Sessions focus on centrifugal pumps, vibration analysis, mechanical seals and more.
Pumps & Systems
09/19/2018
The pump industry is always evolving, and Geiger Pump & Equipment’s Symposium adapts with it. The 12th Mid-Atlantic Pump & Process Symposium took place this year at Geiger’s facility in Aston, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 13, with more than 300 industry workers in attendance.
“It’s migrated from early on,” Geiger CEO Henry Peck said. “Quickly, we realized that when people came to our facility, people came to learn. We were caught off guard. “At first, we were modeling our symposium off of trade shows. We would exhibit, showing our products to our customers. But what attendees came for were the classes that we had mixed in our schedule. It was abundantly clear that they were interested in learning and collaborating.” Peck appreciated that. He intentionally sends his employees to training events much like the ones his company puts on. “We answer to that, the continual process of learning, and I try to share that,” he said. “We resonated with that,” Peck said. “Today, and for the almost 20 years that we have had our symposium, the centerpiece of our day is the learning experience. The classes are taught by Geiger employees, and most of the company workers are putting on the show while others run the business throughout the day.” Henry Fominyam has been a trainer at the Upper Occuquan Service Authority (UOSA) in Fairfax, Virginia, for 15 years. He and five co-workers made the trip for the symposium. “I train, but I don’t really have much experience with pumps because I’m not a mechanic,” Fominyam said. “I’m more like an operator. Since I do a lot of training, I wanted to come out and see what the pumps are. When you have clean pumps (for training exercises), you see a lot more than with dirty pumps (in real-world simulations).” Attendees pre-registered online at no charge and chose three 90-minute classes. Fominyam’s first class was Centrifugal Pump Assembly & Repair, which was taught by Geiger Senior Sales Engineer Todd Jenner. “People are thirsty for our hands-on classes. And, we have introduced interactive features to many of our classes this year, and that went very well.” Peck said. “Having hands on, actual pumps and process equipment has appeal. When you get your hands on it and get it on a table with the proper tools, that’s something that I and others have given as a class for decades.” Other classes included:- Installation, Startup and Commissioning of Pump Systems
- Pump Fundamentals and Variable Speed Operation
- Hands-on Exploration of Pumping System Optimization
- Installation and Maintenance of Mechanical Seals
- Equipment, Health Monitoring and Vibration Analysis
- Toughest Applications for Water and Wastewater
- Demonstrating Process Equipment
- Fundamentals of Mechanical Seals