ALC 2011: ASTM International Committee F43 for Language Services and Products

The Association of Language Companies (ALC) puts on its annual conference in Las Vegas on May 18-21, 2011.

Language Industry – Our Time is Now, Part 2: ASTM International Committee F43 for Language Services and Products
Kathleen Diamond (Advocate, language and Entrepreneurship; CCHI Commissioner; Membership Secretary, ASTM-F43 Language Services and Products)

• ASTM: founded in 1898, now the largest US-based international voluntary consensus standards writing organization; independent, private sector, non-profit
• Over 3000 AST M International standards are used as the basis for national standards by reference in regulation in over 60 countries
• First meeting of F43 held in February 2011; anyone can become a member of the committee
• Balance of interest is important: producers but also users and general interest (academics, government, private sector)
• Over 140 Technical Committees (languages used to be in F15 before F43 was created)
• Very structured process: main committee, sub-committees, task groups
• F43 received COTCO approval in September 2010; will maintain standards previously in F15
• Broad scope: development of standards for language services and products
• Six sub-committees: Interpreting, foreign language instruction, translation, language proficiency, executive, US TAG to ISO/TC 232, US TAG to ISO/TC37
• Chairman Bill Rivers
• F43 URL: www.astm.org/commit/committee/F43.htm