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SEPTEMBER 2006 INDUSTRY NEWS

 

U.S. Celebration of World Standards Day 2006
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Washington, DC

What is World Standards Day?
World Standards Day began as a celebration of the birth of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which held its first meeting in London on October 14, 1946. From an initial roster of 25 countries, ISO (based in Geneva, Switzerland) now has 123 member nations and has evolved into the global clearinghouse for all standards activities. ISO's U.S. representative, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), is one of the founding organizations of World Standards Day. Today, World Standards Day is sponsored annually by ISO; the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), which develops international standards for the electrical and electronics industries; and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), an international organization responsible for the coordination, development, regulation, and standardization of telecommunications standards.

The goal of World Standards Day is to raise awareness of the importance of global standardization to the world economy and to promote its role in helping meet the needs of business, industry, government, and consumers worldwide. The international event pays tribute to the thousands of volunteers around the world who participate in standardization activities. Since its initial celebration in 1970, member countries commemorate World Standards Day by organizing special gatherings and events, ranging from conferences, exhibitions, and seminars to film shows, TV and radio interviews, and full "standards weeks" around mid October.

How Does the U.S. Mark This Day?
Each October in Washington, DC, members of the U.S. standardization community gather with other leaders in business, industry and government for a U.S. World Standards Day exhibit, reception and dinner gala. During the dinner ceremony the Ronald Brown Standards Leadership Award is presented to an individual who has demonstrated leadership in promoting the important role of standardization in eliminating global barriers to trade. Awards are also presented to the winners of the World Standards Day Paper Competition, which is designed to raise awareness of the importance of standards, as well as present various perspectives on national and international standards and conformity assessment issues.

Who Sponsors World Standards Day in the U.S.?
In the U.S., World Standards Day is a joint effort between the private and public sector. This year's World Standards Day events were coordinated and funded by the World Standards Day Committee, consisting of representatives from more than 25 major companies, professional and technical societies, trade associations, standards developing organizations and government agencies. The co-chairs of the World Standards Day Committee are the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Why is U.S. Recognition of World Standards Day Important?
World Standards Day presents the American business community with an opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to the important role standards play in increasing U.S. competitiveness. In today's changing economy, industry, government, standards developing organizations, and other groups need to work together to ensure that U.S. products and services are accepted in the global marketplace, thereby enhancing U.S. leadership abroad. World Standards Day provides the U.S. with the forum to build on such relationships.

For more information about World Standards Day and the U.S. celebration plans visit http://www.ansi.org/meetings_events/WSW06/wsd06.aspx?menuid=8. To learn about World Standards Day from ISO’s web site visit http://www.iso.org/iso/en/commcentre/wsd/2006wsdindex.html.

 

National Instruments Hosts Technical Conferences in 26 U.S. Cities

National Instruments announced open registration for the 2006 NI Technical Symposium Professional Development Series for Engineers, the company's annual series of virtual instrumentation conferences that reaches 26 U.S. cities. From October through December 2006, engineers and scientists from across the country will attend the conferences for new product presentations; hands-on, technology-focused sessions; and exhibits on the latest solutions in design, control and test. During the NI Technical Symposium, attendees can exchange ideas on innovative approaches to technical challenges, study future technology trends in virtual instrumentation and learn firsthand how NI software and hardware increases productivity and lowers costs.

Conference attendees also have the opportunity to learn about new NI software -- including LabVIEW 8.20, the 20th anniversary edition of the graphical development environment -- and new NI hardware innovations including PXI, PCI Express and CompactRIO. These products offer greater flexibility, faster system development and increased system performance. Additionally, attendees will hear from experts on the hottest industry topics during keynote presentations and technical sessions.

The NI Technical Symposium builds on the success of NIWeek, the worldwide virtual instrumentation conference and exhibition held annually since 1995. For more information and a complete listing of NI Technical Symposium events, visit www.ni.com/techsym.

 

Emerson Named Best Provider of Process Management Technology

Emerson Process Management, an Emerson business, has been named the Best Technology Provider of process management products in seven categories in Chemical Processing magazine's third annual Readers' Choice Awards. And for the third consecutive year, industry professionals named Emerson best provider of process automation systems, process analyzers, valves and actuators, and flow, level, pressure and temperature instrumentation.

Visit Emerson Process Management at http://www.emersonprocess.com/home/news/pr/609_ChemProcessing.html to learn more.

 

Durometer ILC/PT Offered by NAPT

NAPT, (National Association for Proficiency Testing), is happy to announce that it is now offering a Durometer ILC/PT. This ILC/PT consists of two Durometers, an ASTM D2240 Type A (PTC Model 306L) and an ASTM D2240 Type D (PTC Model 307L). The technical advisor for this ILC is John Marcus from PTC Metrology.

If you are interested in signing up for this ILC/PT please contact NAPT either via their website (www.proficiency.org) or at 763-525-1488.

All NAPT ILC/PT programs are conducted in accordance with ISO/IEC Guide 43-1 and ILAC-G13:2000 requirements for proficiency testing providers. NAPT test results are accepted by all recognized accreditation bodies as being technically sound and in conformance with required standards.

 

MMCW (Manufacturing & Measurement Conference & Workshop) Call For Papers 2007

This year’s conference and workshop focuses on measurement, test and inspection in all its applications—from the manufacturing floor to precision gaging. MMCW 2007 will be held at the Marriott Suites Clearwater Beach on Sand Key, Clearwater, FL, April 23-26, 2007.

This program will consist of a two-day workshop featuring 45-minute paper presentations. In addition, we will have keynote and reoccurring speakers, along with suppliers who will be invited to present and showcase their products and services related to this area through tabletop exhibits.

Visit the MMCW website at www.qualitymag.com/mmcw for more details.

 

ISA Updates and Expands Online University

ISA recently announced a series of updates to ISA CyberU, its newly revamped online university program. The ISA online training program, originally launched in 2002, previously offered customers access to over 100 courses and featured a learning management system (LMS) for students and managers to track progress. At the time of the launch, ISA also began working with third-party content providers to develop over 150 CD-ROM training products, covering 26 subjects.

Continuing ISA's relationships with third-party vendors, course offerings have now been expanded to over 300 courses online and on CD-ROM. ISA's distance education program, now termed ISA CyberU, features online courses, CD-ROM training, brand new DVD courses, video training and web seminar courses covering the world of automation.

Specific curricula offered by ISA CyberU cover automation and control, basic workplace skills, electrical maintenance, machine technology, maintenance troubleshooting, mechanical maintenance, predictive maintenance, and preparation for ISA's CCST and CIMM exams.

In conjunction with the upgrades to ISA CyberU's learning management system, ISA is also working with a third-party vendor to design a CIMM (Certified Industrial Maintenance Mechanic) needs assessment tool. An online testing vehicle, the tool will enable individuals to measure their progress and identify areas for improvement when preparing to take the exam.

For more information about ISA CyberU, please visit www.isa.org/cyberu.

 

Keithley's Metrology Services Earns Rigorous ISO 17025 Accreditation

Keithley Instruments, Inc., a leader in solutions for emerging measurement needs, announces that its Metrology Services Group is now accredited to ISO/IEC 17025:2005, the single most important metrology standard for test and measurement, by the A2LA (American Association for Laboratory Accreditation). This latest accreditation expands the list of Keithley certifications by industry-recognized standards for quality such as ISO 14001 and ISO 9001. The accreditation recognizes that Keithley's Metrology Services meet the requirements of this international standard, demonstrating its technical competence to carry out very high-level calibrations that are essential for many of Keithley's instruments, which have measurement resolutions below 1aA or 10(-15). The scope of accreditation can be viewed at http://www.a2la.org/scopepdf/2462-01.pdf.

Keithley's customers can expect ISO 17025 accredited calibrations for Series 2300 sources, Series 2600 and Series 2400 SourceMeter(R) instruments, Integra Series products, Series 2000 DMMs, and the Model 6517A Electrometer. This list of models is expected to be expanded in the near future. Customers can be assured that their instruments are being calibrated to the highest industry standards and will provide consistent, quality measurements. Routine calibrations help avoid down time and prevent costly quality problems.

Helga Alexander, Keithley's Metrology Services Manager, explains how important the new accreditation level is to Keithley customers. "ISO 17025 accreditation proves to our customers that our calibrations are traceable to the international system of units (SI) through NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) and are performed with the highest level of technical competence," says Alexander. "Our accredited calibration reports provide information such as measurement uncertainties for each data point, enabling customers to thoroughly assess the condition of their instruments and providing them an even greater measure of confidence," she added.

For more information on Keithley's Metrology Services or any of its test solutions, go to http://www.keithley.com/pr/057.

 

Thermo Electron and Fisher Scientific Stockholders Approve Merger

Thermo Electron Corporation and Fisher Scientific International Inc. announced that, at separate special meetings, stockholders of both companies have voted to approve their merger. At the Fisher stockholders meeting, more than 99 percent of the shares represented were voted in favor of the transaction, constituting a significant majority of the outstanding Fisher shares. More than 98 percent of the Thermo shares represented at the Thermo meeting were voted in favor of the issuance of shares in the transaction. In addition, more than 94 percent of the Thermo shares voted, representing a significant majority of the outstanding shares, approved the amendment of Thermo's certificate of incorporation to increase the number of shares of Thermo's common stock to 1.2 billion and to change the company's name upon the completion of the merger to Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.

"We are pleased by the strong support we have received from Thermo and Fisher Scientific shareholders," said Marijn E. Dekkers, president and chief executive officer of Thermo Electron. "As Thermo Fisher Scientific, we will have the product breadth, global reach and operational expertise to drive significant value for shareholders, customers and employees alike. We are now one step closer to creating the leading provider of innovative laboratory products and services in the life sciences, scientific research and healthcare industries."

The merger remains subject to regulatory approvals, and as previously announced, the companies continue to expect the transaction will close in the fourth quarter of 2006.
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