FVTC plumbers tackle global challenge

GRAND CHUTE — Team USA will soon embark on international competition, and half its members hail from Fox Valley Technical College.

It isn’t the Olympics. It isn’t the World Cup.

It's the Community Plumbing Challenge.

And while it isn’t likely to garner widespread attention or fanfare, it’s expected to have a huge impact on lives. Contestants will leave India in early November having improved sanitation — and ultimately health — for potentially thousands of children.

“It’s one of the most incredible things I’ve been a part of,” said Randy Lorge, instructor of plumbing apprenticeship at FVTC.

Students Adam Koenigs and Peter Hollmaier, each 27, will travel to Nashik, India at the end the month to participate in the challenge. They’ll represent the U.S. in a competition that will include teams from India, Australia and China.

The goal of the event is to showcase the skills of young professionals in creating solutions for developing countries with inadequate sanitation systems.

Koenigs, of Malone, said it’s an honor to represent America's tradesmen.

“I take a lot of pride in the logo,” Koenigs said, looking down at his embroidered Team USA shirt.

Lorge, who will make the trip as an adviser, said the apprentices might well be in the midst of their biggest challenge at the very front end of their careers.

The competition will benefit a public school of more than 500 students. It has just three squat toilets, and photos show one of them is broken. There are 13 urinals for the girls and seven for the boys. The restrooms are dark, poorly ventilated, and students share an inadequate washroom that's the school's lone source of water.

“It was breathtaking to see what they don’t have, and what we take for granted,” Lorge said.

It’s an effort complicated by water scarcity. The school receives a daily allotment, which is stored in rooftop tanks and used sparingly. Team USA has considered ways to make the best use of the water.

They’ll face language barriers and will be limited in tools and materials. The goal is to leave behind improvements that can be replicated elsewhere in India, meaning that teams need to rely on materials that are readily accessible.

Time is expected to be a major challenge for competitors. The U.S. team in its early planning came up with a number of workable solutions — “if we had three months,” Lorge said.

The competitive portion of the event will be decided before the first turn of a wrench. Each of the teams will present their renovation plans and undergo an interview.

The winning team will become project managers, and the teams will work together to renovate the school's washroom over three days. The remaining plans will be left behind for completion after the teams return home.

The project has called for considerable creativity for team members.

“There’s a lot of head-scratching,” said Hollmaier, of Neenah.

Their tasks in India will go beyond hands-on labor. They’ll spend time with children, teaching the importance of hygiene and how proper sanitation leads to community health.

Team USA could accurately be called Team Wisconsin. Koenings and Hollmaier will be joined by students Miya Preston and Jill Vande Boom from the Milwaukee School of Engineering.

Fox Valley Technical College students are expected to participate in an African plumbing challenge next year.

Hollmaier and Koenigs said they're excited the project could create a domino effect and open the door to better lives throughout India.

The experience has already been eye-opening, and they're still weeks from boarding a plane.

“It’s awesome to see how your profession can change the world,” Hollmaier said.

— Jim Collar: 920-993-1000, ext. 216, or jcollar@postcrescent.com; on Twitter @JimCollar