Greetings to you all! What is new in your place of the world? As you start to read through this “New Technology” issue of Working Pressure, I thought I would write to you about what’s new in ASSE and how it relates to your place in the world.
ASSE has continued to take precautions to keep its members safe during the troubles of the world, but what’s new is the thought that ASSE can continue producing industry standards remotely. Some even think that developing standards remotely has made the process better. The ability for participants to login online, introduces ideas, debate those ideas, and then carry on with their day in short periods of time has increased the participation in the standards development process.
A couple things I’ve noticed with shortened sessions, compared to all-day sessions, is that people have been more effective with their time speaking and debating. With the scheduling of multiple sessions, it has also allowed participants to table ideas, create sub-committees to research topics/questions, and then report back to the standard’s working group, which in turn generates better standards. Working group members are becoming more informed and, thus, making better decisions to uphold our motto, “Prevention Rather Than Cure.” A great example of this was seen during the working group sessions for the ASSE Series 6000 Medical Gas Systems standard revision — part of which you can read more about in this issue.
As the world begins to change back to a “new normal,” I feel that the lessons we’ve learned will help us continue to be a leader in the piping industry well into the future. If there were any new ideas, thoughts, or experiences from this past year that you think should be continued as we move forward, please let us know.
