FEBRUARY 2004

Dimensions Hotel Room Block Filling Up Fast

With registrations to the Dimensions.04 International Forum on Transport Packaging coming in at a record-breaking pace, the ISTA room block at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort is rapidly being filled. Although the block doesn’t officially expire until March 17th, when it’s gone…it’s gone! The time is NOW to make your reservations: call Coronado Springs directly at 407-939-1020, and don’t forget to mention Dimensions to get the forum rate.

Complete information on Dimensions.04, April 14-17, is available at www.dimensions-info.com. To register for the forum, Click Here.

CPLP Workshop at Dimensions

Get additional benefit from your trip to Dimensions.04 by registering for the CPLP workshop which will be held just prior to the conference. This is the same Certified Packaging Laboratory Professional program that is offered in self-study form, but it will be presented “live” by Bill Kipp, ISTA’s Education Director. You can benefit from in-person interaction and Q&A to reinforce the material, then take the exam and immediately become an ISTA Certified Packaging Laboratory Professional. Make efficient use of your travel time and budget, maximize your understanding of the subject matter, and become CPLP certified as a part of your overall Dimensions experience.

The workshop will be held at Walt Disney World’s Coronado Springs Resort on Tuesday, April 13, the day before Dimensions officially starts, and will cover Technician and Technologist levels in two separate sessions. Attendees will receive the appropriate study materials in advance for familiarization, then the workshop will present all subjects in detail and answer questions. Both exams will be given the following morning (Wednesday April 14). The classes are open to anyone, but exams and certification are available to ISTA members only.

An applicant may attend the Technician course, the Technologist course, or both. Registration is $595 for each class (in addition to the Dimensions Forum fee), or you can attend both for $1,070. Discounts are also available for multiple applicants from the same company. Lunch and refreshments will be provided, and there will be an awards ceremony for successful applicants during the Dimensions forum on Saturday.

When you register for Dimensions.04, check the boxes to add the CPLP workshop. If you’ve already registered, or are able to only attend the workshop, call or e-mail Meredith Young at ISTA Headquarters: 517-333-3437, myoung@ista.org.

Click Here for complete information on the CPLP program. The Dimensions.04 website also includes complete forum information and registration forms.

Dimensions Lab Council Meeting Cancelled

Due primarily to a conflict with the Cold Chain Workshop, the Lab Council Meeting that was scheduled for Wednesday morning April 14th, during Dimensions.04, has been cancelled. The decision was made because there are currently no pressing issues for the Lab Council to address, and many members wanted to attend the Cold Chain Workshop. All Dimensions attendees are encouraged to attend the Workshop as there will be updates from past committee work, as well as new information presented on this important and expanding area of packaging. Click Here for more information on the Cold Chain Workshop.

Don’t Forget the PkgIT Survey

  We're going into the last week for survey responses to be used for the    Dimensions.04 study. Results so far are very interesting, but at least another   100 responses are needed for some of the more complex analyses to be   meaningful.

The PkgIT Survey is aimed at providing the packaging community with a window into the rapidly changing technology landscape within which it functions. Getting at the complexity of this scenario and trying to discover common threads is what this survey is about.

Please click on the graphic above to take the survey, which requires about 15 minutes to complete. The more participation, the more useful the data will be for all of us. Every participant will receive the summarized results and the accompanying study after they are presented at the Dimensions.04 conference in April. At this point we need responses from all sectors, but especially health and beauty, pharmaceutical, medical devices, and food and beverage.

Tom Kane (Kane Research) is helping with the survey by providing guidance and balance in understanding the data and the limits of its use. As the analysis phase progresses, each of you is strongly invited to provide your input. Send an email to the PkgIT Survey Team at survey@gpkg.com to request preliminary charts and graphs for discussion, or for further information.

Review Project 3A Revisions, New “Vibration Under Vacuum” Option

Proposed changes to Project 3A, including the addition of a “Vibration Under Vacuum” option, are now available for member review. Project 3A and the proposed option were discussed in previous issues of iNews. A review copy of the document, including a number of revisions as well as the added option, is now posted on the Technical Committee section of the ISTA Discussion Forum, open to comment from all ISTA members. The deadline for inputs is February 27. Click Here to read about the changes and to review the document. If you don’t yet have access to the Discussion Forum or the Technical Committee section, contact Meredith Young at ISTA headquarters: 517-333-3437, myoung@ista.org.

More Companies Join Project 4AB Sponsorship Program

Archbold Container Corporation and Xerox Office Group have joined Project 4AB as Founding Sponsors, and Sealed Air Corporation has joined as a Charter Sponsor. Many thanks to these companies for their assistance with this important work.

New Founding Sponsors                                                                 New Charter Sponsor
          

In addition to helping with the creation of Project 4AB and the Data Depot, sponsors enjoy a number of benefits related to both 4AB and ISTA in general. For complete information and a list of all sponsors Click Here.

Fresh New Look for ISTA’s “PreShipment Testing” Newsletter

The 1st Quarter 2004 issue of PreShipment Testing is at the printers, and should be in your hands by early March. When you receive it, you’ll notice an entirely new look – 4 color throughout, added features, and an easier-reading and more convenient layout. The issue includes technical articles, industry spotlights, member news, and complete information about ISTA activities and events. We hope you like it.

E-mail Kathy Joneson at ISTA Headquarters with your comments regarding Preshipment Testing.

ISTA Participates in NMFTA Packaging Panel Discussion

The National Motor Freight Traffic Association recently held a meeting in Fort Lauderdale, FL, and ISTA was invited to participate in a “Packaging” panel discussion. Panel members were ISTA Director Dan Hill of ABF Freight System, ISTA VP of Testing & Certification Eric Joneson of Lansmont Corporation, ISTA Executive Director Ed Church, and Rich Soderberg, Technical Services Manager for the Fibre Box Association. The panel discussed transport packaging and preshipment testing, and how they relate to the Less Than Truckload (LTL) carriers.

The lively session included such questions as “How is packaging for LTL transportation different from that for other modes of transportation?”, “What is performance-based packaging and what are its advantages?” and “What benefits can your organizations offer to the NMFTA members and individual carriers?”. This meeting proved to be an excellent exchange of ideas between organizations with different functions but many common goals.

Jerry Stone Loses Long Battle with Cancer

We are greatly saddened to report that Jerry Stone, long-time Packaging Engineer for the National Motor Freight Traffic Association, died Feb. 11 after an over two-and-a-half year battle with cancer. Jerry played a key role at NMFTA in many areas, and was instrumental in developing performance-based packaging standards Items 180 and 181. He was a graduate of the MSU School of Packaging and was active in ISTA, IoPP, NIPHLE, and many other packaging and logistics organizations. He served on the ISTA Board of Directors from 1996 to 2002.

A celebration of his life will be held on Saturday, February 21, 11 a.m. at Demaine Springfield-Annandale Funeral Chapel, Backlick and Edsall Rds., Springfield, VA. Contributions in his memory may be made to the American Cancer Society, 124 Park St. S.E., Vienna, VA 22180.

The transport packaging community will sorely miss Jerry’s expertise, efforts, and long friendship.