Engineers who design residential and municipal pumping systems are often faced with a critical task: they must specify and maintain a water delivery system that meets high performance demands and distributes water that is consistently safe for human consumption. That’s what makes the standards for drinking water applications so important. These strict standards are used throughout the US and Canada to help engineers identify products that are certified safe for drinking water system components. However, identifying certified components is only one part of the specifying challenge. Engineers must also understand how those components are vetted and how they will deliver the hydraulics and functionality needed for the application. Meeting the challenges of performance while ensuring public safety can be complicated, even for industry professionals. What steps can engineers take to ensure they’re specifying a system that addresses the application requirements? Consider these insights regarding drinking water standards – what they mean, how they’ve changed, and how you can use them to design a system that meets a home or community’s performance demands.  

Designing for Tomorrow: Why is it important for engineers to stay ahead of standards?

Continuous improvement is critical in the water industry, and drinking water standards are no different. In fact, these standards are constantly in review. For example, a specific drinking water standard first adopted in the late 1980s, has been published over 40 times. Innovative new materials, new threats to water quality, and new variables are all important to engineers – and all are considered when new standards are developed. That allows the standards to address any new science related to water quality while making sure engineers can design systems that are safe to use today and well into the future.

The team that evaluates and writes the drinking water standards is extensive, and includes representatives from three core sectors: manufacturing, general interest (such as the EPA and state regulators) and the certifying bodies themselves.

Manufacturers are involved in these discussions for a very important reason: they can provide insight into feasibility and performance. While public safety is paramount, standards must be achievable from a production standpoint. Are the materials realistic and cost-effective? Can a pump be produced to meet a standard – and what will it take? When new standards are established, it often takes from several months to years for a manufacturer to build these compliant products. By having a voice at this table, manufacturers help assure that quality products are constantly in the development pipeline.

Online selection tools can help engineers build a system that meets the latest standards. These tools can swap out non-compliant materials to drinking water compliant ones, making product selection easier. They can also instantly provide the documentation needed to verify compliance.