Conformity Assessment Section (CAS) meeting, JW Marriott, New Orleans, LA
October 12, 2011 Meeting Minutes
Attendees:
Name / Organization / E-MailTony Anderson / ACIL /
Milton Bush / ACIL /
Dan Cannon / NTS /
Derek Coppinger / NTS /
Ray Klouda / Elite Electronic Engineering Inc. /
Steve Koster / Washington Labs /
Jay Moulton / RF Exposure Lab /
Walter Poggi / Retlif Testing Labs /
Richard Reitz / Retlif Testing Labs /
Mike Violette(CAS Chair) / Washington Labs /
Apologies: Don Heirman & Harry Hodes
1.0Call to order:
The Chaircalled the meeting to order at 9:05 a.m. CDT
2.0Introductions:
Attendeesintroduced themselves and their affiliation
3.0Smart Grid Task Force (SGTF) Update:
In Mr. Heirman’s absence, Mr. Klouda presented Mr. Heirman’s presentation. (see attached).
Mr. Klouda pointed out that ACIL is now a voting member of the Smart Grid Interoperability Panel (SGIP) and also that Mr. Heirman is running as a candidate to become a voting member of the Smart Grid Testing & Certification Committee (SGTCC). Through Mr. Heirman and Mr. Klouda, ACIL already participates in some of the committee’s working groups and has provided considerable input to several documents, including revision 2 of the Interoperability Process Reference Manual (IPRM).
Unfortunately, member participation in the SGTF has declined of late and there is concern about being able to keep up with the many SGTCC teleconferences, some which take place weekly. Mr. Heirman has asked for volunteers to help maintain ACIL’s participation.
Action: Mr. Anderson to place on the agenda of the next scheduled CAS teleconference a discussion item regarding SGTF participation.
Action: Mr. Anderson to send Mr. Cannon the SGTF roster.
4.0PT Program Update:
Mr. Anderson reported on the status of the PT Program. He stated that both the 150 kHz to 1 GHz, and 1 GHz to 18 GHz were currently being serviced by Mr. Hodes in readiness for a continuation round robins. It is planned to begin the York CNE III 150 kHz to1 GHz continuation round the last week of October, for which one lab has already signed up. Mr. Anderson urged those labs in attendance to go to the ACIL web site and sign up for the new rounds. Any lab signing up before December 31, regardless of when scheduled, will be charged the 2011 rate. It is anticipated that there will be an increase in the PT program rates for 2012.
Action: Mr. Anderson to circulate a reminder to all CAS members that continuation rounds for both artifacts are beginning and that members should sign up and be scheduled.
Mr. Hodes would be meeting with A2LA and ACLASS later in the week to discuss the possibility of the ACIL PT Program becoming accredited. Mr. Anderson acknowledged the great efforts Mr. Hodes had put into the program in 2011, particularly with regard to the extensive high level reports that participants now receive.
5.0Membership – Outreach and Reorganization:
Mr. Bush led a discussion on outreach and possible reorganization of the CAS section. There was concern that the section had become too EMC centric and that other form of conformity assessment should be addressed, in particular product certification. Outreach to other organizations such as the TCB Council, ACES and the IEEE product safety section could be considered. Mr. Bush suggested that the CAS section might be split into EMC and product certification. After discussion the following actions were decided.
Action: Mr. Anderson to place on all future CAS meeting agendas an item regarding third party product certification
Action: Mr. Violette to reach out to the product certification members of the CAS for topics to discuss at section meetings.
Action: Mr. Violette to ask UL to appoint someone to attend the CAS meetings.
6.0C63®Brief Summaryof Activities:
Mr. Anderson reported that he had not received any report from the ANSI C63® meetings which were held last week in New Jersey. Both Mr. Hodes and Mr. Stumpf had attended on behalf of ACIL. There should be a full report at the next scheduled CAS teleconference meeting.
7.0“State owned Enterprises” Position Statement:
Mr. Violette stated that he had originally prepared a draft regarding the China situation. Mr. Bush explained that the issue has been broadened to include all foreign state owned enterprises which have barriers to trade. He went on to say that the initiative is moving forward and other national trade associations will be approached on the issue. This is not just a CAS issue but affects all ACIL members. Mr. Violette will continue to represent the CAS on the ACIL task group.
8.0Top Ten Non-Conformities of Accredited Laboratories:
Presentation by Peter Unger of A2LA. (attached).
Mr. Unger’s presentation was tailored to EMC laboratories. The majority of non-conformities were technical in nature for all labs, but were particularly significant for EMC labs. The highest percentages were to do with test procedures, which was most likely due to the highly technical nature of testing carried out in these types of labs. Mr. Violette thanked Mr. Unger for an interesting presentation.
9.0Policies and Practices Conference – Draft Program Discussion:
Mr. Bush explained that this year there will be a day and a half for sections to discuss and have presentations about business issues, but also could have a policy angle as well. Mr. Violette suggested outreach to NIST, the FCC and the European RTC . Following a well received presentation last year by the National Institute of Justice(NIJ), Mr. Bush suggested they be invited back for next year. Mr. Bush emphasized that getting an early agenda together this year so that promotion could start in December should be the goal for a successful meeting.
Action: Mr. Anderson to place on the next CAS teleconferences agenda to discuss further.
10.0Strategic Planning Discussion and Next Steps:
This topic was held with all sections before breaking out into the section meetings. Lead by ACIL Chair, Trevor Boyce, he went over the highlights of the strategic plan. He focused on the three goals of the plan, which are as follows:-
Goal 1: Strengthen the relationship between members, prospective members, related trade associations, regulators, and laboratory customers through ACIL programs, meetings and other member services, including advocacy initiatives. A task group will work on this goal lead by Steve Bowser.
Sections are to define and develop section specific anchor programs and must be on the agenda for discussion at all meetings.
Goal 2:To enhance relationships with all stakeholders through relevant and timely communication.A task group will work on this goal lead by John Molloy.
Sections to develop plan to engage stakeholders and will be placed on meeting agendas.
Goal 3: Create a dynamic information portal to be launched by March 2012 (in time for the Practices and Policies Meeting). A task group led by Mike Violette will work on this goal.
Sections will provide success stories “legends” from current members and other information of interest. Requests for material will be placed on all meeting agendas.
11.0A.O.B: None
12.0Next meeting: CAS Teleconference call Wednesday November 23, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. EST
13.0Adjournment: 10:10 a.m. CDT
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CAS Meeting New Orleans, LA Minutes 101211