PWQA mourns Mary Layton
It is with great sadness that PWQA announced the passing of Mary Bryant Layton. The organization lost a true pioneer of the water improvement industry in California. She was a founding member of PWQA with her husband, Glenn M. Layton, who served as President in 1966-67. Mary’s sons Michael and Chris both served as association President, in 1977-78 and 1988-89 respectively. Her granddaughter, Kristi Pihl, served as the Executive Director of PWQA for many years. Glenn, Michael, Chris and Kristi all received honors as Hall of Fame members. A funeral mass was held in Newport Beach on February 14. The family requests donations be made to the St. Joseph Hospital Orange Foundation, 1010 West LaVeta Avenue, Orange, CA 92868.
WCP Editor Roberts retires
WC&P wishes Denise Roberts all the best in retirement after many years of loyal service as Executive Editor. She is one-of-a-kind and her dedication to the water treatment industry will be missed.
Tomei, Bruursema take on new WQA roles
WQA has named Cindy Tomei, CAE, its Engagement & Advocacy Services Deputy Director. In this new role, she will lead the association’s membership, external affairs and government affairs departments. Tomei previously served as VP, Strategic Partnerships, with the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in business administration with a marketing concentration from Kutztown (PA) State College and has earned a CAE certification. In a related move, Tom Bruursema has been named WQA’s new Associate Executive 
Director of Technical Programs. He has been with the association since 2018, serving as Associate Executive Director of Member & Public Engagement. Prior to WQA, Bruursema spent 30 years at NSF International, where for a time he was General Manager of Drinking Water
Treatment Units and Environmental and Research Services. He holds a Master of Science Degree in biology from Eastern Michigan University.
AMTA Fellowship honors announced
The American Membrane Technology Association (AMTA) and the National Water Research Institute (NWRI) announced the 2021 recipients of the NWRI/AMTA Graduate Fellowships for Membrane Technology. The two recipients undertaking cutting-edge and innovative research will receive a $10,000 fellowship to support their research that advances membrane technology in the fields of water, wastewater, or water reuse. Weiliang Bai is a PhD student at the University of Texas at Austin. He received a fellowship for research titled Setting 
up a comprehensive Omics platform for detecting biofouling in reverse osmosis (RO) seawater desalination plants. Jose Diaz, University of Michigan PhD student, received a fellowship for research titled Ion sorption and transport in novel highly charged and tunable ion exchange membranes contacted with non-ideal electrolyte solutions.
Barker promoted at US Water
US Water Systems has named Justin Barker as Chief Revenue Officer, effective November 2021. He began his career as Regional Sales Manager with Physician Corporation of America then moved to Bristol-Myers Squibb in 1997, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals in 2000 and GlaxoSmithKline in late 2011. Helping to build Pelican Water Systems, Barker grew the infrastructure, established the sales organization and laid the foundation for the 2013 sale of the company. He stayed in senior leadership with focus on new business, having built the wholesale and plumbing industry water treatment line know as Enviro Water Products in 2014. Barker remained with Pelican Water and led the wholesale division through the 2019 strategic purchase by Pentair, then stayed on as leader of the wholesale division for North America through January 2020.He accepted the role of VP of Sales, US Molecular Diagnostics division for The Elitech Group, where he built the US sales team that delivered record growth and profit for the company before he exited in November 2021.
Wiley named to VP post at PHTA
The Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA) announced Justin Wiley as VP of Government Relations, Standards and Codes. He began in this expanded role in February. Wiley will lead advocacy for the pool and hot tub industry on federal, state and local levels. He will also be responsible for the development and maintenance of PHTA’s safety and performance standards and their adoption into codes and regulations across the nation. Wiley most recently served as VP of Government Relations at the International Code Council (ICC). He has more than 15 years of construction and safety industry association experience, with a focus on building safety, sustainability and resiliency. Wiley graduated from Southern Utah University with a degree in political science and then received an MBA in technology management from Westminster College. While at ICC, Wiley worked closely with PHTA staff and several members, and has been a strong advocate for code adoption for pools and hot tubs.
Desai promoted at IAPMO R&T
IAPMO R&T announced the promotion of Anish Desai to Senior VP of Product Certification. In addition to continuing to oversee daily operation of the Certification Department, he will broaden his involvement with industry associations and standard development activities while furthering his engagement with key clients. A graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign with a BS Degree in mechanical engineering, Desai has served in numerous roles during his 19 years with The IAPMO Group, starting as a product review engineer in 2003. After a promotion to Quality Assurance Manager handling accreditation audits, Desai assumed management responsibility for the Certification Department.
Hankscraft Runxin welcomes Studnicka
Hankscraft Runxin, LLC of Reedsburg, WI welcomes Nic Studnicka as their new Graphic Designer and Marketing Associate. Studnicka brings over 10+ years of experience in Graphic Design while developing corporate branding and marketing initiatives. “I’m excited to be part of a team that has such a diverse portfolio of products, multiple opportunities of growth, and operates worldwide,” Studnicka says.