| 3. Modus Operandi
3.1 Role:
The Committee pursues its development of IWTO Specifications via
specialist Technical Groups. These Groups receive and discuss all
Technical Reports related to metrology and standardisation.
It also provides a Technology Forum for presentation and discussion
of Technical Reports, which are focussed on technology applications
and research and development into industrial processes.
To facilitate technology transfer, the Committee arranges
Technology Seminars on topics selected to attract the interest of
commercial Delegates.
3.2 Schedule of Meetings:
Meetings of the Technology & Standards Committee and its
Technical Groups are conducted over 2 days, prior to the commencement
of commercial IWTO Committee Meetings.
The first full day is dedicated to the standardisation work of the
Technical Groups, which report their recommendations to a
Standardisation Session early on the second day, following which the
Technology Forum is held.
The last 2 hours of the second day are dedicated to the topical
Commercial Technology Seminar. This is scheduled as the last activity
preceding the commercial program, to facilitate participation by
industrialists.
The above schedule can be modified by the Steering committee
provided adequate notice of the changes are given to recipients of
T&S Committee documents.
3.3 Technical Groups:
There are currently four (4) Technical Groups, namely:
The Raw Wool Group
The Sliver Group
The Yarn & Fabric Group
The Special Topics Group
The activities of these Technical Groups are circumscribed by the
"Procedures for the Development, Review, Progression or
Relegation of Approved IWTO Test Methods and Draft Test Methods,"
issued as IWTO-0 in the IWTO Specifications Red Book. This document
lists the IWTO Specifications, by code number, which have been
delegated to each Technical Group.
Technical Groups do not have the power to approve or ratify IWTO
Specifications; rather, it is their role to formulate and recommend
texts to the Technology & Standards Committee's Standardisation
Session.
3.3.1 Membership of Technical Groups:
The Technical Groups have a membership list to facilitate
continuity of participation and to ensure that Agendas and
accompanying Technical Papers are received directly by organizations
or individuals that are active in their field of work.
Members may be research & technology institutes, testing
laboratories, other corporate entities, or selected individuals. They
are appointed by the Steering Committee of the Technology &
Standards Committee and will be included in the Official Mailing List,
if the Steering Committee considers that the prospective Member has:
· demonstrated a sufficient level of technical competence, by
being active in the field(s) relevant to the Group and/or by
possessing appropriate specialist tertiary qualifications;
· agreed to present documented research data/technical papers and to
assist in drafting and reviewing IWTO Specifications relevant to the
Group, including participation in inter-laboratory round trials, when
necessary; and/or
· undertaken to debate technical issues openly on technical grounds
and, in this regard, to declare any personal, business or employer
conflicts of commercial interest which are related to the work of the
Group, thereby accepting that any such conflict disqualifies them from
claiming independence (eg. where independent analysis of data or round
trials is required).
To remain a Member, continuity of attendance at meetings of the
Group is essential. In the event that 3 consecutive Meetings are
missed, formal membership lapses automatically until active
participation resumes.
3.4 Ad-hoc Working Groups
The steering committee can, to meet specific needs, set up ad-hoc
Working Groups to study special issues that require initial
development before they are progressed within the Technical Groups. A
'parent' Technical Group nominated by the Steering Committee will
oversee the activity within these Ad-hoc Working Groups when the Group
is initially set up. The Working Group will report to the parent
Technical Group and all significant decisions concerning its activity
must be ratified by that Technical Group. The Working Group will be
dissolved when the issues for which it was set up are resolved.
3.4.1 Membership of Ad-hoc Working Groups:
Membership of Working Groups is more flexible than that of the
Technical groups and can include all individuals or institutes who can
make a significant contribution to its activities. Members of the
Working Group need not necessarily be members of the parent Technical
Group although it is hoped that they will involve themselves in the
wider technical activities of IWTO.
3.4.2 Responsibilities of Convenors:
The convenor of the Ad-hoc Working Group is responsible for:
· preparing the agenda for the Working Group meeting
· sending a copy of the agenda with any attachments to the Chairman
of the 'parent' Technical Group for circulation with the agenda of
that Technical Group
· Preparing minutes of the proceedings at Working Group meetings.
These will be appended to the minutes of the 'parent' Technical Group
· Ensuring that members of Working Groups who are not on the official
mailing list of IWTO receive copies of the agenda and attachments
prior to each meeting
Following each Working Group meeting, the convenor will report to
the meeting of the 'parent' Technical Group
3.5 Steering Committee:
The day-to-day operations of the Technology & Standards
Committee are managed by a Steering Committee comprised of the
Chairman, Deputy Chairman, Secretary-General, Technical Coordinator
and the 4 Chairmen of the Technical Groups. The Immediate Past
Chairman is an ex-officio non-voting Member for a maximum period of 2
years. This Steering Committee meets immediately prior to the first
Technology & Standards Committee Meeting and it also conducts a
Review Meeting prior to the final Meeting of the Technology &
Standards Committee ie. the Standardisation Session.
3.6 Official Mailing List:
The Official Mailing List for distribution of Agendas &
appended Submissions, Technical Reports and Minutes is as follows:
· one (1) complete set to each individual Member or to each
discreet geographical address of regularly participating Member
Institutes / Laboratories (for their internal distribution to
individual staff);
· one (1) complete set to each National Committee of IWTO (for their
internal distribution to constituent Members or individuals within
their country);
· one (1) complete set to each Official National Delegate appointed
to the Commercial Regulations Committee;
· one (1) complete set to each Official National Delegate appointed
to the Technology & Standards Committee;
· one (1) complete set to each Member of the T&S Steering
Committee;
· one (1) complete set each to the IWTO President, Vice-President,
Treasurer and Secretary-General; and
· one (1) complete set each to the Chairman and Secretary of the
Commercial Regulations Committee and to each person appointed by a
commercial IWTO Committee as its Technical Representative.
Note: Where an individual is qualified (as above) to receive more
than one (1) set of Papers, this will not occur.
3.7 Submissions and Reports
Reports and submissions related to the development of Test
Specifications, such as proposals for new or amended texts and/or the
results of supporting research data and round trials are normally
presented within the Technical Groups.
Technical reports on more general issues of metrology, or on
physical and chemical topics relating to research and development of
industrial processes and/or applications of technology, are normally
presented in the Commercial Technology Forum.
Initially, all authors must send the titles of their papers
(accompanied by an indicative summary of a maximum of an A4 page), to
the Chairman of the relevant Technical Group or to the chairman of the
T&S committee for reports to the Commercial Technology Forum. Each
Chairman will allocate a Report or Submission number to the paper and
inform the author. The author will use this number in the preparation
of the paper. The Group Chairman can redirect the request to the
chairman of the T&S Committee, if s/he considers that your
presentation is more appropriate in the Commercial Technology Forum
(or vice versa). All titles and indicative summaries must reach the
chairman by the required deadline preferably by e-mail or by fax.
The final text should be emailed or sent on disk in the appropriate
format to the relevant Group or the Committee Chairman.
It is required that all Reports and Submissions be accompanied by a
Briefing Paper which gives a concise summary of the findings of the
work and a concise but complete statement on the commercial
implications of the work. The first objective of this document is to
inform commercial colleagues about the issues to be discussed at the
T&S committee and its Groups so that they can express their views
on the commercial implications of amendments or technical proposals.
Authors are requested to restrict the text of the briefing paper to a
single page.
Sets of Briefing Papers are to be appended to the Technical Group
agendas and to the official List of Reports for the Forum (as
appropriate). They will also be circulated with the agenda of the
Commercial Regulations Committee, so that:
all National Committees will learn what is developing, and will
have a concise set of summaries to copy and distribute economically to
their members; and
interested members can then obtain from their National Committee (or
download from the web site) a full copy of any technical report that
specifically interests them; and
commercial delegates will be informed so that they can attend the
Commercial Technology Forum and/or Technical Group meetings, where
those topics of interest to them are to be discussed.
To facilitate the reporting of recommendations at the Standardisation
session of the T&S committee and to the Assembly, authors are
requested to attach, as a separate appendix, starting on a new page,
to the relevant Technical Report:
any new texts proposed for Specifications; or
formal recommendations concerning Specifications or Regulations.
This will also assist the chairmen in arranging post-approval
printing.
There are no formal arrangements or formats required for
submissions/reports to ad-hoc Working groups. Submission dates and the
mode of distribution are at the discretion of the convenor.
3.8 Deadlines for Conference Papers
All Agendas, Submissions and Technical Reports must be in the hands
of the Secretary-General no later than 6 weeks prior to commencement
of the IWTO Meetings. Submissions and papers should be submitted in
electronic form using the templates provided on the web page. The
papers for the next meeting should be available on the IWTO web page
shortly thereafter. After allowing time for copying, dispatch and mail
delivery, all addressees should expect to receive their papers some
four (4) weeks prior to the Meetings.
Approximately 3 months prior to IWTO Congresses/Meetings, the
Secretary-General announces the specific series of deadline dates, in
a letter to all addressees on the Official Mailing List.
Similarly, the Minutes of Committees and Groups should be in the
hands of the Secretary-General no later than 6 weeks after the IWTO
Meetings.
3.9 Appointment of Office-Bearers:
The Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Technology & Standards
Committee are appointed by the IWTO Executive Committee from among
those who have been active participants in IWTO's technical work over
several years.
The T&S Steering Committee appoints the Chairmen of the
Technical Groups. Group Chairmen may select their own Deputies and/or
Minute Secretaries from time-to-time, having regard to:
· their needs for convenient co-ordination of papers;
· the need to encourage participation by younger Delegates; and
· the need for training via experience to facilitate succession.
The T&S Steering committee appoints convenors of Ad-hoc Working
Groups. Convenors may select their own Secretaries
3.10 Responsibilities of Chairmen:
Each Chairman is responsible for:
· the preparation of his own Agendas and the circulation of
Meeting Papers via the Secretary-General; and
· the preparation of Minutes recording the proceedings at his Group's
Meetings.
Following each Technical Group Meeting, the Group Chairmen each
report to the Standardisation Session of the Technology &
Standards Committee. These are brief reports – not detailed Minutes
– which recommend new or revised texts (if any) for Specifications,
report on progress of round trials and/or outline specific
investigations to be undertaken prior to the next Meeting.
"Clean" copies of new texts must be provided to the T&S
Chairman, for passing on to the Secretary-General, once approved.
In the Standardisation Session, the Official National Delegates
will determine whether a new text is an editorial enhancement (which
they can approve) or a significant change, requiring approval by the
Assembly.
The Chairman of the Technology and Standards Committee reports to
the Commercial Regulations and Contracts Committee on any changes to
Specifications approved at the Standardisation meeting and seeks their
endorsement of the recommended implementation dates. The recommended
dates can be agreed or modified.
The T&S Chairman presents a Report to the IWTO Assembly,
identifying editorial enhancements "For Noting Only" as well
as significant Specification text changes and the agreed
implementation dates "For Approval" |
