President’s Message

So Much to Say and so Little Space

by Tom Justice, CAFS, NCT

30 days hath September, April, June and November. All the rest have 31...except March which had 8,000.

We ask ourselves how things could have changed so quickly in 2020. It was little more than 10 weeks ago, the last week in February to be exact, when many of us from NAFA stood talking on the exposition floor at Chicago’s Navy Pier for FiltXPO 2020. Tony Veroeven was smiling as he held up a record number of inquiry cards from prospective new members who had stopped by the NAFA booth. Of course, there was Greg Guy and Dave Reaman who knew everyone at the show and were determined to shake their hand.

Now I find myself sitting at home on my computer watching another Coronavirus joke slip past my state-of-the-art spam software, as they seem to do every day. I call Jim Rosenthal who reminds me that the best joke of all seems to be that I might possibly become the only NAFA President in history to never preside over the Fall Annual and Spring Technical meetings during my term. He’s still laughing as I hang up the phone.

For me it’s more like business as usual since I already work from a home office. But what’s odd for me is that most of my neighbors are sheltering at home and seem to walk their dogs from sunrise to sunset. Then there’s the family across the street; they have 6 kids and all but one play high school or college football (I guess they won’t let her play). There usually is a game of sorts going on here until well after midnight. This afternoon while I sit writing, there seems to be an unusually large number of pickup trucks parked on the street, so I am guessing that it must be Front Yard Super Bowl Sunday. But right now, I have a drive-by birthday party to attend for one of my grandkids. You call in your ETA, drop the present on a table in the driveway, pick up your cake and ice cream, wave and drive off.

My problem is that I am still confused about the disparity in this new found leisurely life of many but by no means all of my neighbors and the sudden avalanche of work which has befallen me as it has most of you in the filter industry. When we initially entered this new lifestyle, the immediate concern of Michelle and the rest of the NAFA team as well as the NAFA Board was how can we keep our members informed, how do we stay connected both with members and other trade associations, and how do we operate in an isolated world. I credit staff, along with the Board, for getting so much done in such a short span of time: • Our COVID-19 web page went up quickly and last month saw over 24,000 visitors, 75% finding us through their search engine • Our first webinar on COVID-19 was produced and launched on March 27 • The NCT exam has transitioned to an upgraded platform and is now available online in Spanish • An NCT exam tutorial webinar in Spanish is in the works for the June time-frame • A webinar on hospital filtration featuring a panel of your peers will take place in June • The NAFA Guide to Air Filtration is in the process of being updated • And ask our new Membership & Marketing Chair, Will

Denton, about our 19 new members this year. • Michelle has been active in the HVACR Industry Alliance during this time meeting with the other executive directors to share resources with each other. (See more about the

HVACR Industry Alliance in this issue.) • INDA’s lobbyist in DC was critical in helping us link up with the Essential Business application process. While it is great to discuss how NAFA members step up when called upon and how networking with other organizations has proven so beneficial, I need to shift our focus to a serious issue which is already affecting us and may very well get worse. There are four distinct events which threaten the HVAC Filtration supply chain at this time and like the movie The Perfect Storm, these events will impact us in the months to come.

First, with more questions than answers most hospital engineers and commercial property managers have taken the position of "err on the side of excess." Based upon the calls that I was receiving, those responsible were being asked to report to property owners and Boards exactly what steps they were taking to protect the safety and well-being of patients, tenants, guests or essentially any individuals under their care. Their answer was that the air filtration systems were being upgraded.

Second, the ASHRAE Position Document on Infectious Aerosols was updated and approved on April 14, 2020. In Section 4.1 under ASHRAE’s Position they state: “HVAC design teams for facilities of all types should follow, as a minimum, the latest published standards and guidelines and good engineering practice. Based on risk assessments or owner project requirements, designers of new and existing facilities could go beyond the minimum requirements of these standards.” “Enhanced filtration (higher minimum efficiency reporting value [MERV] filters over code minimums in occupantdense and/or higher-risk spaces) (Evidence Level A).” “The following modifications to building HVAC system operation should be considered…. Improve central air and other HVAC filtration to MERV-13 (ASHRAE 2017b) or the highest level achievable. Keep systems running longer hours (24/7 if possible)."