Aug 14 2009
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI), the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), has announced that it will hold a meeting of its Nanotechnology Standards Panel (ANSI-NSP) this September in Chicago, co-located with the NanoBusiness Alliance's Eighth Annual NanoBusiness Conference.
Scheduled for the afternoon of September 9, 2009, the ANSI-NSP meeting will provide an opportunity for interested stakeholders to learn about ongoing nanotechnology standardization activities as well as to discuss particular areas of focus needed for nanotechnology standards.
"The growing number of nanotechnology-based industrial products and services has created a critical need for standards to support trade in this arena and to be used in protecting the environment and the health and safety of consumers and workers," said Clayton Teague, chairman of the ANSI-NSP and director of the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO). "But in order to move these standards forward, we need active engagement by technical experts from academia and significant industry sectors that are working to advance this important and promising technology."
Formed in 2004, the ANSI-NSP serves as a cross-sector coordinating body that facilitates the development of standards in the area of nanotechnology. The Panel does not itself develop standards; rather, the ANSI-NSP works with other national, regional, and international standards groups, as well as industry, academic, and government stakeholders, to establish work plans, harmonize efforts, and mitigate duplication or overlap.
This is the third meeting of the ANSI-NSP. Previous gatherings were held in September 2004 and March 2008.
The Panel meeting will be co-located with the NanoBusiness Alliance Conference at the McCormick Place in Chicago. Scheduled for September 8-10, the NanoBusiness Alliance Conference will bring together a wide array of stakeholders to develop a range of initiatives to support the nanotechnology business community. With a series of keynote speakers, workshops, and moderated discussions over the course of the event, participants will discuss the economy's effect on nanotechnology, best workplace practices to protect employees, water and energy, and other crucial topics.
A meeting of the members of the ANSI-Accredited U.S. Technical Advisory Group (TAG) to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Committee (TC) 229, Nanotechnology, will also be co-located with the conference.