Distinguished Members of the Standardization Community Honored at the 2013 ANSI Awards Banquet and Ceremony

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) honored leaders of the U.S. and global voluntary standards and conformity assessment community last night at the 2013 ANSI Awards Banquet and Ceremony. Held annually, the leadership and service awards program is a long-standing tradition that recognizes and honors creativity, dedication, and vision in the field of standards and conformity assessment.

Held at the Newseum's Knight Conference Center in Washington, DC, the awards dinner was one of many ANSI-hosted events comprising the celebration of World Standards Week 2013. Seventeen distinguished individuals were recognized at the ceremony:

John Siemon, CTO and vice president of global operations for the Siemon Company, was awarded the Astin-Polk International Standards Medal, which honors distinguished service in promoting trade and understanding among nations through the advancement, development, or administration of international standardization, measurements, or certification.

Cynthia Fuller, executive director of Accredited Standards Committee X9 Inc. (ASC X9), received the Howard Coonley Medal, which recognizes an executive who has benefited the national economy through voluntary standardization and conformity assessment and has given outstanding support to standardization as a management tool.

Aimee McKane, deputy group leader at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), received the Finegan Standards Medal, which honors an individual who has shown extraordinary leadership in the development and application of voluntary standards.

Patrick Grother, computer scientist specialist at the U.S. Department of Commerce (DoC)'s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), received the Edward Lohse Information Technology Medal, which recognizes outstanding efforts to foster cooperation among the bodies involved in global IT standardization.

Peter Unger, president and CEO of the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA), received the Gerald H. Ritterbusch Conformity Assessment Medal, which honors distinguished service in promoting the understanding and application of conformity assessment methods as a means of providing confidence in standards compliance for the marketplace.

Lawrence Farr, principal engineer at the Eaton Corporation, was awarded the Elihu Thomson Electrotechnology Medal, which honors an individual who has contributed in an exceptional, dedicated way to the field of electrotechnology standardization, conformity assessment, and related activities at the national and international levels.

Laura Hitchcock, senior standards specialist and corporate project manager of external standards for The Boeing Company, received the George S. Wham Leadership Medal, which honors an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the voluntary standardization community and provided long-term direction and visionary qualities in support of the ANSI Federation.

James Shannon, president and CEO of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), received the Chairman's Award, which honors outstanding accomplishments by any group or individual on behalf of ANSI or the ANSI Federation.

Next Generation Awards
Three individuals received the Next Generation Award, which honors those who have been engaged in standardization or conformity assessment activities for less than eight years and who have, during this time, demonstrated vision, leadership, dedication, and significant contributions to their chosen field of activity. The awardees were:

• Kerrianne Conn, administrator for standards, processes, and publications for the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS)
• Elaine M. Newton, Ph.D., deputy standards liaison for NIST's Information Technology Laboratory (ITL)
• Manyphay Souvannarath, senior systems engineer at General Electric (GE) Corporation

Meritorious Service Awards
Six individuals received the Meritorious Service Award in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the U.S. voluntary standardization system. Each one has demonstrated outstanding service in enabling ANSI to attain the objectives for which it was founded. The awardees were:

• Mark W. Earley, P.E., chief electrical engineer for NFPA
• Edward F. Mikoski, Jr., CStd, vice president of EIA standards and technology at the Electronic Components Industry Association (ECIA)
• Peter Musgrove, principal member of technical staff for AT&T Inc.
• Claire Barrett Ramspeck, director for technology at ASHRAE
• Alvin Scolnik, vice president, technical services (retired) for the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA)
• William "Kip" Smythe, vice president of global relations at NPES The Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting Technologies

ANSI congratulates these outstanding individuals on their contributions to and accomplishments in the standards and conformity assessment industry.

Photos from the ceremony are available online.