Education and Collaboration Take Center Stage at 2025 ASPE Tech Symposium
Key Highlights
- The event featured five educational tracks, including codes, sustainability, healthcare, fire protection, and more, with sessions earning CEUs for licensing requirements
- Over 60 manufacturers showcased the latest plumbing products through demonstrations, providing attendees with hands-on experience and expert advice
- Networking opportunities included leadership academies, awards ceremonies, and group breakfasts, fostering community and professional growth
The 2025 ASPE Tech Symposium was held at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Florida, September 24-28. The Symposium welcomed plumbing engineers and designers of all career levels to engage in technical exchanges, education opportunities and networking.
“This week isn’t just about meetings and reports—it’s about fueling the future of our profession and making sure ASPE continues to lead from the front,” Bryan L. Hutton, ASPE President, wrote in his letter to the Society introducing this year’s Symposium.
“Over the next few days, our members will come together not as individuals, but as a community of problem-solvers,” he continued. “This Symposium is our chance to challenge each other, share insights, and sharpen each other’s skills so we all return to our firms better prepared to contribute and lead. This is where ASPE’s strength is most visible—in the connections we build and the knowledge we share.”
Technical Education Program
The Tech Symposium featured professional development sessions designed to help plumbing industry professionals at all levels of experience learn new skills or refresh their design repertoire. Sessions were taught by experts in the field and offered 0.15 CEUs to be used for license and certification continuing education requirements.
The sessions were designed to integrate the most current design techniques with hands-on calculation and application examples.
The program featured five tracks:
- Codes and Standards/ Water Quality
- System Design
- Sustainability/Construction Discussion
- Healthcare/Specialty Design
- Fire Protection & More
Notable speakers included Hugo Aguilar, PE, Senior Vice President of Codes and Standards for IAPMO; Kevin Brace, Senior Specification Specialist, East for Rheem; Brian Conner, Director, Codes, Standards, and International Technical Support, for Charlotte Pipe and Foundry Co.; Kevin Freidt, EIT, LEED AP, Director of Product Management and Technical Support at Caleffi North America; Tony J. Furst, MSEd, CPD, LEED AP, Senior Systems Engineer–Commercial Training at Taco Comfort Solutions; Paul G. Galvin, Business Development Manager, Life Science/Institutional, for GF Industrial Group Americas; Christoph Lohr, PE, CPD, IAPMO’s Vice President of Technical Services and Research; Lance MacNevin, P. Eng, Director of Engineering for the Plastics Pipe Institute’s Building & Construction Division, and many more.
For a full list of sessions and speakers, visit aspe.org/2025-aspe-tech-symposium/education-program.
Product Show
The Product Show ran Thursday afternoon to Friday morning, featuring some of the industry’s top manufacturers showcasing their newest products and teaching their application in specific plumbing system designs.
All in all, 62 manufacturers exhibited products ranging from water heaters and boilers to piping, fittings, valves, circulators, fixtures, tools, pumps and much more. Live demonstrations allowed attendees to get hands-on with the latest products and equipment, and to seek advice from industry experts.
For a full list of exhibitors, visit aspe.org/2025-aspe-tech-symposium/product-show.
Networking & Business
The Symposium also featured several networking opportunities, including the ASPE Young Professionals Leadership Academy (Sponsored by Peak Industries), the ASPE Lunch & Awards Ceremony, and several group breakfasts.
During the Lunch & Awards Ceremony, held on Saturday, September 27, the Society honored numerous local Chapters and members for their efforts in community outreach and membership services for the 2024–2025 year. Awards included the Chapter Award of Merit for the five different regions, the Membership Growth Award, the Membership Retention Award, and the Coin of Appreciation, given to those members who volunteer in leadership positions.
For a full list of award winners, visit aspe.org/pipeline/aspe-honors-deserving-chapters-and-members-with-2024-2025-membership-awards.
The Symposium was also an opportunity to conduct the business of the Society, with meetings of the Membership, Legislative, Long-Range Planning, Education, and Women of ASPE committees.
Throughout the event, ASPE’s working groups, regional leaders and members partnered to further the work of the Society and advance its mission to represent all aspects of the international plumbing engineering community.
“I’ve said it before: our mission is growth, education, and community,” Hutton concluded. “Let’s seize the energy of the Symposium, show each other what leadership looks like, and remind ourselves that when ASPE works together, there’s no limit to what we can achieve.”
For further reading: Bradford White Brings Water Heating Expertise to 2025 ASPE Tech Symposium.