SPFA During COVID-19: Fighting for Our Members, an Update

The past several months have been a challenge unlike anything we have ever seen. During that time SPFA has treaded water like many of our members but the workload has continued, focused both on regular business, but also the increasingly complex workload to guide the industry and our sprayfoam community through this pandemic. If you are working and have not yet renewed your SPFA membership, we really need your support right now. Please check in with us below on reports of interest to you and upcoming information that can help your business!
 
SPFA Buyers' Guide & Directory: SPFA is publishing its annual printed and digital SPFA Membership Directory and Buyers' Guide on-time in August. Deadlines for your listing info/corrections are July 20, 2020. This is a free service to all SPFA members, and consists of a hardcopy printed directory with a distribution count of 3500 recipients, and companion searchable digital guide on the SPFA website. Nothing tells your customers you have “staying-power” as a company better than being highlighted in your industry association’s official Member Directory and Buyers' Guide. If you still need to submit correct contact information, or get your 2020 SPFA membership renewed to qualify your listing, please contact Mickey Riesenberg at SPFA today.
 
SPFA PCP Certification COVID Deals: SPFA recognized that the pandemic would have an immediate effect on some member companies by forcing them to stay home from work. While this is potentially disastrous to project schedules and company finances, SPFA wanted to offer valuable education and training materials to members. The intent was to take the PCP exam-prep courses normally offered at the annual convention, and reformat them quickly for online delivery. Several members familiar with these programs dedicated their evenings and weekends to recording the delivery of the SPFA PCP exam preparatory slides, and SPFA loaded these onto a new online education platform rolling them out for free access to SPFA member companies and any company that had an employee enrolled in PCP for no charge. With normal member pricing for these courses at $250 each ($350 non-member), SPFA has already effectively waived the fees for 94 member-users – that is about 30 new users per month. These people have taken advantage of the increased ease of access and consumed multiple levels of SPFA PCP prep courses from the comfort and safety of their homes. SPFA has for years offered online enrollment and 24/7 remote testing into the PCP program, which continues. For a special COVID-19 deal on enrollment and testing, please contact SPFA Certification Director Kelly Marcavage. As an SPFA member or PCP enrollee, don’t miss this chance to get a bunch of free education before the opportunity is gone! Even if you are just curious what the program entails, go through the courses to remove the testing intimidation – if it’s on the test, it’s in the prep materials. You can do this, and earn a new top-level industry credential in no time.

SPFA COVID-19 Website: SPFA recognized very early that the volume of COVID-related information was going to be huge. The only answer was a microsite with the flexibility to handle that volume of information and constant changes, and regular addition of important event notices. The site is available at www.spfacovid19.com and offers recent related news, legislative summaries, partner resources and federal/state guidance. Notably the site also links to a number of Inc. Magazine and US Chamber of Commerce webinars to give perspective and ideas for our members – small business challenges and solutions, entrepreneurship, motivation, creativity and more.
 
Technical Services: SPFA Tech Services and members acted quickly to update the SPFA Contractor Model Written Safety Program over the past two weeks. Notably one of those changes was inclusion of silica-related documentation for anyone dealing with concrete drilling, cutting or SPF injection for leveling. The other section is new focusing on Contagious Disease Control Program. As noted elsewhere in this newsletter, the SPFA Model Written Safety Program is offered at no charge to SPFA members and can be downloaded from the SPFA website in the Member Only Section. This document, especially with the regular updates and increasing value, is estimated to be worth over $900.00 if purchased and custom designed for an SPF contractor customer externally. Tech services has been front and center on COVID-related issues and questions from members, but also on the normal duties of SPFA business like termite codes, ASTM standards, new Life Cycle Assessment Updates further demonstrating SPF’s unique performance, and more. If you have a tech question or issue please direct it to SPFA Tech Services Director Rick Duncan.
 
Industry Promotion: SPFA has been active on a number of industry coalitions both representing SPF interests, and also picking up the information that other experts have to share, which makes us better and allows us to bring more value to you. One of the most significant recent rollouts focuses upon SPF roofing. SPFA is a member of the Back to Work on America’s Roof Coalition in the United States that enjoys direct participation from all Executive Directors of every major roof-related trade association, including NRCA. Participating in this group SPFA was able to have a role in the Back to Work on America’s Roofs initiative, and extend the information and benefits to our members. There is a press release attached, and a social media/digital badge for you to use to show you stand behind this program. More information, policy positions and social media / digital badges are available for download from SPFA’s COVID-19 website.

SPFA Events: Ready for some exciting news? While SPFA was out in front on PPP and other government funding sources to help keep the members’ lights on and employees paid, that initial report and recorded webinar is still available on the SPFA COVID-19 website. But there have been a number of topics that have arisen and needing our attention, and so many industry related events have been cancelled. Plus, the SPF industry needs an opportunity to reconnect and re-engage as we chart our course to COVID recovery – which is going to happen. SPFA will be announcing dates for an upcoming digital event that will deliver timely and helpful information, such as how to manage your company’s liability as you send workers back to the office or jobsite, what kinds of guidance is available from OSHA and our other federal partners to work as safely as possible, how are remote/digital inspections keeping construction projects moving, and discussions on how companies in our industry are turning the challenges of today into opportunities for business growth tomorrow. We will also be building in a way for manufacturers to show that they are here to help contractors through this difficult time. This event will be formally announced in July and taking place late-summer, and is being referred to as the Sprayfoam Show 2020.5. Stay tuned! We are also in 100% full planning and rollout stages for the Sprayfoam Show 2021 in San Antonio (Feb. 2021). There is much speculation about what will need to happen for the show to go on, but we along with World of Concrete, the International Roofing Expo, and the International Builders Show, are all committed to doing what is necessary to have this string of spring shows happen. Changes will need to be made to formatting, layout and procedures, but we are a GO and exhibitorships, sponsorships and speaking topic abstracts are starting to be accepted in the next two weeks. Please stay tuned for announcements on the SPFA 2020.5 digital event, and The Sprayfoam Show 2021!

SPFA Regional Digital Member Meetings: With the economic, social and business challenges facing member companies, SPFA has been requested to establish forums for member companies in certain regions to be able to assemble to discuss and address issues relevant to them. There is strength and safety in numbers, which is the whole point of a trade association, especially when we are all trying to emerge from COVID with businesses intact. So SPFA will be hosting a webinar for each region in July. These will not be presentations or one-way speaking, but rather a forum for staff and members to bring issues, obstacles and opportunities to SPFA’s attention, and to those of the other members in the same region. Discussion can and will range from COVID issues, to ongoing work, building codes, inspection issues and more – the agenda is wide open. This is about reconnecting and making a difference in our collective future. Think about attending even if you just want to catch up with SPF companies in your area dealing with the same things you are. They will take place each advertised day via GoToMeeting from 4-5pm ET, cocktail optional, webcam optional. Region setup: Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, Southwest and West. If you are interested in connecting with members in your region to cooperatively look at challenges and opportunities to beat the effects of COVID on your business, please watch for the notification. If you want to show your interest in attending one of these events right now, and be sure to get any distributed info on them, please pre-sign up here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SPFARegionalMtg. The region with the highest volume and most immediate responses will be the first scheduled so don’t wait. The pre-event interest form takes 90 seconds to complete. SPFA will also create a Basecamp online project community for each region to continue the dialogue electronically between meetings, and will automatically add attendees to the appropriate regional groups.

SPFA Board of Directors Election: As noted elsewhere in this newsletter, SPFA is facilitating a 2020-2022 Board of Directors election. This is such an uncertain time for everyone’s futures, and each of the member company nominees have businesses to run. The fact that they have accepted nominations to dedicate any amount of time to their industry and trade association is remarkable. It’s humbling and exciting at the same time. The expectations they have to participate in the SPFA strategic recovery plan for the industry, to bring SPF and SPFA back to where we were headed before COVID, and to will each of us into a better future with a new and adapted industry, and new and adapted SPFA, is truly exciting. As an SPFA member, vote for whomever you want, but vote, and thank these candidates for their commitment to you and all of us.

OSHA PPE Presentation for SPF: Notably during this presentation from OSHA to the predominantly ACC and sprayfoam industry audience, OSHA acknowledged that due to SPF’s unique installation requirements the activity likely falls into the lower (caution) risk categories. This should come as uplifting news for the industry and our customers. Now that does not mean professionals in this industry should lower their COVID defenses in any way, but with the extensive respiratory and skin PPE required for an SPF installation, the ventilation, the requirement for occupants and/or other trades to be vacant during and after installation, and the small crew capable of handling an SPF installation, the industry has so many unique benefits that should spur confidence and demand among customers. Even though you are benefitting from these unique aspects of an SPF jobsite – the workers still need to be very cautious when around others, extra cautious around customer interactions, traveling to or from the jobsite, taking breaks, visiting bathrooms, disinfecting equipment and PPE, keeping hands sanitized, and wearing a face covering when sharing any space with someone 6 feet away or less, etc. Professionals also need to be extra cautious in the event an elderly worker or customer is present, or if the worker has a pre-existing condition (heart, lung, diabetes, etc) that may open them up to greater exposure and consequences of COVID-19. Protecting customers is paramount, but so is protecting your people. According to OSHA: Tasks that allow employees to remain at least 6 feet apart and involve little contact with the public, visitors or customers. Note: For activities in the lower (caution) risk category, OSHA's Interim Guidance for Workers and Employers of Workers at Lower Risk of Exposure (page 7) may be most appropriate. Download the latest OSHA Guidelines for Construction Industry below to share with your teams.

SPFA Membership: SPFA membership is what sustains us. As a non-profit 501c6 trade association representing this industry, SPFA unfortunately does NOT qualify for PPP or other supplemental funding. We made sure it was available to, and understood by members, but associations didn’t make the cut. That means we as your small business and small staff association are still working hard trying to make SPFA member companies successful without the safety net that was made available to your companies. You being successful is the only way we are going to keep fighting. Your success is directly tied to our existence. Please, if you’ve been working, or if you’ve been able to defer some of your salary and operating expenses with a PPP loan, or in any way have funding to support SPFA right now, we need it. There is no other org solely focused on your issues like SPFA. We will be issuing a special Commemorative SPFA COVID-19 Sustaining Member digital badge to every company that supports us this year. If you still need to renew, or are interested in joining for the first time (ask about new-member incentives) please contact Mickey Riesenberg today or download a membership form www.sprayfoam.org/about/join-spfa!

As we say around here, FORWARD ONLY. SPFA continues to work hard for its members and the industry. But perhaps more importantly we try to be a positive and driving force for our members and focus on the future. We work to deliver a path of optimism and effort that will pave the road to our industry’s recovery. Remember – your fate is in your hands, and the only limiting factor is your belief. Please join us, and support us, while we work to get the industry back on track.
 
-- Kurt Riesenberg