September 21 ANSI Conference to Address Advancing American Competitiveness Through Conformity Assessment

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is pleased to announce that registration is open for its upcoming conference, Advancing American Competitiveness through Conformity Assessment: Legal Issues and Best Practices.

Slated to take place on Tuesday, September 21 in Arlington, Virginia, the conference is expected to draw over 100 experts from government, industry, standards developing bodies, conformity assessment bodies, and academia to discuss the legal, economic, business, and societal implications of conformity assessment activities. Throughout the course of the day, individual panels on workforce credentialing, food safety, and climate change mitigation will explore the role that compliance activities play in each of these arenas.

"Conformity assessment is essential in today's marketplace, enhancing the confidence of consumers, buyers, sellers, regulators, and other interested parties while avoiding the creation of unnecessary barriers to trade," said S. Joe Bhatia, ANSI president and CEO. "The activities involved in conformity assessment, from accreditation by institutions like ANSI, to certification, to inspection, supplier's declaration, and more, have become critically important to conducting business in the global marketplace, and to our nation's continued economic strength."

President Obama has set a goal of doubling the number of meaningful credentials for the American workforce by 2020. Gerri Fiala, deputy assistant secretary of the Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, will provide the conference's keynote address, discussing how the Employment and Training Administration is partnering with educators and credentialing bodies to ensure a strong and vital U.S. labor market.

The first panel highlights the continued development of a well-educated and qualified American workforce, one of the chief goals articulated by the Obama administration. Panelists include representatives of the U.S. Green Building Council, the Manufacturing Institute, the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography, and the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices.

The conference's second panel addresses food safety assurance. Panelists from GlobalGAP, the Global Food Safety Initiative Technical Committee, the Food Marketing Institute, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will discuss implications of recent food safety mandates, as well as the conformity assessment mechanisms in place to assure the safety of the global supply chain for food and consumer products.

Climate change mitigation is the topic for the conference's final panel. A lack of clear, national consensus on climate change policy has resulted in a fractured landscape of regional and voluntary greenhouse gas (GHG) programs. Panelists will discuss the role of voluntary markets in paving the way for compliance markets and the outlook for future climate legislation and regulation. Representatives of the Environmental Law Institute, UL Environment, the Chicago Climate Exchange, and the utilities sector will take part in this discussion.

Click here to see the conference agenda.

Advancing American Competitiveness through Conformity Assessment: Legal Issues and Best Practices will be held on September 21, 2010, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Crowne Plaza National Airport in Arlington, VA. Stakeholders are urged to register as soon as possible to assure a spot at this exciting event. Registration is $250 for ANSI members and government employees, and $295 for non-members. The event is open to members of the media; contact ANSI to register in advance and receive press credentials.

This conference is just one of several exciting events held during World Standards Week 2010, ANSI's annual series of events for the standards and conformance community. For more information on WSW 2010 and to view a complete schedule of events, visit www.ansi.org/wsweek.

About ANSI

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a private non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance U.S. global competitiveness and the American quality of life by promoting, facilitating, and safeguarding the integrity of the voluntary standardization and conformity assessment system. Its membership is comprised of businesses, professional societies and trade associations, standards developers, government agencies, and consumer and labor organizations. The Institute represents the diverse interests of more than 125,000 companies and organizations and 3.5 million professionals worldwide.  

The Institute is the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and, via the U.S. National Committee, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), and is a U.S. representative to the International Accreditation Forum (IAF).

SOURCE American National Standards Institute