New ASTM B241/B241M 2012 Edition – Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Pipe and Tube

ASTM B241/B241M 2012 Edition, “Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Seamless Pipe and Seamless Extruded Tube,” has just been released and is now available from Document Center Inc. in both paper and pdf format.  This specification covers aluminum and aluminum-alloy seamless pipe and seamless extruded tube.

ASTM B241/B241M-12 pipe and tube shall be produced from hollow extrusion ingot (cast in hollow form, or drilled, or pierced from solid ingot) and shall be extruded by use of the die and mandrel method.

The material shall conform to the chemical composition requirements specified. The determination of chemical composition shall be made in accordance with suitable chemical (test methods ASTM-E 34) or spectrochemical (test methods ASTM-E 1251) methods. Alloys may be solution heat-treated and quenched at the extrusion press in accordance with practice ASTM-B 807 for the production of T4- and T6-type tempers, as applicable.

The material shall conform to the tensile property requirements specified. The tension tests shall be made in accordance with test methods found in ASTM-B 557. The stress-corrosion cracking test shall be performed on extruded tube. The stress-corrosion test shall be made in accordance with test method ASTM-G 47.

The aluminum alloy coating of clad tube shall comprise the inside surface (only) of the tube and its thickness shall be approximately 10 % of the total wall thickness of the tube.

Document Center Inc. has been selling ASTM standards under license agreement since the 1980’s and has a large collection that includes all current ASTM standards plus many obsolete editions.  You can order ASTM standards on Document Center’s website www.document-center.com.  Or contact us by phone (650-591-7600), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com).  We’re happy to assist you with all your standards questions and requirements.

New IEC 62133 Edition 2.0 on Secondary cells and batteries

IEC 62133:2012, “Secondary cells and batteries containing alkaline or other non-acid electrolytes – Safety requirements for portable sealed secondary cells, and for batteries made from them, for use in portable applications,” has just been released and is available from Document Center Inc. in either paper or pdf format.  The standard specifies requirements and tests for the safe operation of portable sealed secondary cells and batteries (other than button) containing alkaline or other non-acid electrolyte, under intended use and reasonably foreseeable misuse.

This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition:
– update of assembly of cells into batteries (5.5);
– addition of design recommendations for lithium system only (5.6.2);
– separation of nickel systems and lithium systems (Clause 6);
– addition of specific requirements and tests for lithium systems (Clause 8);
– addition of charging of secondary lithium-ion cells for safe use (Annex A).

IEC 62133 Edition 2.0 is also available in a Redline Edition.  This means that when you purchase this marked-up copy, you have a quick and easy way to compare all the changes between this standard and its previous edition. FYI: The Redline version is not an official IEC Standard — only the current version of the standard is to be considered the official document.

You actually get 2 copies in one with the Redline edition, so you don’t need to purchase both versions.  There is just one document, with the bi-lingual copy of the standard first and then the marked up copy in English only following.  This means that the redline edition has a larger page-count than just the new release.

IEC standards are available in both paper and pdf format (and redline editions when available) from Document Center’s website, www.document-center.com.  Or you can order by contacting us by phone (650-591-7600), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com).  Territorial restrictions apply.

Meantime, all of us here at Document Center Inc. wish you and yours a very successful and satisfying New Year!

Happy Holidays from Document Center Inc.!

Document Center Inc. wants to thank all our customers for a great year this year!  We’ve released the new version of the website and our web traffic has doubled.  Sales are up and customers are making more use of our services than ever.  StandardsForum.com is also doing very well, showing that there is a need for expert information on the standards you use in your businesses.

It’s been our 30th anniversary year, and we’re delighted to have been able to serve the standards industry during this time.  It’s been amazing to see the transformation of the sector as new technologies are made available for creating and distributing information.

We will be closed on Monday December 24th and Tuesday December 25th.  And then next week, we’ll be closed Monday December 31st and Tuesday January 1st.  Our staff is taking advantage of the quiet time of year to be with family and friends and hope that you are able to do the same.

Happy Holidays!

What did happen at the ITU meetings in Dubai???

As a follow-up to an earlier post this month, we’ll revisit the WCIT 2012 meetings in Dubai and try to determine what exactly happened there.  Now that the ITU (International Telecommunications Union) meetings are over it seems there are two opposing views on the event.  One is the official version of consensus and success, the other is the sigh of relief by Internet organizations that a bullet has been dodged.

Of course, the truth lies somewhere in between.  Yes, the meeting did result in a new Treaty being adopted.  Yes, the fact that many countries will not sign the Treaty means that it will be unenforceable.

So what is the take-away?  First I think the most interesting aspect of this whole tempest is the light that was shed on the way International organizations conduct business.  For those who have never been involved in politics at this level, trying to participate in and understand the event proved challenging and enlightening.  Standards folks often believe that standards represent the triumph of reason.  International forums prove that standards are a result of a political process and you’re best not to forget it!

Secondly,  the meetings highlight the fact that nations have a stake in the Internet and are searching for ways to assert control over the wires used to transport all those packets, even as they’ve traditionally controlled telegraph and telephone lines.  ITU has historically done much good in the world by harmonizing the way your phone, fax, and Western Union wires work everywhere you need to communicate.  It is not surprising that ITU is the first battleground for inserting national interests into the protocols used by the Internet.

Third, the meeting highlights the strong resolve of the United States, the European Union, and others to support the current Internet system.  Of course, the flip side of this is we’re now aware of the desire of Russia, China, Arab and African countries to find a means to generate tax revenue and promote censorship under an Internationally sanctioned agreement.

Will this divide in outlook crop up again?  Most assuredly so.  We can consider Dubai to be yet another salvo in an on-going battle to define the Internet and how the Internet is controlled.  Congratulations to interested Techies in helping to bring a little sunshine into the process and help us all understand how this particular venue a bit more.

From our earliest days on the Internet in 1993, it has been clear that there are competing interests all looking to dominate this new communications tool.  Whether it’s the demands of business or government, someone is always looking for a way to dominate the media and change how you use this new environment.  I have always hoped for the continued success of the technical experts who were the first Internet standards developers.  But which side won this time?

Document Center Inc. provides standards and standards management support.  Purchase standards at our webstore, www.document-center.com.  Or contact us by phone (650-591-7617), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com) for more information on how we can help you.

New ASME B31.8 2012 Code – Gas Transmission and Distribution Piping Systems

There’s a new ASME B31.8-2012 available, “Code on Gas Transmission and Distribution Piping Systems,” and you can purchase your copy from Document Center Inc. now.  The Code covers gas transmission and distribution piping systems, including gas pipelines, gas compressor stations, gas metering and regulation stations, gas mains, and service lines up to the outlet of the customer’s meter set assembly.

ASME B31.8 also includes gas transmission and gathering pipelines, including appurtenances that are installed offshore for the purpose of transporting gas from production facilities to onshore locations; gas storage equipment of the closed pipe type that is fabricated or forged from pipe or fabricated from pipe and fittings; and gas storage lines.

Document Center is located about 15 miles from San Bruno, California, so we especially appreciate that this new revision adds a new section on training and qualification of operating company personnel and a new section on developing a damage prevention program. In addition, the plastic piping design formula section was revised in its entirety.

If you’re a piping system manufacturer, user, constructor, designer, involved with pipeline operation and maintenance, regulation, or possible governing legislation, this standard is an essential reference for you.

FYI: The ASME B31.8s Supplement from 2010 is still current as of this post.

All ASME standards can be purchased at Document Center’s website, www.document-center.com.  Or contact us by phone (650-591-7600), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com).  We are an authorized reseller of these standards and can provide you with the expert assistance you need when making your standards decisions.

New ASTM C1193 2012 Edition for Joint Sealants

My husband works in housing at Stanford University and he is always amazed at how frequently the ASTM standards are referenced in the requests for bids for the various facilities improvement projects the department has.  One good example of such a publication is the ASTM C1193, “Standard Guide for Use of Joint Sealants,” which has just been released as a new 2012 Edition.  The new 33 page guide is now available from Document Center Inc. in either paper or pdf format.  It describes the use of a cold liquid-applied sealant for joint sealing applications.

Included are applications for joints on buildings and related adjacent areas, such as plazas, decks, and pavements for vehicular or pedestrian use, and on types of construction other than highways and airfield pavements and bridges.

ASTM C1193-12 explains the properties and functions of various materials, such as sealant, sealant backing, and primer, among others; and, procedures such as, substrate cleaning and priming, and installation of the components of a sealed joint. It presents guidelines for the use and application of the various materials, design of a sealant joint for a specific application, and environmental conditions and effects that are known to detrimentally affect a sealant joint.

Changes to the new 2012 Edition from the previous (now obsolete) ASTM C1193-11A can be found by using the Redline Edition.  This provides you with 2 copies of the guide — one of the new edition and one of the previous edition with the changes cleared marked.

ASTM standards have been available from Document Center Inc. since the 1980’s, which means that we have a large collection of obsolete issues as well as the current revisions.  You can order these on our website, www.document-center.com, or contact us by phone (650-591-7600), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com).  We are available to assist you not only with your standards purchases, but also with the routine questions you may have regarding the correct usage and maintenance of your collection.

New BS EN ISO 14630 2012 Edition for Non-active surgical implants.

The BS EN ISO 14630:2012, “Non-active surgical implants. General requirements,” has just been released and is available now from Document Center Inc.  This British Standard is the UK implementation of EN ISO 14630:2012. It supersedes BS EN ISO 14630 2009 Edition, which is withdrawn.  It is the text of ISO 14630:2012, approved by CEN as a EN ISO 14630:2012 without any modification.

In addition to the ISO 14630, the document also contains an Annex ZA, “Relationship between this European Standard and the Essential Requirements of EU Directive 93/42/EEC.”  This Annex maps out the clauses of the ISO document with regards to the various requirements of the Medical Devices Directive.  The good news is that the “Qualifying Remarks/Notes” column in this Annex is empty!

The BS EN editions are the official English language editions, but alternative publications in English can be found.  For any questions you might have regarding multiple editions of any EN standard, please contact us.  We’ll be happy to help you understand the differences.

We do suggest that if you are certifying with a European auditor, you may prefer to purchase the EN editions of ISO standards.  This is because the EN edition is actually called out in the “list of harmonized standards” for each applicable Directive.

All BS EN standards are available from Document Center Inc. at our webstore, www.document-center.com.  Or contact us by phone (650-591-7600), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com).  We’ve been here since 1982 to help you with all your standards purchases and management requirements.

New ISO 15189 2012 Edition – Medical laboratories – Quality and Competence

ISO 15189 3rd Edition, “Medical laboratories – Requirements for quality and competence,” has just been released and it’s available now from Document Center Inc.  The 58-page standard can be used by medical laboratories in developing their quality management systems and assessing their own competence. It can also be used for confirming or recognizing the competence of medical laboratories by laboratory customers, regulating authorities and accreditation bodies.

This new update cancels and replaces the second edition (ISO 15189:2007), which has been technically revised.  Annex B provides a correlation (relationship) between the second and third editions.  Sections of the standard have been renamed or expanded on to reflect a improvements to the text.

ISO 15189:2012 is based on both the ISO/IEC 17025 and the ISO 9001 and continues the alignment established in ISO/IEC 17025:2005.  Annex A details the correlation between the clauses and subclauses of this third edition of ISO 15189 and those of ISO 9001:2008 and of ISO/IEC 17025:2005.

This International Standard is not intended to be used for the purposes of certification, however a medical laboratory’s fulfilment of the requirements of this International Standard means the laboratory meets both the technical competence requirements and the management system requirements that are necessary for it to consistently deliver technically valid results.  If a laboratory seeks accreditation, it should select an accrediting body which operates in accordance with ISO/IEC 17011 and which takes into account the particular requirements of medical laboratories.

All ISO, IEC and ISO/IEC standards are available from Document Center Inc.  You can purchase them at our website, www.document-center.com, or contact us by phone (650-591-7600), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com).  Territorial restrictions apply.  We look forward to working with you.

Norman Joseph Woodland, co-inventor and developer of the Barcode, dies at 91

Every standard has a story, and we are reminded of the long road of an idea to common acceptance with the death last Saturday of Norman Joseph (“Joe”) Woodland.  Co-inventor of the Barcode (along with Bernard “Bob” Silver, who died in 1963), the idea came to Mr. Woodland during an afternoon in 1948 at the beach.  Running his hand through the Florida sand, he realized that he could develop a code using lines instead of dots and dashes like Morse Code.

Woodland and Silver applied for a patent on their idea in 1949 (issued in 1952) and Woodland began working at IBM in 1951.  Although the idea was well received, it was considered impractical to implement at that time.  Woodland and Silver sold their patent to Philco in 1962 (apparently for $15,000.00).

Finally during the 1970’s, interest was revived in developing a scanning system for identification, first in the rail industry and then in the grocery business.  IBM remembered the Woodland was still employed by them and put him back on the case.  He redesigned his original circular code lines as linear ones.  However, adoption within the grocery business was still slow.  The first scan?  Wrigley’s gum at a Marsh’s supermarket in Troy, Ohio, in 1974!

Then in the 1980’s the Department of Defense adopted the use of Code 39 (First ANSI MH10.8M and MIL-STD-1189, later ANSI/AIM BC1), which was the first widely adopted bar code standard.  I can well remember the many requests for these documents when we first started the business!  And not surprisingly, DoD adoptance drove commercial usage.  Now there are a number of ISO/IEC standards, both for bar code symbology and for bar code scanner quality control and verification (listed below).

Mr. Woodland himself remained a fan of the bar code and was noted for wearing a tee-shirt with a large bar code on the front.  He was delighted with the wide-spread adoption of the bar code into uses that he would have never thought of at the time he originally conceived of the idea, as when he donated blood and was surprised that the container was identified with a bar code.

As we can see, this story follows the normal progress of an idea into practical usage — and with widespread adoption, into standardization.  Until Telecommunications and Information Technology started to affect the standards business in the 1980’s, this long roll-out of a technology into the “public domain” was routine.  Only in recent years have the requirements of commerce demanded a faster system to allow for standardization ahead of adoption.

And too I’m reminded of those many people that are involved in the development of things we often take for granted.  There’s many folks working in standards developing committees right now that are impacting the way our world works, knowing that their greatest source of satisfaction is going to be in those small moments when they see an implementation of their idea or standard at work!

Here’s your list of current ISO/IEC Bar Code Standards:

  • ISO/IEC 15417, Code 128 bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 15420, EAN/UPC bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 15424, Data Carrier Identifiers (including Symbology Identifiers)
  • ISO/IEC 15438, PDF417 bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 16022, Data Matrix bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 16023, MaxiCode
  • ISO/IEC 16388, Code 39 bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 16390, Interleaved 2 of 5 bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 18004, QR Code 2005 bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 24723, GS1 Composite bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 24724, GS1 DataBar bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 24728, MicroPDF417 bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 24778, Aztec Code bar code symbology specification
  • ISO/IEC 15415, Bar code symbol print quality test specification – Two-dimensional symbols
  • ISO/IEC 15416, Bar code print quality test specification — Linear symbols
  • ISO/IEC 15426-1, Bar code verifier conformance specification Part 1: Linear symbols
  • ISO/IEC 15426-2, Bar code verifier conformance specification Part 2: Two-dimensional symbols
  • ISO/IEC 29158, Direct Part Mark (DPM) Quality Guideline
  • in the U.S., ANSI/UCC5, Quality Specifications for UPC (Printed) Symbols

These standards can all be purchased on Document Center’s website, www.document-center.com.  Or contact us by phone (650-591-7600), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com).  We’ve been supporting the standards developing and using community since 1982, providing expert information in both standards and their usage.