Provide Solid Starting Block for Young Swimmers

Swim Coach Susan Pascale-Frechette has provided a solid starting block for thousands of New England’s top swimmers of all ages. As the founder of Pods Swimming in East Providence, Rhode Island, she believes that children should take to the water at the earliest age possible, even as infants.   Under her guidance, countless aspiring swim champions have learned water safety while developing a life-long love of swimming and a sense of competition.  Among her many accolades, Pascale-Frechette has twice been honored with the New England Age Group Coach of the Year award, and Pods was named 2019 SBA New England’s Best Women Owned Small Business of the Year.

Her new state-of-the-art Pods Swimming is designed to give parents and students the assurance that the swim environment and water quality are the best in class. The bustling 11,900 square foot complex currently employs more than 40 Pods instructors, who work with students ranging from 6 months to 12-years-of-age. The center features a 20 x 40 sq. ft. shallow teaching pool, six-lane lap pool, men’s and women’s locker rooms, a family changing room, and a snack bar.

“From the choice of our lockers, pool filtration system, and tile, everything was specified to uphold the highest professional standards for instruction in swimming and aquatic safety,” Pascale-Frechette explained. These high standards resulted in the selection of Scranton Products’ HDPE Tufftec® lockers in navy blue to complement the aquatic blue and white design motif. The units are available in an array of designer colors as well as multiple textures and sizes.

More than 50 frames and 100 openings were installed in the locker rooms, changing rooms and staff headquarters providing users with a secure and sanitary storage space for personal items. In addition to being much quieter than traditional metal lockers, Tufftec’s® low-maintenance features are ideal for holding up to the rugged daily use of young swimmers.

‘You always love the easy installations,” offered Josh Breth, owner of New England Partition & Installation. “This was as about as clean as it gets. Just do the job and move on, which is just the way we like it.”

“The first thing I notice when I go to a public place is the cleanliness of the establishment,” said Pascale-Frechette. “Tufftec® lockers nicely align with our commitment to sanitary conditions throughout the facility by being easy to clean and maintain on a daily basis.”

Engineered for strength and durability, Tufftec’s® HDPE material is impermeable to moisture, which makes it naturally resistant to bacteria compared to other materials like wood and metal, which invite mold, mildew and microbes to embed in crevices.

Pascale-Frechette added, “Since Tufftec® is made from HDPE, we know they’ll stand up to the rigors of a chlorinated pool environment,” unlike old-fashioned metal lockers, which would be highly susceptible to rust, corrosion, and damage.

Because Pods caters to enthusiastic young swimmers in an enclosed structure, it was important to choose materials that would help curtail noise. Each Tufftec® locker is crafted to open and close quietly and smoothly, an essential feature in an echo-prone environment.

In addition to contributing to noise reduction and cleanliness, the versatile HDPE composite is specifically designed to be resistant to impact, scratches, and dents. Tufftec’s durability and low-maintenance features keep the units looking new—a perfect fit for the overall aesthetic of the Pods facility.

Pascale-Frechette remains committed to providing high-quality instruction to members of her tight-knit community.  “Swimming is not only my passion, it’s my life,” says Pascale-Frechette. “It’s been my honor to work with numerous students who have gone on to compete in national and New England regional tournaments. But the talent level doesn’t matter since the ultimate goal of Pods Swimming is to teach students to be safe in the water, love the water, and enjoy the sport of swimming with skills that will last a lifetime.”

To learn more about Scranton Products’ Tufftec® lockers  visit: http://scrantonprodu1.wpengine.com.