Board members were elected, special members were recognized and a new career program was approved at the Valve Manufacturers Association’s 76th Annual Meeting Sept. 18-20 at the Ritz-Carlton Dove Mountain in Marana, AZ. Association members also heard from several experts in the economic and consulting fields.

The Water Environment Federation’s Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC), the largest water event in North America, is expected to beat records for exhibits and session attendance that were set in 2013.

Valve World Expo, the 9th Biennial Valve World Conference & Exhibition, Dec. 2-4, 2014 in Düsseldorf, Germany, has grown significantly since the event moved to that location. In the first year, 2010, 535 companies exhibited; by the second year, 2012, there were 591 and this year, there are already more than 625 with three months to go. Because of that growth, the expo organizers have opened up a third exhibit hall for total exhibit space of more than 190,000 feet.

The Valve Manufacturers Association welcomed its first chairman from a Canadian company when Ivan Velan, executive vice president, Velan, Montreal, Quebec, was sworn into office at the 75th annual meeting last fall. But Ivan Velan brings other unique factors to the position as well.