Look for members of the RIA staff this year at many of the shows restoration professionals and other allied industry associations will be attending. RIA is making a proactive effort to promote its members and their expertise in front of a variety of audiences.

IDCE

Several RIA senior staff members and key volunteers traveled to New Orleans in January to attend the International Disaster Conference & Expo (IDCE). The goal was to meet the individuals responsible for disaster planning and response within the local and federal governments. RIA members and staff presented at five different sessions, including one keynote address. The message that each presentation reinforced is that RIA members are knowledgeable, prepared and willing to work with government officials and businesses to rebuild towns, neighborhoods, companies and lives because disasters are our business.

RIA made many contacts with state, local and federal government agencies. This included new vendors which supply goods and services that will benefit member firms and experts on a variety of subjects. We also welcomed a number of new members into the RIA family.

PIC & Insights

RIA senior staff members and volunteers also attended the Property Industry Conference (PIC) in Austin, TX. The event brought together many leaders in the property damage industry including vendors, suppliers, numerous restoration firms, third-party administrators, a leading insurer and others who work in or supply services to the industry. The goal was to begin a dialogue among the many facets to address how they can work collaboratively to solve problems such as payment and coverage issues. The success of this endeavor depends on getting all of the key parties involved for meaningful discussions.

At Disaster Kleenup International’s Insights convention, the RIA staff had an opportunity to update many members on new initiatives – the redesign of the RIA’s premiere certification program, the Certified Restorer, the introduction of a new warranty program, the progress on the RIA’s accounting guideline, the work beginning on the industry’s first fire damage standard and finally, the association’s efforts to draw attention to the issue of slow or non-payments by mortgage holders.

On the road again…

The RIA staff will continue their marketing efforts throughout the spring, visiting the Xactware Conference, Business Networks’ A Gathering of Eagles, the Indoor Air Quality Association Conference and Expo, PLRB and Crawford Contractor Connections.

The RIA has also been invited to present at Healthy Buildings 2012 in Brisbane, Australia, this summer, where attendees will learn about the new IESO/RIA Standard for the Evaluation of Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Interior Surfaces to Determine the Presence of Fire-related Particulate as a Result of a Structure Fire. The RIA has submitted an abstract that provides an overview of the standard, as well as a look at the lessons learned from the flooding in Brisbane and Toowoomba, Australia, following the flooding there in 2010 and 20011, and updated information on working in high-risk environments such as hospitals or air traffic control towers that must remain in constant use while remediation work is conducted.