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News

Meet our President

Presidents Day is celebrated on the third Monday in February every year, honoring our US Presidents.  This week we thought we’d take a closer look at our own President of Suburban Testing Labs, Richard C. Stump, III. We asked Rich what he sees as the biggest regulatory issue coming and what he loves to do when he puts on the lab coat and works behind the scenes.

The question on many of our minds is the future of environmental regulations.  What do you think is the biggest regulatory issue upcoming that will impact our industry?

PFAS is still the most impactful regulatory program coming down the pipeline.  Although regulation moves incredibly slowly, and the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted things quite a bit, test requirements for this group of analytes are coming and will be of environmental interest for many years to come.

What instrument or method is the most fun for you to work on, and why?

I find working with any type of automation the most interesting to work on. We’ve aggressively invested in cutting-edge automation to maximize productivity over the last 10 years. Automation brings increased complexity to even the most basic analysis, and it is fascinating to troubleshoot and improve automated processes. If I had to pick a method, I would identify VOA as the most interesting. The analytes are both easily lost and easily introduced as contaminants from the environment, and the analytical technique is automated and has a lot of critical steps that make it complex but fun!

About our President

Rich joined the company full-time in 2001.  Rich currently serves as President for Suburban Testing Labs, providing overall strategic leadership and organization management. He leads a team of nearly 100 Laboratory Staff, including the Microbiologists, Chemists, Environmental Scientists, Field Scientists, and Client Services team members. Rich has extensive technical abilities and has a reputation for knowing every instrument and process inside and out. He regularly provides technical guidance to clients, as well. Rich is strongly linked to business units on all sides of the regulatory environment.

Rich holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Kutztown University. He has also been involved in various professional organizations, including currently serving as a Board Member for the Reading Science Center. He has received numerous awards and accolades from the professional community. He regularly serves as a go-to technical presenter for laboratory analysis and regulatory topics related to the environmental industry.

Outside of work, Rich resides in Wernersville, Pennsylvania with his wife Sara, and children Madison (10) and Adam (9).  He is an avid outdoorsman enjoying hunting, shooting, fishing, and boating.

Suburban Testing Labs has grown from a small, regional water testing company to one of the largest family-owned, independent, single-site environmental testing laboratories in North America. Firmly rooted in high-standards with an eye soaring to new heights, we are ready to be your partner for success.