Dear SPED Member,

SPED has been watching closely the developments over the last few months on the Coronavirus and the oil price war. We held a Town Hall meeting Saturday, April 4, 2020 to discuss it. Here is our general advice to our members:

Obey all Stay-at-Home or Quarantine orders. Absent a treatment, cure, or vaccine, this is the best way for you to protect yourself, family, friends and neighbors.

Levels of business vary across industry and clients. Some have closed offices with little prospect of quick re-opening. Others are busy finishing projects that are too expensive to suspend or halt. Others, like pharmaceuticals, have little change and are short of pipers.

Pipers with online and remote capabilities are still productive. Many employers continue working through CITRIX virtual desktops or send company hardware home and use Virtual Private Networks (VPNs).  Piper’s inherent computer and online work methods and strong home internet access are an advantage now.

If you are laid off, file immediately for unemployment benefits. Because the recession is government-ordered, most governments have special benefits available. There is no shame in collecting these benefits. Besides, being laid-off is part of being a piper.

Ask your employer to continue office and software privileges while furloughed or laid-off. This will give you access to email, CAD software and other applications, allowing you to practice your skills and remain employable.

If you are ready to advance your PPD Level, do it now. If you are asked what you did during a gap in employment, it helps to say you took a course and/or got certified. That makes you look productive.  You’re local unemployment benefits office might pay for it, so check it out.

Helpful and informative links:

https://oilprice.com/oil-price-charts/257

Coronavirus COVID-19 Global Cases by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU)

Above all, stay safe!

Regards,

SPED

SPED is a tax-exempt non-profit entity under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of United States of America.

From time to time, members ask, “why does SPED charge what it does for courses and dues? What don’t we charge less in poorer countries? What does SPED do with all that money?” These are all good questions and worth an answer.

About half of SPED’s income comes from courses. The remainder is evenly divided between member dues and certification fees. Corporate membership makes up the majority of member dues collected.

SPED Announces Plans for New Course on Piping Design Quality Assurance

Course is Preparation for PPD Level II Certification

 

SPED has announced plans for a course on Piping Design Quality Assurance. The new course will prepare pipers to take the Profession Piping Design (PPD) Certification Exam for Level II. The course will be developed under the direction of the SPED PPD Advisory Committee (PPDAC) with review and input from SPED individual and Corporate Members. The course will be offered online with the video segments available for license.

Introduction to Slurry Piping from SPED Spain Chapter president Miguel Sanmartin. Click here to download document.

Introduction to Pipe Stress from SPED Spain Chapter president Miguel Sanmartin. Click here to download document.

Technically point cloud is a database containing points in the three-dimensional coordinate system. However, from the typical workflow perspective, the only important thing is, that point cloud is a very accurate digital record of an object or space. It is saved in form of a very large number of points that cover surfaces of a sensed object.

To download the full article in PDF, click here.