USNC Names Participants for 2013 IEC Young Professionals Workshop

NEW YORK, June 10, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. National Committee (USNC) of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is pleased to announce the U.S. winners of the 2013 IEC Young Professionals Workshop competition.

To be held in conjunction with the 77th IEC General Meeting (GM) in New Delhi, India, on October 21-25, 2013, the workshop will bring together professionals from around the world who are at the start of their careers in electrotechnical standardization and conformance. Now in its fourth year, the Young Professionals Workshop aims to cultivate long-term national involvement in the international arena, strengthen the future of technology transfer, and encourage the participation of young professionals in shaping the future of standardization and conformance.

The USNC received a number of applications for well qualified candidates, making the selection committee's job difficult. The winners are:

• Ethan Biery

Mr. Biery is a design and development leader for Lutron Electronics. He has been actively engaged with standards development activities related to lighting undertaken by the Zhaga Consortium, which focuses on LED light engine interoperability, and the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA).

• Diana Bull

Ms. Bull serves as a wave energy converter (WEC) modeling lead at Sandia National Laboratories. She has been actively involved in the USNC-approved U.S. Technical Advisory Group (TAG) to IEC Technical Committee (TC) 114, Marine energy - Wave, tidal and other water current converters, beginning with her work as a member of the TAG's mirror committee for Maintenance Team (MT) 62600-100, Power performance assessment of electricity producing wave energy converters, and as a liaison for Project Team (PT) 62600-101, Wave energy resource assessment and characterization.

• Chelsey Schweikert

Ms. Schweikert is a product compliance design engineer for Solar Turbines Inc. Since 2012, she has served as an alternate member of the USNC TAG for the IEC System for Certification to Standards Relating to Equipment for Use in Explosive Atmospheres (IECEx) and has worked extensively with the IEC 60079 series of standards in a manufacturing context.

The USNC's selectees will attend a dedicated workshop alongside recipients from other nations where they will learn more about the IEC, standardization strategies, and conformity assessment. They will also have the opportunity to attend technical meetings where standards are developed, observe meetings of the IEC Standardization Management Board (SMB) and the IEC Conformity Assessment Board (CAB), and benefit from extensive networking opportunities in an international setting. All three selectees will be financially supported for their travel and up to three nights of accommodation.

"Being able to sit in at the SMB and CAB meetings and also getting to sit in at the Technical Committee level was a great insight," said Manyphay Souvannarath, senior systems analyst for General Electric (GE) Energy, and a 2012 Young Professional awardee from the United States. "This provided a holistic view from the technical side all the way through to the management side of standards, and that was a good opportunity." Ms. Souvannarath was one of only three international participants voted to be a 2012 Young Professional (YP) Leader at the 76th IEC GM in Oslo, Norway. As such, she will act as ambassador for the program within the IEC family and help to shape its activities while she serves as YP Leader.

"On behalf of the USNC, I'd like to particularly congratulate our three winners, and express the wish that we could have recognized all of the candidates," said Phil Piqueira, global standards leader for General Electric (GE) Industrial Solutions and president of the USNC. "We look forward to having these truly deserving recipients participate in the Young Professionals Workshop as part of the 77th IEC General Meeting in New Delhi this fall."

About the USNC/IEC
The U.S. National Committee of the International Electrotechnical Commission (USNC/IEC) serves as the focal point for U.S. parties who are interested in the development, promulgation, and use of globally-relevant standards for the electrotechnical industry. The Committee is also engaged in the assessment of conformance to standards, undertaking work in areas such as testing, certification, and accreditation. As the U.S. representative to the IEC and many related regional standardization bodies, the USNC/IEC serves as a conduit to the global standards-setting community for technical and policy positions arising in the U.S. and brings issues from the global arena to the U.S. for review, consideration, and response. The USNC/IEC is a totally integrated committee of the American National Standards Institute.

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 made up 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