Members of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) Efficiency Solutions Engineering team visited IAPMO World Headquarters in Ontario, California, earlier this year for presentations, discussions and a tour of the facility. Several new LADWP staff engineers participated in the visit.
The LADWP delegation included Amir Tabakh, USM, P.E., who has since retired as assistant director of Distributed Energy Solutions, Efficiency Solutions Engineering & DWP La Kretz Labs, and Armen Saiyan, manager of Efficiency Solutions Engineering and La Kretz Labs.
During the visit, IAPMO staff provided an overview of several areas of the organization’s work. Ohannes Dembekjian, executive vice president of Customer Service at IAPMO R&T, discussed inspection and continuous compliance; Hugo Aguilar, P.E., IAPMO senior vice president of Codes and Standards, discussed IAPMO’s codes, the codes and standards development process, and recent changes; and Anish Desai, senior vice president of Product Certification for IAPMO R&T, provided an overview of product listings and certification.
IAPMO R&T Lab Executive Vice President Ken Wijaya and Sal Aridi, director of Special Projects and Business Development for IAPMO R&T, led the visitors on a tour of IAPMO’s laboratory, where they observed product testing and some of the latest equipment used to test pipes and fittings, faucets and valves, backflow prevention devices, plumbing fixtures such as toilets, urinals, sinks and bathtubs, water filtration systems, and materials for lead and other substances.
As part of the ongoing collaboration, LADWP management requested IAPMO’s support in several areas, including plumbing product testing and demonstrations, evaluation of emerging technologies, and operation of the Plumbing Laboratory at the La Kretz Innovation Campus. The requested support includes work involving leak detection devices, irrigation controls, heat pump water heaters and the IAPMO Water Demand Calculator®, as well as training and technical support related to plumbing testing, standards and research.
LADWP also requested IAPMO’s support for water conservation and emerging water technologies, including efforts to expand onsite nonpotable water reuse and recycled water, advance treated graywater systems, and evaluate new water-efficiency technologies and practices.
The visit also provided an opportunity to discuss the ongoing partnership between IAPMO and LADWP, including their memorandum of understanding, then nearing the conclusion of its sixth year.
IAPMO and LADWP finalized a three-year renewal of the agreement Aug. 7.
Mike Flenniken
Mike Flenniken is a staff writer, Marketing and Communications, for IAPMO. Prior to joining IAPMO in 2010, Flenniken worked in public relations for a group of Southern California hospitals and as a journalist in writing and editing capacities for various Southern California daily newspapers.
Last modified: November 13, 2026