From The Publisher November 1998 What do Aretha Franklin, Rodney Dangerfield, and the Irrigation Industry all have in common . . . . . They all want you to give them a little R E S P E C T, and while Aretha can sing her way to respect and Rodney gets his from his oversized bank account, the Irrigation Industry can do little but shrug their shoulders and wonder what they can do to gain the respect of the Landscape Architectural community . . . I was speaking with a representative of a major irrigation company at a recent trade show. This person is well known and liked in the industry and knows the profession (you know who you are so don't get a big head . . . if I didn't build you up a little you'd get no respect ;-) Anyways . . . I do count this person as a reliable source, especially on the following matter. While constantly being hit for and providing donations and contributions and sponsorships et.al., the irrigation manufacturers are becoming disillusioned with the Landscape Architectural profession. You see, while the Irrigation Industry continually supports this profession, they get very little support in return. Does this sound familiar . . . . "Oh, we don't do irrigation. We're more concerned with the overall design" . . . or . . . "all the irrigation manufacturers offer the same thing, we let the contractor decide which products to use" . . . If that does sound familiar, then shame on you! Irrigation design is many things but simple and unimportant it is not. Instead, Irrigation Design is critical to the plant survival on virtually every project. Irrigation Design is critical to the public's health, safety and welfare. Irrigation Design is a great profit center for any firm . . . or . . . Irrigation design will leave your hands, spawn another competitor, and erode your importance to the public. According to my source, the Irrigation Manufacturers have been there to support LA's in the licensure struggles and have lobbied government agencies to require the LA's input on Irrigation and have kicked in tons of cash for everything from B-B-Q's to awards ceremonies. Yet, the Irrigation Industry still feels like the bastard child of the profession . . . that part that no one really wants to talk about or nurture. The thing is, all throughout history that abandoned child has a way of coming back to bite the hand that first slapped it's backside out the door. In your case, the Irrigation Manufacturers are beginning to pull their support from the profession. After all, the irrigation of a project is a must, and if you don't want to do it or follow through on your specs, then they can simply go around the LA and back another segment of the business with donations and lobbying efforts et.al. And you know what . . . you won't see it happen overnight. Instead, little by little Irrigation Design will go to others and by the time you realize it's gone it will be impossible to get it back. Is it to that point already? No, I don't believe so. Does it have to go that way? Again, the answer is no. How do you keep it from happening . . . . . It just takes a little R E S P E C T. If you don't offer Irrigation Design services, you should take measures to bring it in-house. If you don't know the difference between controllers or between rotor driven pop-ups, find out. Do the research and follow your specs. Irrigation Design offers millions of dollars in annual design fees for the profession and millions more in support from manufacturers. It may not be as prevalent as the statue out front, nor as magnificent as the thundering and artistically lit waterfall, but it is a fundamentally important part of every design and a boon for the profession. In a recent LASN survey, 49.50% of the RLA's say they design irrigation systems in-house, so we know it's important to the profession, but with 50.50% not doing it in-house, the profession is at a cross road. Irrigation Design has to be done. Someone will get paid to do it. It is important to the public and the project . . . all it needs is a little RESPECT . . . . Have a great month . . . . George Schmok