The National Plasterers Council has issued a Call for Presentations for our 29th Annual Conference, scheduled to take place February 8 - 10, 2018 at the historic Bahia Resort Mission Bay in San Diego. The NPC is seeking manuscripts and presentations covering a range of swimming pool plastering-related subjects to ensure that delegates are offered the most innovative, timely, and relevant issues in the pool industry today. The NPC Annual Conference is an important educational event that offers a forum for cementitious pool industry professionals to exchange new ideas, innovations, processes, and technologies. The 2018 NPC Annual Conference is expected to attract more than 500 cementitious pool and spa professionals within the swimming pool community.

Interested?  Download the brochure here.

Questions?  Contact us at mail@npcoline.org

The Florida Building Code 6^th Edition will be officially implemented at the end of 2017 and compliance requirements for pool surfaces applied in Florida public swimming pools and spas has changed significantly. The attached memo describes the upcoming change and testing requirements that become effective January 1^st, 2018.

This notice is provided as a courtesy of the Florida Public Swimming Pool Coalition. Please feel free to contact me or Jennifer Hatfield if you have any questions.

see file attachment

John (J.C.) Centera
President/United Pool & Spa Association (UPSA)
On behalf of the Florida Public Swimming Pool Coalition

The Florida Public Swimming Pool Coalition is a collaborative group of Florida pool professionals and organizations whose mission is to improve the safety and operations of public pools and spas in Florida. Group participants include the Florida Swimming Pool Association (FSPA), United Pool & Spa Association (UPSA), Building Officials Association of Florida (BOAF) and the Florida Department of Health (FDOH).

Rey Perales Scholarship Press Release

Ten NPC Scholarships Awarded

Wauconda, Illinois, April 13, 2017 - The National Plasterers Council's (NPC) Scholarship Committee has selected ten outstanding candidates to receive scholarships for the 2017-2018 school year. NPC awarded a total of $10,500 to scholarship winners who were sponsored by ten different NPC company members.

These young adults have distinguished themselves through their academic achievement and submitted letters of recommendation. Applicants were also asked to submit a researched essay wherein they suggest a marketing plan that the NPC could adopt in order to either (a) encourage more membership from companies in the swimming pool industry or (b) encourage homeowners to choose an NPC member when looking to hire an organization. 

Upon review by the NPC Scholarship Committee, the following scholarship winners were chosen:

• Jena Ponosny, Beauty Pools - $2,500
• Nick Grabowski, Pure Water Pools - $2,000
• Claire Lamsfuss, Pulliam Pool Builders - $1,500
• Jake Gammon, Gammon Pools - $1,500
• Sky Stalnaker, Southernwinds Pools - $700 
• Jessica Camacho, Superior Pool Plastering - $700
• Sam Garcia, Centex Plaster - $700
• Emily Dobbs, Pebble Technology - $300
• Zachary Rosati, Leisure Craft Pools - $300
• Haley Sparks, Pool Environments - $300

About the Rey Perales Memorial Scholarship
The National Plasterers Council is proud to offer the Rey Perales Memorial Scholarship to the children of NPC Members and their employees. Scholarship awards are determined by academic achievement, a student researched essay, and letters of reference.

NPC will be accepting scholarship applications for the 2018-2019 school year beginning in September 2017.

View the Press Release PDF

National Plasterers Council Launches YouTube Channel

Wauconda, IL - June 29, 2016 - The National Plasterers Council (NPC) is pleased to announce a new YouTube channel that will feature videos covering a range of topics concerning the interior finishes of cementitious pools.  The channel introduced to the industry on Monday through the NPC’s website, npconline.org along with its social media sites on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

NPC’s Chairman, Scott McKenna, said, “The YouTube channel is a powerful way for the industry and pool owners to see real life examples about the care and treatment of plastered pools. I want to thank Greg Garrett and Alan Smith for working tirelessly in developing their videos.”

Jeff Henderson, NPC’s Executive Director added, “In the last few months the NPC has worked hard on developing white papers, the new APSP/ANSI/NPC pool plaster standard, and soon, the new NPC Technical Manual.  The platform offered by YouTube gives us another vehicle to educate pool owners and professionals.  We will continue to look for new content as we build this site.”

About the NPC

The National Plasterers Council (NPC) is an international trade association dedicated to advancing the research, application, care, and maintenance of cementitious interior pool finishes. The NPC is committed to bringing comprehensive information about pool plastering characteristics, applications, design and technology to users, product designers, engineers and architects. Further, NPC is focused on enhancing the ability of its members to meet the emerging demands of the market through sharing knowledge and best practices. For more information visit www.npconline.org.

California Department of Industrial Relations News Release

"The Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) announced today a new law that goes into effect as of January 1, addressing requirements to pay piece-rate workers for mandated rest and recovery periods and other nonproductive work time." Read the Full Release

When President George W. Bush signed the Virginia Graeme Baker Act into law in 2007, the pool and spa industry gave itself a well-deserved pat on the back for its part in helping craft the bill. No longer would commercial pools and spas pose the suction-entrapment hazard that injured or killed a small-but-preventable number of people every year, including the namesake granddaughter of former Secretary of State James Baker, who drowned after becoming trapped on a hot tub drain in 2002.

But while the law altered the way commercial pools were plumbed and made them safer, it contained no mandatory provisions for backyard pools. That has never sat well with Carvin DiGiovanni, Vice President, Technical and Standards, for APSP.

"There are only 300,000 commercial pools out there that VGB applies to. But you've got many more swimmers and bathers in backyards. The number is anywhere from 14 million to 18 million residential pools and spas," he says. "What's being done to protect them?"

Read entire article from Aqua here.