July-August 2019 NPJ

28 NuclearPlantJournal.com Nuclear Plant Journal, July-August 2019 ASME International... ( Continued from page 27)  Voting on first consideration BPV XI ballots. Participation on the IWG will strengthen understanding of ASME standards requirements and provide insight into future revisions to the standards. The initial qualified applicants were appointed during the February 2019 BPV SectionXI Executive Committeemeeting. The kickoff meeting was just held in Mumbai India on July 29, 2019. Section XI Staff Secretary, KimVerderber, Section XI India IWG Liaison, Nathan Palm and Asia Nuclear Codes and Standards Liaison, Kathryn Hyam provided training on committee operations, recent standards development activities and ASME standards development balloting tools. This meeting is the first of many, the IWG plans to meet at least twice a year to discuss current ASME ballots, Code Cases, and to formulate proposed revisions to the standard based on India’s indigenous Nuclear Power Plant design. Current ASME International Working Groups The first IWGs were established in 2009 with ASME B31 standards committees. Since then, 31 IWGs have been founded, 15 of these within the ASME Nuclear Codes and Standards department. There are many more under consideration. ASME will continue to consider the formation of IWGs based on an analysis of the need and level of interest in the formation of the committee and Standards Committee agreement. Looking Ahead: Increasing Global Participation IWGs provide profound benefits to ASME’s standards writing participants, standards committees, and stakeholders. The most obvious being that experts based overseas have greater opportunities for participation with significantly reduced impositions of travel. IWGs also offer improved collaboration opportunities with their respective committee colleagues. Standards committees benefit from a broader pool of subject matter experts with valuable perspectives on regional conditions, issues and applications. It is also expected that IWGs will foster the development of future S&C volunteer leaders hailing from everywhere ASME’s standards are used. For local stakeholders, IWGs may facilitate discussion of their experiences and needs, and potentially provide a first line of support and coordination for their inquiries and exchange of technical information. Meetings, workshops, conferences, and collaborations with stakeholders and other standards developers are a significant part of ASME’s globalization activities. Through these outreach efforts, ASME volunteer leaders, committees and staff are able to engage international stakeholders and encourage participation in the ASME standards development process. This type of outreach has recently led to the addition of the most recent Nuclear IWG, BPV Section XI Committee on Nuclear Inservice Inspection India IWG. These activities are vital to ASME’s ability to improve their standards and certification products and keep them technically and globally relevant. Regions outside of North America are increasingly significant sources and markets for the equipment and industries served by ASME standards. ASME continues to strive to incorporate the innovation, knowledge and experience from stakeholders throughout the world into ASME’s standards, ensuring their continued technical relevance and excellence. Stakeholders interested in participating in any ASME’s standards development activities are encouraged to contact ASME at www.asme.org/about- asme/get-involved/ Contact: Kate Hyam, ASME, 2 Park Ave New York, NY 10016; telephone: (212) 591-8704, email: hyamk@asme. org.