ASTM Starts Certification Programs
"The board agreed that the ability for the society to offer certification programs . . . is important in remaining relevant in the changing global marketplace," ASTM International President James A. Thomas said.
ASTM International, a 30,000-member organization that publishes a host of industrial hygiene and safety standards for protective clothing, fire extinguishing chemicals, ergonomics, emergency preparedness, and more, is getting into the certification business. The organization announced Nov. 19 that its board of directors authorized ASTM's management at an Oct. 27-28 meeting to develop the capability to offer certification services for materials, products, services, systems, and personnel. The new initiative is named ASTM International Certification Programs.
"The board agreed that the ability for the society to offer certification programs as a part of ASTM's portfolio of services, similar to our successful proficiency testing and training programs, is important in remaining relevant in the changing global marketplace," said James A. Thomas, president of ASTM International. "This is the first step toward certification in ASTM's 111-year history. The board approved this initiative to satisfy the requirements of ASTM's diverse stakeholder community and to meet the needs of industries relying on ASTM International standards."
Requests could come from ASTM technical committees or directly from industry, purchasers, or government bodies. A product certified through ASTM's program would be tested, at the direction of ASTM International, by a third-party laboratory to determine the product's ability to conform to ASTM standards.
For more information on the programs, visit www.astm.org/cert or contact Ken Pearson, senior vice president at 610-832-9672 or [email protected].