This annual event took place at the Millennium Mayfair Hotel in September with an attendance of over 100 committee and subcommittee technical chairmen along with a number of British Standards staff including Mike Low, Director of British Standards, Shirley Bailey-Wood, Operations Director, and Frank Post, Marketing Director.
The theme this year was ‘the changing face of standards’ which featured several guest speakers. Bob Carter, Chairman of IST 44 - Biometrics, spoke about his committee’s achievements and how it has taken a proactive approach to making and promoting standards. Other speakers included David Evans from the DTI, Adam Scorer from Energywatch and John Walker from the FSB who all spoke in an afternoon session called ‘the customer’s view of standards’. Lively debate centred on the discussion group topics: trade associations, relevance and international standards.
Chairmen-run session
As an innovation this year, there was a one hour slot at the end of the day for a Chairmen’s Peer Panel which provided an opportunity to discuss the practical challenges of being a BSI committee chairman and find out from others how they have addressed similar issues. The panel was made up of Chairmen from a mixture of sectors and consisted of: Bob Carter - Biometrics, David Smith - Health and Safety, John Roberts - Construction, and Peter Hatto - Nanotechnology. Frank Post chaired the session.
Various topics were voiced and discussed, including roles, responsibilities and procedures. If you or your committee encounters any problems or issues for which you would like advice please consult your committee secretary or, where appropriate, the Committee Service Centre. BS 0 and its associated guidance and policy material also offer an invaluable resource for the management of committee business, it can be found here.
