel gas pipe. On the roof of a large shopping complex in Philadelphia. With as little inconvenience to the tenants as possible. And without using any hot work on the roof. Sounds like the perfect use of Viega MegaPressG. “Philadelphia Gas Works contracted Limbach to install new gas pipe from new meters on the ground to the equipment connection points on the roof of the mall, which feeds to all the stores and restaurants,” explained Phil DiPaola, Project Manager for Limbach. “The old pipe has been up there quite a while and is past its service life expectancy. “They wanted to replace the aging pipe and move the meters to the ground level. They installed a new gas main and meters at five locations for Limbach to tie to at ground level. All the lines going to the roof had to be welded to the roof edge – but the specifications call for no hot work on the roof.”
DiPaola said shortly after starting the project as a weld job that Limbach’s teams thought maybe there was a better way to get the project done. Originally everything would have to be prefabbed and welded off the roof – in the shop or parking lot – then lifted to the roof and bolted together. When Tom Price, Foreman for the project, attended a Viega lunch and learn, he discovered that MegaPress could be a viable option for the mall project. He’d used ProPress in the past for copper projects, but this was his, and DiPaola’s, first experience with Viega MegaPressG. “It was the perfect scenario for this project,” DiPaola said. “No hot work, and we saved all that weld time. Plus we would have had to spray galvanizing on the welds, so being able to press a joint and move on is a big difference. It made a really nice and clean job.” The re-pipe was split into five separate sections. There are various-sized racks with lines running all over – as Price explained, it’s not simply thousands of feet of straight pipe. With so much pipe to handle, Price said it was nice using MegaPress to only have to move pipe once.
IT WAS THE PERFECT SCENARIO FOR THIS PROJECT. NO HOT WORK, AND WE SAVED ALL THAT WELD TIME. – Phil DiPaola, Project Manager, Limbach
20 | Viega Voice | July 2019
“We load pipe, walk it across the roof, walking it out in single lengths to drop onto the hangars. Then we just follow behind with the press guns and it goes pretty quickly,” he said. The total project was estimated to use more than 700 2" fittings, 200 1½" fittings and more than 100 1¼" fittings. “Using MegaPress is an incredible time savings as compared to welding,” Price said. “Plus, with the dated construction of this roof, I think any spark would go through. Replacing a gas line with welding, you couldn’t do that up there. I can’t imagine what you’d have to do to protect that roof from hot work.” – Continued on page 22
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COMMERCIAL
Crews began working on the re-pipe in mid-March and were scheduled to be done by the end of May. Total demolition of the old lines was anticipated to be completed by the end of June. As each section was finished, it was tested and turned over to Philadelphia Gas Works so the new meters and lines could be tied into the main system and then turned over to the mall. “We started with a smaller section in the beginning, and we learned a lot during the process. Now we’re just moving along really nicely,” DiPaola said mid-project. “Everybody knows what they need to do. Limbach’s hand-in-hand work with Viega’s team ensured a smooth outcome. The time savings to actually connect the joint is ridiculous – it’s so much faster.” ■
22 | Viega Voice | July 2019
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*Terms and conditions apply. See website for complete details. iPad is a registered trademark of Apple. Viega. Connected in quality. | 23
INDUSTRIAL
ACIDIC CONDITIONS NO MATCH FOR MEGAPRESS G Thousands of MegaPressG fittings will ensure that tens of thousands of animals at a hog farm in Milford, Utah, stay warm. Plus, the fittings will reduce the need for maintenance at the site.
And to keep all the hogs warm, there are gas heaters installed – 58 per barn. The gas main and branches, from 1" down to ½", are piped with MegaPressG fittings. Lots and lots of them.
Barry Barnes, Superintendent for Rollins Construction, has overseen the huge project of building a group of new hog-raising barns. There are 26 sites, each with four barns that are 320 feet by 50 feet in size.
“The hog barns get very acidic,” Barnes explained. “It’s like the ocean, salty air from the pigs. They’re well-ventilated, but it’s still acidic. And because of that, gas lines rust and break.”
THE FIRST NEW BARN WE BUILT HAS BEEN IN OPERATION FOR ABOUT EIGHT MONTHS. YOU CAN SEE SOME OF THE GAS PIPE RUSTING – BUT THE MEGAPRESS FITTINGS LOOK BRAND NEW! SO THE OWNERS ARE IMPRESSED. – Barry Barnes, Superintendent, Rollins Construction
24 | Viega Voice | July 2019
Enter Viega. Barnes noted that in previously built barns the threaded joints were the weakest part of all of the plumbing. It’s the cause of most maintenance. “They’re always replacing gas pipes,” he said. “One of the main problems is the high maintenance issues, and the weakest points were always at the thread. With MegaPressG, they won’t have that problem. And it makes future repairs easier.” – Continued on page 26
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INDUSTRIAL
Barnes had a history with Viega from previously working in Las Vegas, where he used ProPress for years and was “very impressed with it.” So when he went to Utah and got involved with the hog farm job, he said he felt like calling on Viega was the perfect fit. “The first new barn we built has been in operation for about eight months. You can see the gas pipe rusting some – but the MegaPress fittings look brand new!” he said. “So the owners are impressed.” Each site has 206 fittings to run all the gas pipe to the individual heaters. Barnes’s two-man crew saved an
26 | Viega Voice | July 2019
estimated 50 percent on installation time by using Viega press instead of threading. He said the speed of installation has made MegaPressG well worth the investment, particularly give the large scope of the project. Building on the current location began in April of 2018, and the last barn is set to be built and populated by December of this year. The heaters are necessary because in the winter, temperatures can be below zero in Milford, not factoring in wind chills. In the summer, temperatures can hit 100, but the evenings still get cold, so even in the warmer months the heaters are often necessary, at least overnight.
MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT VIEGA IS THE TIME SAVINGS. – Barry Barnes, Superintendent, Rollins Construction
“My favorite thing about Viega is the time savings,” Barnes said. “For example, when you have a lot of piping up in the air, you have torches and fire extinguishers that you’re always dropping down which takes up time. Plus, using MegaPress – which is flameless – in wood structures is a safety thing. You don’t have to fill out a hot permit and shut the crew down early to check for hot spots. “I hadn’t seen MegaPress until 2015, but seeing that we didn’t need oils and threading machines anymore, I saw the ease of use,” he added. “It’s been great on this project.” ■
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COMMERCIAL
PATIENT SAFETY A PRIORITY WITH SNOWMELT When a client asked for snowmelt to be installed at a new build location in Champaign, Illinois, crews at A&R Mechanical Contractors Inc. looked to their suppliers at Capitol Group for suggestions. That led them to Viega for a custom-designed system.
“I’ve used Viega products in the past – generally ProPress. Working with Capitol Group, we wanted someone they were accustomed to dealing with, since our construction group did not have an extensive background in snowmelt systems,” Gardner said.
A&R was brought on for construction of Carle at the Fields, a new development in Champaign that consolidated various Carle and Health Alliance administrative and support functions into one location. The facility is 300,000-square-feet of offices and facilities.
Dan Brilley of Capitol Group said previous experience with Viega made him confident it was the right choice.
There are three separate buildings within Carle at the Fields, and a snowmelt system was requested outside each building. “It was approximately 9,000 square feet of snowmelt between the three buildings. It covered driveways and the main entrance areas of each,” explained Jim Gardner, Senior Project Manager for A&R.
Knowing that Gardner wanted to understand the ins and outs of the snowmelt system, Brilley contacted Viega District Sales Manager Vaughan Latham, who provided Gardner with tips, tricks and details about installation to help everything go smoothly. Brilley noted how Latham went out of his way, as the build was not in his district, to help the project get off the ground successfully.
“They knew they wanted snowmelt, so we said, ‘Let’s see what’s out there,’ when we went to Capitol Group. We knew Viega offered snowmelt, and in working closely with Viega reps we put together the plan and got it approved.”
“You can really count on Viega to stand beside you,” he said. “They went above and beyond on this project, making sure everybody was comfortable before the installation, and it went off without a hitch.”
Gardner said that while his experience with snowmelt systems was limited, he was comfortable with the plan because of how well it was executed by the Viega design team and because of Capitol Group’s experience and comfort level with Viega.
The snowmelt products were installed before colder weather moved in last fall. Brilley said they worked well with no complaints, and he pointed out that Illinois experienced a very snowy winter, so the systems were certainly put to the test. ■
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“We don’t get a lot of snow meltprojects – but the ones we do are Viega,” Brilley said.
YOU CAN REALLY COUNT ON VIEGA TO STAND BESIDE YOU.
– Jim Gardner, Senior Project Manager, A&R
Editor’s note: Prior to printing of this magazine, Jim Gardner passed away. Known as “Snake” to friends, he was a loyal member of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 149 since 1970 and began as a project manager for A&R Mechanical in 1980. He served as the company’s Senior Project Manager for the past 25 years. His signature projects included some of the most difficult and complicated mechanical systems built in central Illinois, including several builds at the University of Illinois (Abbott Power Plant renovation, Memorial Stadium renovations, Chemical and Life Sciences Building), the Carle Heart and Vascular Institute and many more. Jim was well known in the pipe trades industry, and his standard of excellence helped drive A&R to a high level of success.
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CALCULATIONS IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND Designed for tradespeople, by tradespeople. That’s the Viega Toolbox app. The app is a digital pocket guide with streamlined calculators for things like rolling offsets, mitered pipe and more. Users get access to the Viega catalog, news and training about the company, a reference book plus multiple calculators. Whether you’re a student or a seasoned pro in the field, the Toolbox app is full of benefits. Ricky Maynard, Technical Trainer for Viega and a member of UA Plumbers Local 3, said he believes one of the best things about the app is the pipe offset calculators. “All of the takeoffs for the Viega fittings are in the app,” he said. “Like a rolling offset: it can be a little difficult to do the calculations, so you plug everything into this calculator and it gives you the cut-pipe dimensions for use with Viega fittings.”
Within the calculators, users can choose the specific Viega system they’re working with, and input all the dimensions. Everything is there in the palm of your hand. Access to information about Viega training is also a big plus of the app. Maynard said he frequently gets questions about training. Through the app, users can see when particular training sessions are scheduled and click to register straight from the mobile device. The free version of the Toolbox app gives basics like access to the Viega information. For use of the calculators and more advanced features, upgrade to the paid version. The Viega Toolbox app is available for iOS or Android. ■
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TECH TALK
Q A local inspector requires me to paint the iron pipe and the MegaPress fittings. Is this allowed? A Viega MegaPress fittings exposed to corrosive action, such as soil conditions or moisture, must be protected in an approved manner in accordance with NFPA 54 section 404.8, NACE standard RP0169 - 2002 section, 2009 UPC Chapter 6 section 609.3.1, 2009 UMC Chapter 13 section 1312.1.3 and in a manner satisfactory to the local code official. In some cases, the local authority may require the installation of pipe and fittings to be painted. Installers should use caution to prevent saturating the fittings with paint and take care to not allow excess paint to accumulate on the fitting hub. This information can be found in the Viega MegaPress installation manual.
Q Can I use closed-cell spray foam over Viega PEX tubing? A No. Closed-cell spray foams have the potential to generate high temperatures during their expansion process, especially when not applied properly, which can damage PEX tubing. When using expanding spray foam to insulate walls in a structure, there are several options available. Viega suggests using water-based or urethane-based open-cell insulation only. Always follow the spray foam manufacturer’s installation instructions and warnings. For additional questions or information regarding your specific application, please contact our technical services department.
Q Can I use Viega PureFlow tubing on my water heater’s T&P valve as a relief line? A Yes. Viega PureFlow tubing is rated for a maximum use temperature of 180°F; however, it has been tested and listed to the ASTM F877 at temperatures up to 210°F at 150 psi. PEX tubing is tested to these conditions to ensure that it has adequate strength to accommodate this short-term condition simulating a water heater malfunction. Therefore, Viega PureFlow PEX tubing can be safely used on water heaters utilizing a 210°F rated T&P valve as a relief line. Always check with the manufacturer of the T&P valve and local code for any limitation concerning the use of PEX tubing in this application.
Tech Talk provided by Viega technical experts Jacob Demars, Dave Holden and Aaron White
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VOICE Viega LLC 585 Interlocken Blvd. Broomfield, CO 80021 USA Change Service Requested Phone (800) 976-9819 viega.us insidesales@viega.us
The term Viega, as used in this publication, does not apply to a specific company within the various separate and distinct companies comprising the Viega group of companies. The term Viega, as used in this publication, refers to the Viega brand itself or generally to the Viega group of companies. References to activities in North America specifically refer to activities of Viega LLC. A green dot on a Viega ProPress, MegaPress and PureFlow Press fitting indicates the Smart Connect feature with an EPDM sealing element. A yellow dot on a Viega ProPressG and MegaPressG fitting indicates the Smart Connect feature with an HNBR sealing element. A white dot on a Viega ProPress (304 FKM) fitting indicates the Smart Connect technology with an FKM sealing element. For a current list of applications, please visit www.viega.us/applications. Zero Lead identifies Viega products meeting the lead-free requirements of NSF 61-G through testing under NSF/ANSI 372 (0.25% or less maximum weighted average lead content).
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©2019. Climate Mat®, Climate Panel®, Climate Trak®, FostaPEX®, GeoFusion®, ManaBloc®, MegaPress®, ProPress®, PureFlow®, Radiant Wizard®, SeaPress®, Smart Connect®, SmartLoop®, S-NO-ICE®, Viega®, Viega. Connected in quality®, Viega Eco Plus® Visign®, XL® and XL-C® are registered trademarks of Viega GmbH & Co. KG. Eco Brass® is a registered trademark of Mitsubishi Shindoh Co., LTD. RIDGID® is a registered trademark of RIDGID, Inc.
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