PMI appoints two executives to fair trade committee

ROLLING MEADOWS - Plumbing Manufacturers International appointed Carol Baricovich co-chair of the PMI Fair Trade Issue Committee and Michael Miller as liaison between the committee and PMI board of directors.

Currently director of global brands and government relations at Insinkerator, Baricovich has more than 11 years of experience with government and public relations projects for disposer-category plumbing products. Baricovich joins fair trade Issue Committee Co-Chair Chip Way, a sales manager and R & D engineer at Lavelle Industries. Baricovich's co-chair position is effective immediately with an initial July meeting and a two-year term.

Miller, director of product partnerships for NCH Corporation and current PMI board member, will act as a liaison to the fair trade Issue Committee by providing Baricovich and Way ongoing communication with the PMI board of directors. Miller has close to 20 years of plumbing industry product development and management experience. Prior to working in the private sector, Miller served as a chief fire control technician for submarine service in the U.S. Navy.

"We are invigorated to have Carol's and Michael's increased involvement with such an important committee," said Paul Patton, PMI board president and senior manager, R & D and regulatory for Delta Faucet Company. "The PMI fair trade Issue Committee focuses on advancing the conditions necessary for open and fair U.S. and global marketplaces, and to promote mutual respect among trading partners."

PMI advocates for enforcement of trade laws and border regulations, protection for intellectual property rights and modification of U.S. trade laws to call out indirect subsidies as unfair practices. PMI also seeks common international manufacturing standards, elimination of arbitrary import restrictions, and other positions that support imported products meeting the same requirements as domestic manufactured products.