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(ISO: Geneva) -- The 14 ISO International Standards currently making up the ISO 9000 family of generic quality-management standards are now available in new paper and compact disc editions of The ISO Standards collection. Two standards now at the final draft stage, plus a technical…
(NIST: Washington) -- Five U.S. organizations were recently named winners of the 2007 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, which promotes excellence in organizational performance, recognizes the achievements and results of U.S. organizations, and publicizes successful performance…
(ANSI: New York) -- Safety symbols—like those for high voltage, biohazards, a wet floor, and radioactive materials—depend upon consistency and bold graphics to warn against specific hazards and personal injury. A revised American National Standard from the National Electrical Manufacturers…
(NCQA: Washington) -- A set of measures assessing the quality of care for HIV/AIDS patients was released recently for public comment. Developed by the National Committee for Quality Assurance in collaboration with the AMA-convened Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement (PCPI), the…
(Consumers Union: Yonkers, New York) -- Lead hazards in consumer products aren’t limited to the millions of toys recalled so far this year, according to Consumer Reports magazine.Consumer Reports lab tests detected lead at widely varying levels in samples of dishware, jewelry, glue stick caps,…
(NIST: Gaithersburg, Maryland) -- Each year the Baldrige National Quality Program recruits experts from businesses, education organizations, health care providers, nonprofits, and other groups to serve as members of the Board of Examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.…
How are physicists helping to eradicate malaria, the mosquito-borne disease that kills more than a million people annually? Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology helped a young company create weakened, harmless versions of the malaria-causing parasite. These parasites…
(NCQA: Washington) -- U.S. News & World Report and the National Committee for Quality Assurance recently unveiled the third edition of “America’s Best Health Plans,” an annual ranking of U.S. health maintenance organizations and point-of-service plans. This edition coincides with the November…
(GBMP: Boston) -- The Shingo Prize criteria and model have been developed to provide companies with a blueprint for attaining world-class excellence. Workshop participants will gain an understanding of the criteria and the underlying principles and tenets behind the Shingo Prize philosophy and…
(ASQ: Milwaukee, Wisconsin) -- Improved care and increased patient satisfaction are primary objectives in today’s competitive health care environment. The American Society for Quality is introducing a new lean Six Sigma Black Belt for health care course to address those objectives. The five-month…
(EFQM: Brussels) -- Amongst the impressive surroundings of the Athens Arena, the results of the 2007 EFQM Excellence Award were announced during EFQM’s annual Gala Celebration. The excellence award is Europe’s most prestigious recognition for organizational excellence given to Europe’s best…
(ISO: Geneva) -- The ISO 28000 series of standards on supply-chain security-management systems, which have just been upgraded from publicly available specifications to international standards, will help to reduce risks to people and cargo. The standards address potential security issues at all…
(SME: Dearborn, Michigan) -- The Society of Manufacturing Engineers has developed a new initiative to identify technologies that are affecting the manufacturing industry. “Technologies that Could Change the Way You Manufacture” is a member-driven program to discover and showcase new and emerging…
(MRI: Boston) -- Results of the Medical Record Institute’s 2007 Survey of Electronic Medical Record Trends and Usage (co-sponsored by Philips Speech Recognition Systems) are now available. This survey is an annual poll of information technology usage among health care providers.Responses from…
(The Conference Board: New York, New York) -- The Conference Board recently announced that Gail D. Fosler has been named president of the 91-year-old global research and business membership organization.Fosler has served The Conference Board in a number of capacities over the past 18 years, most…
(ASQ: Milwaukee, Wisconsin) -- Cutting costs, improving quality and boosting profits are phrases every company hears at some point. Six Sigma has long been used in the manufacturing market to meet these goals. However, the use of Six Sigma practices has expanded into health care, service and…
(AIAG: Detroit) -- For the first time in the association’s history, the Automotive Industry Action Group has appointed a tier-two supplier to the board of directors. Specialty Products joined the board effective Sept. 11, 2007. “Specialty Products brings a new perspective to the AIAG board as a…
(Intertek: London) -- Intertek, a testing, inspection, and certification company, has launched the Certified Fire Door Inspector Program, through which potential inspectors will be trained to perform inspections of fire-rated door assemblies to the 2007 edition of NFPA 80: Standard for Fire Doors…
(Coca-Cola: Atlanta) -- The Coca-Cola Co. recently announced it is investing more than $60 million to support recycling in the U.S. and build the world’s largest plastic bottle-to-bottle recycling plant. These investments are part of its goal to recycle or reuse 100 percent of the company’s…
(NCQA: Washington) -- Organizations providing specialized health care information services can now earn certification from the National Committee for Quality Assurance for a range of services they provide. The new Health Information Products certification program assesses functions ranging from the…
(NIST: Gaithersburg, Maryland) -- The National Institute of Standards and Technology has released “Guidelines on Securing Public Web Servers,” which covers some of the latest threats to Web security, while reflecting general changes in Web technology that have taken place since the first version of…
(SAI Global: Kenilworth, United Kingdom) -- SAI Global, an independent auditing and standards body, has launched a campaign in the United Kingdom designed to monitor and report on the sustainability of British business. The company launched the UK Sustainable Business Awards in a bid to promote…
(Catalyst: New York) -- Fortune 500 companies with the highest representation of women board directors attained significantly higher financial performance, on average, than those with the lowest representation of women board directors, according to Catalyst’s most recent report, “The Bottom Line:…
(ARS: Washington) -- The Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture has unveiled an Internet resource to help smaller companies answer food-safety questions and help food processors make science-based food-production decisions. The Predictive Microbiology Information Portal…
(RWE Power: Ludwigshafen, Munich) -- The Linde Group, BASF, and RWE Power have agreed on the development of new processes for carbon dioxide (CO2) capture from combustion gases in coal-fired power plants today. The cooperation will comprise the construction and operation of a pilot facility at the…