How long have you been in the PHCP-PVF industry?

KS: Nine years.

What drew you into the industry?

KS: My family has a history in the industry. From a young age, I’ve interacted with all varieties of industry professionals. As a child, I recall everyone was always kind, humorous and generally acted like a big happy community. Obviously, as I came of age to begin a career, I had other priorities aside from camaraderie, and the industry also fit those needs. Those being job security, potential for advancement and work/life balance. As my father always said, “Plumbing has been around since the Roman aqueducts, and it’s not going anywhere.”

What is the most rewarding aspect of working in the industry?

KS: I like being able to provide solutions to customers and contractors with problems. I think our somewhat unique products play a part in that, but being able to solve someone’s problems is an extremely rewarding aspect of the job.

What motivates you every day?

KS: I would say the aspect of the job involving teamwork. The wide range of people I work with across the Northeast United States and elsewhere motivate me on a day-to-day basis. I know every day I’m going to be talking to 10 or more people around the country that I generally enjoy communicating with and working with in a collaborative manner to solve a wide variety of problems. It keeps things fresh, is entertaining, and, of course, feeling like you’ve helped others is a big plus for me as I mentioned earlier.

What is one thing you wish more people knew/understood about the PHCP-PVF industry?

KS: Just how crucial it is for the health of the nation, as the old advertisement states. Everyone flushes the toilet and forgets about it. Not that I want people pondering the travels of their toilet contents for hours a day, but I think it’s somewhat important to have an idea of at least some of the hard work involved in planning out city sewers, commercial and residential plumbing and the hard work that goes into maintaining these systems.

What has been your proudest moment in your career so far?

KS: Assisting in the response to COVID-19. It was rewarding to be thrown into that situation, as we all were, and to continue to work through it with all the uncertainty surrounding day-to-day life and industry-specific issues, and to be able to deliver products to temporary care centers, hospitals and mobile treatment centers all on the frontlines of the pandemic. Again, having a uniquely capable product offering put me in the position to do so.

What is one thing most people don’t know about you?

KS: I’m a fairly candid and honest person, I’m not all that concerned with being judged by others for my thoughts, beliefs, interests, etc. So I speak openly about those things and I would say most people who know me know most things about me, and the things they don’t I’m not going to tell everyone here!