As the year closes, it is time to reflect on the activities of 2021. Despite all the challenges of 2021, the realm of standards development has been quite successful. ASSE International has been focused on maintaining its portfolio of product standards to remain current within the ANSI process. This means that every standard must be reviewed and either revised or reaffirmed in a period not to exceed five years.
Within the past two years, most of ASSE’s standards were in need of review, which was a challenge. This is a time-consuming activity that relies on volunteers from the industry. Without this expertise, it would not be possible to develop relevant standards that service the needs of the industry.
As a result of this dedication, ASSE has published 24 editions of various product standards in the past 12 months. This is up from the 18 published in 2020. This is unprecedented! Many thanks to the scores of volunteers.
Included in the 24 standards are two new standards — ASSE 1098, Performance Requirements for Atmospheric Vacuum Breakers or Vacuum Toilet Assemblies and Galley Waste Disposal Units on Commercial Aircraft, and ASSE 1099, Performance Requirements for Pressurized Water Storage Tanks.
ASSE 1098 was developed by request from the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the airline industry. Interestingly, FDA is the authority over food equipment, water supply, and sanitation on commercial airplanes. FDA approached ASSE to develop standard requirements related to backflow protection of the water supply for commercial planes. This turns out to be a niche application of a plumbing system that is not covered by code or any existing product standards. ASSE was able to work successfully with various stakeholders in the airline industry to develop requirements for backflow prevention devices found in this unique environment.
ASSE 1099 was co-authored with Water Systems Council (WSC). This standard covers pressurized water storage tanks used in water well systems for residential homes. This complements ASSE 1093-2019, Performance Requirements for Pitless Adapters, Pitless Units, and Well Caps. These two standards are important standards, as over 40 million people in the U.S. receive their drinking water from an in-ground well. Yet, until these standards were published, there were no unified safety and performance requirements for these systems.
Of the other standards published, only nine were reaffirmed. This leaves 13 standards that were revised to include updates for new technologies, and refinement of requirements and test methods. This is one of the most important aspects of the five-year review process. As the industry advances, there are new innovations and new applications for the products covered by the standards. It is necessary to keep standards current to ensure product safety and to define performance requirements to meet the needs of end users.
While maintaining standards takes a lot of effort and places demands on our volunteers’ time, the benefits of well-written, relevant, consensus standards is the precedent that underscores the dynamic system of ASSE International standards. This crucial work will continue.
New, Revised, and Reaffirmed ASSE Standards Published in 2021
- ASSE 1001, Atmospheric Type Vacuum Breakers
- ASSE 1010, Water Hammer Arresters
- ASSE 1012, Backflow Preventers with Intermediate Atmospheric Vent
- ASSE 1013, Reduced Pressure Principle Backflow Prevention Assemblies
- ASSE 1015, Double Check Backflow Prevention Assemblies
- ASSE 1018 (R), Trap Seal Primer Valves – Potable Water Supplied
- ASSE 1022, Backflow Preventer for Beverage Dispensing Equipment
- ASSE 1024 (R), Dual Check Backflow Preventers
- ASSE 1030, Positive Pressure Reduction Devices for Sanitary Drainage Systems
- ASSE 1032 (R), Dual Check Valve Type Backflow Preventers for Carbonated Beverage Dispensers, Post Mix Type
- ASSE 1047, Reduced Pressure Detector Backflow Prevention Assemblies
- ASSE 1048, Double Check Detector Backflow Prevention Assemblies
- ASSE 1049, Individual and Branch Type Air Admittance Valves for Chemical Waste Systems
- ASSE 1050, Stack Air Admittance Valves for Sanitary Drainage Systems
- ASSE 1051, Individual and Branch Type Air Admittance Valves for Sanitary Drainage Systems
- ASSE 1056 (R), Spill Resistant Vacuum Breaker
- ASSE 1060 (R), Outdoor Enclosures for Fluid Conveying Components
- ASSE 1062 (R), Temperature Actuated, Flow Reduction (TAFR) Valves for Individual Supply Fittings
- ASSE 1063 (R), Air Valve and Vent Inflow Preventer
- ASSE 1071 (R), Temperature Actuated Mixing Valves for Plumbed Emergency Equipment
- ASSE 1079 (R), Dielectric Pipe Union
- ASSE 1082, Water Heaters with Integral Temperature Control Devices for Hot Water Distribution Systems
- ASSE 1098 (N), Vacuum Toilet Assemblies and Galley Waste Disposal Units on Passenger Aircrafts
- ASSE 1099 (N), Pressurized water tanks
(R) = Reaffirmed, (N) = New
