World Plumbing Day 2021: Why Plumbing is More Important than ever in a Covid World

‘Plumbing has sat at the heart of tackling the pandemic’ – Kevin Wellman, CEO of Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering

It’s World Plumbing Day on the 11th March. A day that, since 2010, has represented a celebration of the successes of an ever-thriving industry, where we consider how important plumbing is in today’s society, and why the plumbing industry is essential to us in our daily lives.

But World Plumbing Day in 2021 is, as we might expect, a different story to our previous celebrations over the last decade. This last year has seen plumbers face challenges like no other; they have been on the frontline of a worldwide pandemic, ensuring that our homes are safe and warm. And on this day, we should consider the importance of plumbers as we all battle through an ongoing global crisis.

But why exactly is plumbing so important to us? Why, for instance, have plumbers been awarded a ‘critical worker status’ over the course of the pandemic, awarding them particular benefits and protections as workers, and meaning that they are still able to work and continue to perform the vital services they always have done.

As Kevin Wellman, CEO of Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (CIPHE), notes, plumbers take care of the most fundamental elements of our day-to-day lives, inside and outside our homes: ‘from the clean water, tapes and sinks we use to wash our hands, to the sanitation systems we use to help stop the spread of viruses and bacteria.

‘In this latest lockdown, PPE clad engineers have been the local heroes, fixing cold weather emergencies such as broken-down boilers and burst pipes, in very tough situations’. 

Plumbers, like many other frontline workers, have faced unprecedented challenges, and yet still have had to perform their jobs, use their skills to their utmost abilities, and persevere through the worst of it. Plumbers deserve to be called local heroes, because their sacrifices and successes have been unsung. Well, World Plumbing Day is the day to sing their praises.

Not only are we indebted to plumbers for keeping us warm and comfortable, but in keeping us safe and without injury. Our homes can become dangerous if not properly maintained, and Wellman informs us that ‘the number of hot water scalds and heating system related contact burns has grown at an alarming rate over the past year, due in a large part to the fact we are all spending a lot more time at home.’

We have more to thank plumbers for than we realise – and considering the obstacles that they have had to face over the last year, like many of us, it is all the more admirable that they have continued to work tirelessly to do their jobs. Facing financial and employment stress, issues with supply chains, needing to source PPE, and the risk of being made vulnerable to a deadly disease, plumbers have faced the challenges ahead with a brave face. 

Their roles are invaluable not only for homeowners, but thousands of businesses and all kinds of establishments throughout the country. And for that reason, the question of why plumbing is important has an obvious answer.

‘Our industry will have a huge role to play in supporting homeowners and businesses through a recovery, and those hero capes will be staying firmly in place for the foreseeable future’.

If you want to join the celebrations, there’s no better way to do so than in becoming a plumber yourself. Join the cause, and enquire about a training course today. 

Learn your trade. Get qualified. Make it happen.