November 23, 2009 During virtual meeting, Committee D32 held open house for potential new members, which featured introduction to ASTM, explanation of Committee's mission, and highlights of committee's active task groups. Primary focus of D32 has been on heterogeneous catalysts, including refining and petrochemical applications, raw catalytic materials, and finished catalyst systems. Committee hopes to expand to include emission control catalysts, homogeneous catalysts, and enzymatic catalysts.

November 23, 2009 According to NTSB, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration should require all new motor vehicles weighing over 10,000 lb to be equipped with direct tire pressure monitoring systems. NHTSA should develop performance standards for newly manufactured motorcoaches to require that overhead luggage racks remain anchored during accident. Standards should also be developed for newly manufactured motorcoaches that prevent head and neck injuries from overhead luggage racks.

November 23, 2009 According to NTSB, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials should work with FHA to establish performance and selection guidelines for bridge owners to use to develop objective warrants for high-performance Test Level Four, Five, and Six bridge railings applicable to new construction and rehabilitation projects where railing replacement is determined to be appropriate. Guidelines should be included in LRFD Bridge Design Specifications.

November 23, 2009 Held in New Delhi, India on November 4, ANSI convened the first in a series of workshops to be held under U.S.-India Standards and Conformance Cooperation Program that focused on improving codes and standards for fire safety in tall buildings. Approximately 30 representatives of U.S./Indian organizations participated in discussions pertaining to fire safety principles, role of safety standards, lessons learned from tall building fires, and fire safety infrastructure development.

November 23, 2009 For seventh consecutive year, NTSB's financial statements received unqualified opinion from Department of Transportation Inspector General. Results are from audit conducted on Safety Board's financial statements for Fiscal Year 2009. Recently, the Government Accountability Office issued a report finding that NTSB "has fully implemented or made significant progress in adopting leading management practices in all areas in which GAO made prior recommendations."

November 23, 2009 BSA has opened registration for its 2010 Annual Convention, to take place May 1-4, 2010, at Naples Grande Beach Resort, in Naples, FL. Themed, A Look Back to Step Ahead, it will recognize and build on BSA's 44 yr of industry leadership and look ahead to new opportunities/markets in recovering economy. Convention website includes video highlighting previous conventions and preview of this year's event. It also covers registration as well as other information.

November 23, 2009 ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2007, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings provides minimum requirements for energy-efficient design of buildings. It features 15 proposed agenda, open for public review, including addendum cd which would require active exterior control and bilevel control for all-night applications. Also included are addendum bn for orientation of fenestration and addendum bb which focuses on walls, rooms, and fenestration.

November 23, 2009 On Wednesday, December 9, AWWA will host webcast which will utilize case studies to summarize regulatory framework for backflow prevention and cross-connection control, as well as water utility responsibilities. Webcast attendees will learn how to formulate specific plans for superior backflow prevention program, apply cross-connection control procedures to reduce contamination risks, and employ backflow prevention devices for best results.

November 23, 2009 Despite statistics, report titled Impacts of Genetically Engineered Crops on Pesticide Use in the United States: The First Thirteen Years, claims "farmers are increasingly critical of GE crops." According to U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. farmers have embraced biotech varieties of soybeans, cotton, and corn at rate of 91%, 88%, and 85%, respectively. Agricultural biotechnology allows farmers to grow more food on less land using practices that are environmentally sustainable.

November 23, 2009 At its October 27-28, 2009 meeting, ASTM's board of directors authorized ASTM's management to develop the capability to offer certification services. ASTM International Certification Programs, the new initiative, offers opportunity for certification of products - materials, products, services, systems - as well as personnel. Potential benefits include increased confidence, reliable product comparisons, equitable testing and rating, and facilitating regulatory compliance.

November 23, 2009 Producer price index report by U.S. Labor Department shows that prices for construction materials and supplies fell 0.2% in October, and overall prices are 5.8% lower on year-over-year basis. While ready mixed concrete, cement, and softwood lumber prices are down, prices for prepared asphalt, tar roofing, and siding as well as steel mill and structural metal products rose. Anirban Basu said slight rise is sign that declines in construction materials prices may have come to end.

November 23, 2009 According to IPC, 2008-2009 Analysis and Forecast for EMS Industry predicts global EMS market will grow at annual average rate of 8.1% until 2013 as world economies recover. Report provides general business metrics on sample of participating companies from North America, Europe, and Asia. It details trends in sources of revenue, revenue per employee, services offered, markets served, manufacturing technology, capital investment, spending on equipment and materials, and market size.

November 23, 2009 Developed jointly by ANSI, AAMI, ASTM International, and DIN, Medical Device Standards Portal provides single source for critical documents from AAMI, ASTM DIN, US FDA, IEC, and ISO, as well as applicable European regulations. All documents are available fully indexed and in .pdf format. Users can add comments directly into standards, share analysis with others, receive notifications when standards are updated, and compare revisions with color-coded highlights denoting changes.

November 20, 2009 Published in English and French, International Standard ISO 11783-12:2009 provides diagnostic system requirements for serial data network systems on forestry or agricultural tractors. It prescribes method and format of electronic transfer of data between sensors, actuators, control elements, and information storage and display units. These may be part of tractor or implement, whether mounted, semi-mounted, towed, or self-propelled implements.

November 20, 2009 AEM has presented Milestone Member plaques to 8 companies in recognition of their industry support through longtime and continuous participation in the association. Erie Strayer Co. is a 75-year member, while Fairfield Manufacturing Co., Firestone Agricultural Tire Co., Manitou North America, The Timken Co., and Weasler Engineering are all 50-year members. Two 25-year companies included Amerequip and Bush Hog LLC.

November 20, 2009 Scheduled for Feb 11-12, 2010, event will introduce American National Standard ASTM E2659-09, Standard Practice for Certificate Programs, and Institute's Certificate Accreditation Program (ANSI-CAP). Stakeholders will learn requirements for developing education/training course that has assessment at the end to determine if learning outcomes have been achieved. Workshop will also cover terminology, significance, and use of standard as well as requirements for certificate issuers.

November 20, 2009 ANSI, along with many international stakeholders, participated in workshop on best practices for standardization around the world, held by Gulf Cooperation Council Standardization Organization. Gary W. Kushnier, ANSI Vice President of international policy, discussed increasing use of international standards by regulators and business to facilitate market access, as well as ways to work cooperatively to minimize duplicative testing and certification requirements.

November 20, 2009 Held by ISO on January 28-29, 2010 in Paris, workshop is intended to kick off development of International Workshop Agreement (IWA). It will provide principles of sustainable development for business districts, including framework to establish core set of indicators and performance assessment methodology as well as guide of best practices. Topics included for further discussion include business district definition, sustainable construction, energy management, and urban management.

November 20, 2009 As 3-day technical and professional training course presented by ASTM International, Major Testing Techniques for Plastics will introduce basic principles, techniques, and equipment used in physical and analytical measurements of plastics characteristics. Practical applications of course material will be emphasized, and video demonstrations of various tests will be presented throughout. Admission includes copies of 7 ASTM International standards, course notes, and refreshment breaks.

November 20, 2009 Sponsored by ASTM International, Fire Hazards in Oxygen Systems technical and professional training course will address topics such as identifying and evaluating hazards in oxygen systems and understanding fundamentals of safe practice in design, materials selection, and operation of oxygen systems. It will also cover recognizing physical principles on which safe practices are based and collecting information needed to cope with fire hazards in oxygen systems.