ASTM Quality and Statistics

Later this week, I'll be attending (via computer and telephone) the semi-annual meeting of one of my favorite organizations, ASTM's Committee on Quality and Statistics (designated as committee E-11). Until a name change a few years ago, ASTM's official title was the American Society for Testing and Materials. The name change, to ASTM International, was, I believe, driven by a desire to emphasize the fact that standards are now a matter of global significance, and ASTM has cooperative agreements with the standards organizations of numerous countries. In addition, many individual ASTM members are residents of many of those world spanning places.

I've been a member of ASTM since the early 1970's and have been serving on E-11 since 1989. I'm occasionally asked to explain what ASTM is, does, and why it matters. In the U.S., government has rarely been directly involved in standards setting activities, preferring to let various industry and consumer groups set their own standards for materials, products, and test methods. ASTM arose out of that environment, forming in 1898, and was a vehicle used by the steel industry to develop standard material specifications and test methods. The first ASTM committee, A-1 on Iron and Steel, is still in existence, playing the same role now as it did then.

NIST, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, was founded in 1901 as a government research laboratory, originally known as the National Bureau of Standards. In spite of the name, it's main role was, and still is, research in the sciences. Among other services, it provides standard reference materials to other laboratories, and also maintains and provides instrument calibration standards.

Another important player in the standards arena is the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). Founded in 1918, ANSI is a private entity, charged with serving as the accrediting body for organizations such as ASTM, who actually develop and write standards. There are approximately 200 standards setting organizations within the U.S. that are currently accredited by ANSI.

Getting back to ASTM, committee E-11 was formed in the 1930's, and was charged with developing standards for performing statistical analysis of product and test data, and developing plans for selecting samples used in test procedures. Many prominent statisticians, including Dr. W. Edwards Deming, whom I've previously mentioned here, served on that committee. Much of his work, as well as that of others who have been on the committee, has been incorporated into current standards, and have a profound influence on industry practices worldwide. As I've noted recently, Deming, along with a few others, was instrumental in getting the Japanese to develop a culture of quality throughout their industrial companies as they rebuilt after World War II.

Standards are extremely important to all of our industries. Without them, we'd be hard pressed to trade with each other, and consumers would have no reliable way of knowing what they're getting in a product. ASTM now has over 130 technical committees, dealing with materials, test methods, and industries ranging from heavy manufacturing to consumer products, and issues such as energy, exploration and the environment. The committees can always use additional help, and you don't always have to be a technical expert in the particular subject matter to participate. While most committees meet in particular locations twice a year, remote participation, as I'll be doing this week, is also easy. Consider getting involved. Visit www.astm.org to see where you might fit in.