NOVEMBER 2003

Pictures from Bill Armstrong’s Induction Into the PEF Hall of Fame
Congratulations to ISTA’s President, Bill Armstrong, for his induction into the Packaging Education Forum Hall of Fame, as announced in last month’s issue of iNews. Bill’s employer, Sealed Air Corporation, also honored him at a special dinner after the official ceremony.

     Bill speaking at the          Bill and Pat Armstrong (seated), Bill’s Sealed Air colleagues,
        PEF ceremony               plus Bill Kipp and Ed Church of ISTA (left) at the special
                                              dinner hosted by Sealed Air

Technical Committee Meeting Held in Chicago

The ISTA Technical Committee met October 22, hosted by UPS in Hodgkins, IL.
Topics covered were:
   • Project 4AB status report, “alpha” release scheduled for the end of this year. Hewlett Packard
     has joined the project as a Founding Sponsor.
   • Review of Project 3A, the new Combined Small Parcel Test. This should be available on the
     ISTA website in a few months.
   • Assessment of the website Discussion Forum, and suggestions for improvement.
   • Discussion of the possible elimination of non-equivalent alternatives (fixed-displacement and
     random vibration, drop and inclined-impact, etc.) in test protocols.
   • Discussion of random vibration in 1- and 2-Series tests. It was suggested that random vibration
     be eliminated in the 1-Series Procedures and changed in the 2-Series.
   • Top load configuration for random vibration tests. Effective load density for the small parcel
     environment has been empirically determined to be 6 lbs/cu-ft.
   • Review of the Test Development Process flow charts. These will be added to the ISTA website
     for reference.
   • Open dialog concerned the testing of quarter- and half-pallets, effect on test results of changes
     to corrugated, and trends in test reports processed.

Look for a full report of this meeting in the next issue of ISTA’s Pre-Shipment Testing magazine.

Parcel Forum Tutorial a Success
ISTA’s Ed Church, Steve Pierce, and Bill Kipp presented an all-day tutorial at the recent Parcel Shipping and Distribution Forum in Chicago. “Limiting In-Transit Damage” was given to about 25 attendees, many of whom were unfamiliar with ISTA and what we do. It was an excellent opportunity to explain the application and benefits of ISTA testing, education, and certification services to an interested and attentive audience.

Time to Renew Your ISTA Membership

The 2004 invoices have been mailed, and you are urged to renew your annual ISTA membership promptly to avoid a lapse in services, certifications, publications, and member benefits. You may pay by check, credit card, or wire transfer, or by using Member Login in at www.ista.org and choosing “Pay Dues”. If you need to issue a purchase order, contact Lisa Sabala immediately (phone 517-333-3437) and the invoice will be re-issued using that P.O. number. If paying by mail, be aware that ISTA’s address is now at Suite 160 – please be certain that your accounting department has changed the suite number so that your payment is delivered properly. Complete instructions are included with your invoice, but don't hesitate to call ISTA at 517-333-3437 with any questions.

ISTA Board of Directors Meeting

The Board of Directors held a 1½ -day meeting in East Lansing November 6-7. Combined with the usual reporting and oversight functions was a planning session focused on the long-range future of ISTA. The history of ISTA was reviewed, a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) was conducted, and new Vision and Mission Statements were drafted. Four major objectives were defined in the areas of revenue, sales and marketing, business operations, and test development. Supporting detail and completion of the plan will be ready for Board acceptance during its April meeting at Dimensions.

More information will be in the next issue of ISTA’s Pre-Shipment Testing magazine.

Problems Receiving iNews?

It has recently been discovered that a few people are having problems receiving iNews. Because of its format (html, like a web page), some e-mail systems think it’s spam or contains a virus, and block it. A few days ago we sent a plain-text email asking for feedback, and almost 400 of you responded!  THANK YOU! Most of those reporting difficulties will be sent a text-only version of iNews, which should resolve the situation. We'll continue to work with the others to see that iNews is delivered properly.  If you continue to have problems, please try the following:
   • Check with your IT department and inform them that e-mail from ista@ista.org is not spam
     and does not contain viruses.
   • Also ask if the text version of iNews would work better for your e-mail system, and request
     it if appropriate.
   • Contact Meredith Young (phone 517-333-3437) if you have further questions or comments.

Results of CPLP Chicago Area Workshop

The Certified Packaging Laboratory Professional Workshop held last month provided an alternative to the usual self-study program, for those who prefer a “fast-track” format. The materials were reviewed and discussed and the exams administered all in one day for each CPLP level.

Congratulations to the new CPLP’s!
   • Connie Seegers, Great Northern Corporation – Technician
   • Brian Walker, Green Bay Packaging – Technician
   • Michael Carey, Tuscarora/SCA – Technician
   • Ryan Townsend, Tuscarora/SCA – Technician
   • Jerry Loza, Box USA – Technician
   • Tim Kreider, QVC, Inc. – Technician and Technologist
   • Lise Christensen, Grundfos A/S – Technician and Technologist
   • Michael Kuebler, Lansmont Corporation – Technician and Technologist

A similar workshop will be held the day before Dimensions.04 next year in Florida. This is a great opportunity to become CPLP certified and attend Dimensions under the same travel expense. Watch for details on the Dimensions.04 website.

Click Here for a list of all CPLP recipients to date.

Dimensions.04 Brochure On Its Way
The big annual ISTA and IoPP sponsored educational forum on transport packaging is scheduled for April 14-17, 2004 at Walt Disney World's Coronado Springs Resort. Don’t miss it! Watch for a complete brochure in your mailbox by early December. Information is also available on the Dimensions.04 website, including the ability to register on-line. The site will be updated regularly, so check back often.

If your company is considering an exhibit at Dimensions, be aware that space is limited. Unfortunately we had to turn away some potential exhibitors last year because of room size restrictions. We’ve now secured additional space, but it still could be tight. Contact Meredith Young (phone 517-333-3437) right away if you’re thinking about exhibiting.