Viega Views and News - March 2016

ISSUE FOUR * MARCH 2016

VIEGA VIEWS &NEWS EMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER

Celebrations and Happenings pg. 2

MCPHERSON MEGAPRESS FA C I L I T Y

Viega MegaPress Facility in McPherson pg. 4 We Love Our Jobs pg. 8

E M P L O Y E E

S P O T L I G H T

WORK HARD, PLAY HARD N O M I N AT E E M P L O Y E E S C V

F O R

A M B A S S A D O R

Submitting nominations via email from the Intranet to cvambassador@viega.us. Locate the form on the Intranet under Human Resources or call Sara Pierce and she can assist with your nomination.

P O L A R

B E A R

P L U N G E The Polar Bear Plunging season may be over but Viega’s own Doug Evans, setup coordinator in McPherson, KS, and his grandson Gannon, will never forget it. The pair won best couples costumes in the Kansas City plunge, and also participated in the event in Salina, KS. Doug has been participating in the Special Olympics fundraiser since 2008.

Y O U R A W A R D W I N N I N G M A R K E T I N G T E A M Viega’s marketing team received a silver Davey Award, a prestigious honor awarded to agencies worldwide.

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As a preschooler, Zach Goldberg, a buyer for Viega, spent his days hitting his baseball off a Fisher Price tee. By age 12 he was traveling the country playing ball and after high school he went on to play for the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN, while he earned a degree in Business Communication.

During his junior year of college, his father was diagnosed with cancer and as graduation approached, Zach’s father encouraged him to take a risk — pursue his dream of playing professional baseball.

“I don’t think it’s ever easy to pursue your dreams,” said Zach. “It’s cliché, but you have to enjoy the ride along the way. I have always been a believer in hard work. Whether it was hitting a baseball until my hands were blistered, or working from sun up to sun down, hard work pays off.”

At a tryout camp in Ft. Worth, TX, Zach was drafted into the American Association by the Lincoln SaltDogs in Nebraska. He didn’t stay with one team for long, living in four different cities before his rookie season was over.

“It’s not offi cially in the books, but I think I was even traded for some baseball bats,” said Zach.

He spent four years as a catcher, with his fi nal season split between the Wichita Wingnuts and the Florence Freedom in Cincinnati.

It was during his offseason job as a front desk agent at the Hyatt when Zach fi rst learned of Viega. Viega was holding its national sales meetings at the hotel and Zach did some research since he was unfamiliar with the company.

“Viega stood out to me because it refl ected the hard-working, professionalism that I strive for every day,” said Zach. “Viega is a family and I’m thankful every day to work for such a company.”

As he hung up his cleats and began a career with Viega, Zach also found a side job that quickly became a new passion — offi ciating basketball.

The camaraderie with fellow offi cials, the energy and excitement of being on the court, is worth sacrifi cing some personal and vacation time, said Zach.

“I was working 8 to 15 games each weekend,” said Zach, who started at the South YMCA. “Viega 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and then offi ciating at night. It wasn’t long until I became certifi ed with the KSHAA and started my offi ciating career.”

He started at the grade school level four years ago and currently works a full schedule offi ciating 3A-6A high school basketball as well as some KCAC and KJCCC college league games.

“My dream would be to one day be on the court, in the stripes, in Allen Field House, with the Jayhawks going head-to-head with the Shockers,” Zach added.

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C E L E B R A T I O N S

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H A P P E N I N G S

DID YOU KNOW? IT’S SOFTBALL TIME • Viega’s softball tournament is Saturday, May 28, from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Bring your immediate family members and enjoy a friendly game of softball. Food and drinks will be provided as well as inflatables for the kids. Whether you’re coming to play or to support your team, we hope to see everyone there!.

VIEGA VOICE • The Viega Voice is printed three times a year: March, July and November. With a distribution of nearly 60,000 to industry professionals, ranging from plumbers to engineers, the magazine promotes how contractors are benefiting from Viega’s innovative products.

CONTINUING EDUCATION • Viega LLC offers Continuing Education to expand and enhance its employees’ skills. The overall grade you receive determines the percentage of reimbursement Viega LLC will pay. Submissions must be approved by the Human Resources department.

FLEXIBLE SPENDING AND DEPENDENT CARE • Employees can elect to contribute to a personal account on a pre-tax basis that will reimburse you for a variety of medical and dependent care expenses.

• The amount you choose to deposit is deducted automatically from each paycheck before taxes are withheld.

• You may put up to $2,550 in your health care FSA and $5,000 in the dependent care FSA. VIEGA ON YOUTUBE • Go to www.youtube.com and search “Viega Americas” to see the most recent product and instructional videos.

WHERE TO PURCHASE VIEGA MERCHANDISE • If you want to purchase Viega branded shirts, jackets, coats, or hats go to www.yourviega.us and click on promotional items.

NEW EMPLOYEES NAME Lee Bena Jessie Cauthorn Heath Collins Ray Davis DeErick Haygood Shayla Hinderliter Heather Hupka Elwood Ide Christy Lacy Giles Legault Tim Montroy Melisa Moore David Morgan Patrick O’Neill Paige Regier Bernie Sakel Jessica Schoech Moussa Seck Roy Sevigny Gene Shorman Tami Usher

DIVISION Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Sales & Marketing Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Supply Chain Operations Business Development Supply Chain Operations Sales & Marketing Supply Chain Operations Sales & Marketing Sales & Marketing Finance Supply Chain Operations Market Innovations Sales & Marketing Sales & Marketing Sales & Marketing Supply Chain Operations Market Innovations

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DEPARTMENT PureFlow 1st Shift PureFlow 1st Shift MKS DC CS AGA DC 2nd Shift Manufacturing 2nd Shift Manufacturing Marine Sales 2nd Shift Manufacturing Canada 2nd Shift Manufacturing Marketing Resin Line Network & Systems MegaPress 1st Shift Technical Marketing CR Inside Sales - Central Southwest Region PureFlow 1st Shift Product Data

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M I L E S T O N E S

YEARS OF SERVICE

03/12/1990 - Buck Martin 06/18/1990 - Joyce Marlett 11/04/1990 - Robert Boots

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YEARS OF SERVICE

02/07/2000 - Sharon Mitchell 12/01/2000 - Bob Shepard

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YEARS OF SERVICE

01/31/2005 - David Peters 12/04/2005 - Wayne Farminer 12/04/2005 - Samantha Peery 12/25/2005 - David Robbins 01/02/2006 - Michael Urton 01/30/2006 - Tim Arnold 02/06/2006 - Kelly Nelson 02/27/2006 - Josh DiMacchia

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YEARS OF SERVICE

01/04/2010 - Doug Barbeau 01/25/2010 - Christina Lawson 03/08/2010 - Derek Bower 03/29/2010 - Matt Spooner 03/29/2010 - Santiago Codiani 11/08/2010 - John Costello 11/08/2010 - Lisa Napier 11/29/2010 - Tirra Richardson 11/29/2010 - Christoper Whiteside 01/25/2010 - Christina Lawson 02/06/2011 - Michael Richter 02/07/2011 - Thomas Schratz 02/21/2011 - Jeff Todd 03/14/2011 - Mike Dean 03/21/2011 - Russell Haley 03/21/2011 - Heather Spaich 03/28/2011 - Bryan Wert M A R C H

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VIEGA MEGAPRESS PRODUCTION MOVES TO MCPHERSON It’s hard to believe it was 17 years ago when the Viega Group introduced the first copper press system to the U.S. Although not all of us were here then, we should all be proud and excited to be a part of the opening of the new Viega MegaPress manufacturing facility in McPherson, KS. The new facility, south of Viega’s existing 429,000-squarefoot facility, is part of a multimillion dollar investment in its U.S. manufacturing operations and will encompass the production of the Viega MegaPress line. The expansion will also create dozens of jobs in the area over the next five years with equipment arriving in April and the first production slated to begin in July.

“This expansion is proof of the growing Viega footprint in the U.S. and part of our long-term strategy,” said Dave Garlow, President and CEO, Viega. “The added capabilities in McPherson will improve service for our customers in a variety of ways, including better availability and faster delivery.”

The newly added facility will feature state-of-the-art manufacturing technology and equipment to produce the Viega MegaPress line. The plastic product lines will continue to be manufactured at the existing facility, the lines include Viega PureFlow plumbing and Viega ProRadiant product lines, as well as the Viega ManaBloc homerun water distribution system and the Viega-assembled panels for easy radiant heating installation.

“Viega is proud to bring the German quality that our customers know and trust to manufacturing right here in the U.S.,” said Robert Boots, COO, Viega. “The carbon steel material used in MegaPress fittings makes the Viega MegaPress system one of the most complicated lines to manufacture.

Bringing this line to a U.S. facility is paving the way for future growth.”

Viega began manufacturing in McPherson in 2006 and opened its current manufacturing center in 2009.

“The city of McPherson and the state of Kansas as a whole are very supportive of industry,” Boots said. “Everyone in this area takes tremendous pride in their work and those are the people who make Viega great.”

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The new McPherson plant under construction is an almost 80,000-square-foot facility and is part of a multimillion dollar investment in the U.S. manufacturing operations.

Building photos courtesy Conco Construction and Gavin Peters photography

Viega MegaPress Team The opening of the Viega MegaPress manufacturing facility would not be possible without the support, dedication and sacrifi ce of a few key employees.

Earl Nordin – Maintenance Mechanical Bryce Wood – Maintenance Electrical Corey Unruh – Assembly Matt Spooner – Forming Cohen Haas – Forming Jeremy Herr – Forming Chris Ferguson – Forming/ Tooling These individuals spent an extraordinary amount of time traveling back and forth to Germany to learn about how the fi ttings are produced and how the machines work in order to make for a smooth transition and operation of the new facility.

“I could not be more proud of this team,” Boots said. “The amount of time, energy and passion these individuals exhibited was extraordinary and a testament to their commitment to Viega and the success of the new manufacturing facility.”

Viega MegaPress Manufacturing Team: Back Row: Tim Fricke, Marco Menge, Bryce Wood, André Günther, Earl Nordin, Tino Hantel, Thomas Schmidt, Lars Erkelenz, Eric Wicker, Jeramy Janzen, Michael Frömchen Middle Row: Friedhelm Gast, Jakub Mosiejko, Corey Unruh, Tom Köcher, Martin Greif, Chris Ferguson, Cohen Haas, Jeremy Herr Front Row: Sebastian Pitschel, Joerg Mehner, Michael Grund, Manuela Marckardt, Swen Krohnemann, Matt Spooner, Matthias Zeiße Not pictured: Michael Erdman, Mario Henkel, Falko Schmidt, Daniel Ströhein, Andreas Günl, Gerald Basel, & Christian Weber

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FUN, FOOD AND FUNDRAISING The holiday season at Viega was full of food, fellowship and opportunities for employees to give back to the community by donating gifts and by giving their time and energy.

“We really focus on the solidarity of our company and the camaraderie that comes with it,” said Cassie Chauncey, Vice President of Human Resources.

“We want our employees to feel a part of something bigger and have the ability to share in making Viega the employer of choice both within our own walls and those of our community.”

40 Angels, in 2014 it rose to 52 Angels and in 2015 gifts were purchased for 55 Angels and 20 Stars.

Viega employees at the McPherson location hosted a separate charitable collection this holiday season.

McPherson employees collected $500 in donations for the Angel Tree. In addition, $250 was collected for Toys for Tots, reported Kris Kohr.

Additionally, Viega individuals participated in events that benefited the American Red Cross, United Way and more. One example of that was the Human Resources department, which chose to make its annual Christmas get-together a little different this year by cooking a meal and helping with household chores at the Ronald McDonald House.

“We enjoyed being able to give back to the community, while also getting to know each other a little better,” Chauncey added.

OFFICE FESTIVITIES

GIVING BACK

A highlight of the Christmas season was the chance to bless individuals and families by hosting a Salvation Army Angel and Star Tree. Each Angel ornament had gift ideas along with the name and age of a child whose family did not have the means to purchase gifts. Stars were added this year and had requests of household items for families or senior citizens.

“Viega tries to give back to society, so we always try to look for different charities that we can support,” explained Katrin McCowan, Executive Assistant.

“Aside from the Angel & Star Tree, we support the American Cancer Society, we have done a donation run for the Wichita Children’s Home, we have had food drives, etc. It’s just a great way to ‘pay back.’”

Participation has grown steadily each year since 2013. The first year, Viega employees bought gifts for

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Weekly Friday breakfasts are nothing new at the Wichita office, but on Dec. 4, the company-wide meal helped start the holiday season off right.

“It was awesome,” said Chauncey. “We used it as a time of fellowship and to enjoy the festive time of year.”

Each Monday, Nov. 30 through Dec. 21, employees shared their favorite dishes based around the theme for the week. The series took employees through the word SONG in the month of December. S for sugar, O for orange — including both orange items and those with orange as an ingredient, N was for nutty and nice, and it wrapped up with G for ginger.

“We had a lot of participation and it seemed like a good morale booster,” said Chauncey.

This season also saw the addition of a Secret Santa exchange which served as another opportunity for employees to connect and enjoy the holidays together.

A total of 32 employees participated in the exchange.

“People really enjoyed that week-long festivity and having to be sneaky about how to get the gift to the recipient,” said McCowan. “I think it was a fun way to get to know people. When matching Secret Santa’s and recipients, I made sure they were people that didn’t necessarily work in the same area. I wanted to promote some inter-departmental interactions and I think it worked well.”

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P R O F L E X R E S I N M A N U FA C T U R I N G LINE COMING TO MCPHERSON Change equals progress and at Viega change is a constant. The landscape of Viega’s McPherson facility is becoming even more dynamic with the addition of the Viega ProFlex resin manufacturing line. Used in the production of our PEX tubing, the resin is currently produced in Peachtree, GA. The move was prompted in an effort to continue our lean manufacturing program. By bringing everything to as close to the point of use as possible, we are able to maintain the quality control of the resin and therefore the PEX tubing.

The new line is currently under construction and will be housed on the east side of the building behind PEX extrusion. Robert Boots, COO, says he hopes to have the first resin line produced in house by the end of June, beginning of July. Once in

production, the second line will be moved and all the resin will be manufactured in the McPherson facility.

ProFlex resin pellets that ViegaPEX™ tubing is made from.

VIEGA EMPLOYEES “LIGHTEN UP” The Viega Weight Loss Challenge is in full swing with 40 employees competing for bi-weekly gift cards and the grand prize — a full year, paid membership to the YMCA. Employees from McPherson and Wichita kicked off with an official weigh-in on January 18.

Participants will weigh-in on a bi-weekly basis, with gift cards awarded each to the top male and female with the greatest percentage of weight lost. The contest will come to a close on April 18 when a final weigh-in will determine the winners.

“The main message I believe this sends is that Viega LLC cares about each employee and wants to be an employer of choice,” said Johnny Moreno-Salazar, Junior Cost Analyst. “This challenge is helping to create an environment where people feel proud to work for a company where benefits like this can be found.”

The challenge was offered to all Kansas employees for no cost and participants were given the opportunity to join the YMCA at a discounted rate. But there’s much more to take away from this contest than the perks and prizes.

“While this is a competition, our employees are approaching this with a teamwork attitude and that has made it so much more enjoyable for all,” said W W W . V I E G A . U S

Moreno-Salazar. “It’s more common to see groups of coworkers at the gym during the lunch hours working out together, some have even started going on brief walks during the work day and others have gone as far as to join local running events to encourage one another to continue living more active lifestyles.”

In addition, the benefits are extending beyond the workplace.

“Several employees are also using this as an opportunity to bond with their families,” added Moreno-Salazar.

“Whether it be going to the gym with their family or simply finding ways to eat healthier at home, these employees speak proudly of the way it has impacted their personal life.”

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E V E N T S

WE LOVE OUR JOBS Though the paths that brought them to Viega are all different, the one message that gets repeated time and time again by long-time employees is that they love the people they work with. We recently celebrated their tenure at Viega, but wanted to find out just what made a few of our 20+ year employees choose Viega.

A FEW OF OUR FAVORITE THINGS

Newly married and living in McPherson, KS, Dalyn Cantrell reluctantly filled out an application for Vanguard Piping Systems (acquired by Viega in 2005), less than excited at the thought of working in the plumbing and heating industry. But 33 years later, she’s still at it.

“Although it seems cliché, it’s the people that have kept me with Viega,” said Cantrell, Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “The plumbing and heating industry is made up of so many wonderful people and I consider myself so lucky to call many of them friends. The industry may not sound ‘glamorous,’ but there are endless opportunities and challenges that await.”

“My favorite thing about Viega is the people.

There’s no question about that,” said Robert Boots, COO, who has been with Viega for 25 years.

“My job has never been boring. I’ve always been challenged, which is what makes it fun to come to work every day.”

Boots reminds others to never give up. Because working at Viega means something new is always right around the corner.

“Viega offers you the opportunity to move up in your job and it makes me feel appreciated and good about myself,” said Jo Marlett, an assembler in McPherson.

Boots agrees, saying “the beauty of this company is that you’re not pigeon-holed in a specific area; you’re able to be involved in other things as well.”

The teamwork and value placed on customer service are favorite aspects of the job for 20-year Viega employee Judy Rump, National Accounts Manger.

“It’s working through the daily challenges along with support from the members of the Viega village, along with the fact that no two days are

Viega hosted a tenure award dinner and ceremony on January 15, 2016.

Left to right: Dave Garlow, Jess Arbuckle, Cassie Chauncey, Tom Brunholtz (a 30-year employee), Dalyn Cantrell and Robert Boots.

alike and there is always a new opportunity or challenge to focus on,” said Rump.

A sentiment that Tom Brunholtz, Senior Process Engineer, agrees wholeheartedly, describing his 30 years with Viega as challenging and meaningful as he worked alongside wonderful people.

“The short and long of it is, that I have been given the opportunity to make a great difference— in my work, the industry and my community, and that has great appeal to me,” Brunholtz said. “The diversity of the work I perform makes it fun. If it wasn’t fun, I would have been gone a long time ago.”

It’s that variety and working alongside others who are excited to see what each new day will bring, that make these longtime employees proud to call Viega home.

“Looking back over the past few years, change has been a constant,” said Cantrell. “We are continuously coming out with new and innovative products and it’s exciting to think that we’ve only just begun. I tell people that if they don’t like change, Viega is not the place for them.

The excitement of working for a family-owned company that is focused on the future keeps it fun and exciting.”