Did You Know? offers a quick look at the broad scope of activities underway within the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Federation, highlighting the people and initiatives making waves in standardization.
ACC Issues Tool to Assist with Chemical Security Rules
ANSI member and accredited standards developer the American Chemistry Council (ACC) has released a new guide intended to bolster the development and oversight of security plans associated with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS)'s Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program. The guide, designed to be used by facilities affected by the CFATS program, is expected to assist in the creation of relevant security plants and to provide the DHS with additional insight into the steps taken by individual facilities to address possible security threats.
The document, known as the "Alternate Security Program (ASP) Guidance for CFATS Covered Chemical Facilities," is available here.
AAMI Foundation Seeks Applications for Student Scholarship Program
The AAMI Foundation, associated with ANSI member and accredited standards developer the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI), is soliciting applications from students for the 2013 iteration of the Michael J. Miller Scholarship Program. The program, named after the former president of AAMI, provides two $2,500 scholarships each year: one given to an aspiring clinical engineer, the other to an aspiring biomedical equipment technician.
All applicants must be current full-time college students or have been admitted to a full-time college, and must attend an accredited college or university. In order to apply for a scholarship, students must complete an application form, and submit their academic transcripts, two letters of recommendation, and a 500-700 word essay detailing how they see themselves fitting into their future profession.
The application form is available here. For more information about the scholarship program, including full application rules, visit the AAMI Foundation's scholarship application page. All applications must be received by March 15, 2013.
ADA Announces Online Dental Symptom Checker
ANSI member and accredited standards developer the American Dental Association (ADA) has launched a free online tool intended to provide patients with accurate information about mouth-related symptoms. The ADA Dental Symptom Checker was developed by the ADA with the assistance of one of the association's member dentists and was vetted by four ADA councils.
The Dental Symptom Checker, hosted on the ADA's MouthHealthy.org website, allows patients to enter potentially identifying information about the symptoms they are experiencing. The tool is not intended to replace regular dental checkups and includes recommendations for when symptoms merit visiting a dental practitioner.
The Dental Symptom Checker can be accessed here.
AISC Requests Proposals for Building Information Modeling Best Practices Guide
ANSI member the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) has begun accepting proposals in connection with the planned development of a best practices guide on the use of Building Information Modeling (BIM), a process in which digital models of a proposed facility are used to drive decision-making about a given project. The AISC Code Committee is seeking input from engineers, architects, and other BIM users regarding best practices that are consistent with AISC's Code of Standard Practice for Steel Buildings and Bridges.
The Request for Proposal form associated with this project is available here. All proposals must be submitted by March 27, 2013, to Jie Zuo, AISC staff engineer, by email at [email protected], or through the mail to 1 East Wacker Drive, Suite 700, Chicago, Illinois 60601.