PHCC, Delta Recognize Plumbing Industry’s Contractor of the Year and Apprentice of the Year

Sponsored by Delta Faucet Company, the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors—National Association’s Plumbing Contractor of the Year and Plumbing Apprentice of the Year awards have become symbols of excellence throughout the industry. This year, the organizations recognized Cory Hoopes of Focus Plumbing in Nevada as the PHCC Plumbing Contractor of the Year, and Ed Zalko, a third-year apprentice with PHCC’s Greater Sacramento Area Plumbing Apprentice Program, as the PHCC Plumbing Apprentice of the Year. The award recipients were honored during the PHCCCONNECT2020 Awards Ceremony, a virtual event this year.

Plumbing Contractor of the Year

In the presentation of the award to Hoopes, Ali McKinney-Feldman, national pro strategy & business development leader for Delta, said the Focus Plumbing owner represents what “being a PHCC member is all about … care and concern for his employees and their families, helping young people become licensed professionals, helping to improve the industry and maintaining great relationships with fellow members.”

Hoopes’ support of the PHCC of Nevada chapter and its Apprenticeship Training Program “is overwhelming,” she added. Not only does Hoopes serve on the chapter’s board of directors, but his company can be counted on to sponsor and participate in apprentice events, build classrooms and benches for apprentice competitions and much more. In fact, four of Focus Plumbing’s journeymen are instructors in the program, and the company consistently has 20-30 students enrolled in the program.

McKinney-Feldman also recapped how Focus Plumbing supports the community and a multitude of charities. Opening in 2009 with 12 employees, Focus Plumbing now employs more than 450 people and has 87 trucks on the road that proudly display the PHCC logo.

Plumbing Apprentice of the Year

Recognizing the outstanding skill and achievement of those enrolled in a plumbing training program, the PHCC Plumbing Apprentice of the Year was awarded to Zalko, who was sponsored by James Caccia Plumbing of San Mateo, California.

During the ceremony, Delta’s McKinney-Feldman described Zalko as a “self-starter” who begins each day with a “set of goals he wants to meet that day.” In two years, he has become a team leader who not only exceeds in his own studies, but is always willing to lend a hand to instructors and his fellow students.

Zalko is in the top of his class at the PHCC GSA Training Facility and earned first place in a local apprentice contest in 2019. “His skills and knowledge sharpen each day, and he is constantly looking for better ways to perform those skills,” the Delta rep reported. “He is a hard worker and stays with a project until it is completed.”