Standardization News

Whether at your site or ours, or online, ASTM International's training courses give your employees what they need to use ASTM standards the right way, every time.

Does your staff need help understanding and using ASTM International standards properly? ASTM training provides the perfect solution to your training needs - at our sites, your site or online. The courses are intensive and focused, and present practical information for people and organizations seeking useful knowledge for their areas of responsibility. The ASTM course instructors bring considerable expertise obtained through education and prior industry experience as well as in ASTM committee work and standards development.

From corrosion to concrete, petroleum to textiles and more, ASTM classes provide in-depth education on understanding, performing and applying ASTM International standards. Courses include open enrollment options at cities around the world, on-site courses presented for individual firms and online to accommodate busy schedules.

New hires and other employees polishing their skills or seeking continuing education to fulfill professional development and certification requirements, can attend one-, two- or three-day seminars, or access self-guided classes online.

According to David von Glahn, ASTM director of technical training and e-learning, the ASTM International training program has always been customer-driven, and it continues to evolve according to those demands. "We're now moving toward a blended learning environment with both live and e-learning components," he says. "Interaction is fantastic in a live course… and e-learning could occur before and after the course."

Complementing this blended environment is a new ASTM International learning management system that incorporates training into the ASTM Web portals. Subscribing portal customers will now be able to see what training their employees have taken, track their progress and learning, and assign courses.

ASTM International's training programs on corrosion, aviation fuels and environmental assessment provide three examples of how ASTM is meeting needs of industry.

A Hands-On Corrosion Course

The two-day corrosion course, Corrosion Testing: Application and Use of Salt Fog, Humidity, Cyclic and Gas Tests, may be the most hands-on ASTM course thanks to the inclusion and demonstration of an actual test chamber. The class provides attendees with a practical working knowledge of such ASTM International standards as B117, Practice for Operating Salt Spray (Fog) Apparatus, and G85, Practice for Modified Salt Spray (Fog) Testing, among others. Class demonstrations show, for example, how to mix needed corrosive solutions, clean coupons and samples, and evaluate samples and results.

An engineer at an automotive supplier that designs, manufactures, tests and validates performance of windshield wipers and components says he took the corrosion course after transitioning into a materials science position, anticipating that he would gain an overall corrosion testing knowledge base. He says he has benefited from the two-day program. "The course helped me to learn and use the best practices for corrosion testing. Learning the terminology made the test specifications used in the workplace simple to comprehend. Setting up the new chamber we received was also much easier than expected due to being able to see the chamber in person during the training."

Raymund Singleton, an ASTM International member since 1984 and president of Singleton Corp., Cleveland, Ohio, teaches the course. The attendees usually include representatives of product and materials testing companies and U.S. government agencies, and manufacturers, including aerospace, automotive, appliance, fastener, and electrical and electronics. Singleton says that students from outside the United States regularly attend as well. "Most attendees have an interest in improving their corrosion testing programs and testing operations. Many bring actual examples of test specimens and results for which they wish input and advice," says Singleton, who has long-term industry expertise as well as standards development experience from his work in ASTM Committee G01 on Corrosion of Metals.

Jarrett Burgett, an engineer specialist for Cessna Aircraft Co. in Wichita, Kan., has also attended the course. He says that his company is expanding its laboratory capabilities to include cyclic corrosion testing in its material qualification programs. "We needed to learn about the types of cyclic corrosion tests and choose which ones apply to our materials," he says. "I did learn about cyclic corrosion testing. However, I also learned a lot about static testing, such as that in ASTM B117."

The corrosion course can be held on-site, at a company's facility, or attended through a scheduled open enrollment course at various U.S. locations. On-site, Singleton notes, the company's corrosion chamber and any related apparatus could be used for the hands-on work, and it saves on travel and logistics costs. "In an on-site environment, the customers' parts, products and test specimens are readily available for relevant discussion, instruction and analysis," he says.

Aviation Fuels

The ASTM Aviation Fuels training course packs information about jet fuel and aviation gasoline, the relevant ASTM test methods and specifications, and an airport fuel system tour into three days; it's an open enrollment course available in locations around the United States that has also been given internationally. The course addresses the process from crude to refinery and transportation to airport supply to delivery into a plane, and how ASTM International standards and test methods support the work all along the way. Roger Organ, an aviation consultant based in Pagosa Springs, Colo., who has experience and expertise from more than 40 years in fuels research and technical service, teaches the course. He describes the training as an opportunity to share his knowledge with a new generation of aviation fuel suppliers, storage and transportation specialists, and those involved in quality control testing and quality assurance.

Organ emphasizes the importance of aviation fuel quality. While aircraft and equipment have duplication built into practically everything, "that's everything but the fuel itself," he says. "There is just one batch of fuel loaded onto an aircraft so it better be on spec, and clean and dry to an exacting level. You cannot pull over and park a 777 or A380 at 35,000 ft."

With that crucial point in mind, the program covers the specifications, which consist of properties with assigned values along with minimum or maximum limits, used to control the quality of aviation fuels, and the test methods that determine the value of each property. Both specifications and test methods are placed in the context of operating engines and airframes as well as the handling and distribution of fuel from refineries to airports around the globe.

The people attending the course represent the aviation fuel supply chain, from fuel suppliers and maintenance personnel, refinery representatives and pipeline operators, to researchers and those who ultimately use jet fuel - pilots.

One Aviation Fuels course participant, a research engineer working on such fuels, says that she expected to get a broad perspective on aviation fuels, from "well to wake." "I got that and much more," she says, and adds that the small class size allowed for deeper discussion of related topics and included many real world examples.

Jennifer Green, Ph.D., a senior chemist at Nalco-Champion in Sugar Land, Texas, says she took the course because her company sells aviation fuel additives and she needs to keep abreast of changing specifications. "In order to be successful, it is important to have a thorough understanding of the fuel as well as its worldwide specifications and common testing procedures," she says. "I develop additives for crude oil and finished fuels. I also help support our products in the field and troubleshoot any issues for our clients." Her goal was to learn more about the testing and specifications for aviation fuels. Green says the course gave her that and more.

E1527 and Environmental Assessment

ASTM E1527, Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process, defines U.S. practice for conducting an environmental site assessment of commercial real estate with regard to contaminants within the scope of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act. Its purpose is to permit the user to satisfy a requirement or requirements for the landowner liability protections in the legislation. E1527 defines the process to identify recognized environmental conditions at a property (for example, historical gas station or dry cleaner operations or past spills of hazardous substances). The standard is cited in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's All Appropriate Inquiries law as meeting EPA requirements.

E1527 is also the topic of training courses from ASTM International. "Virtually every commercial property in this country has had or will need a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment conducted. E1527 is the primary tool for this process," says course instructor Julie Kilgore, principal and managing partner at Wasatch Environmental, Salt Lake City, Utah, and chair of ASTM Committee E50 on Environmental Assessment, Risk Management and Corrective Action.

Paul Zovic, senior adviser for Endpoint Corp., Milwaukee, Wis., who also teaches the courses, says, "You can read a standard and understand what the words say; to really benefit, it's important to understand why the standard says what it says and to learn from others of the practices and pitfalls they've encountered."

Training courses address E1527 either alone or in concert with E1528, Practice for Limited Environmental Due Diligence: Transaction Screen Process, and E1903, Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase II Environmental Site Assessment Process, and the courses can be taken in person or online. In either case, the content addresses why the standards have been developed, how to use the standards and how the standards affect business. The course instructors, involved in the development of E1527 and other E50 standards, teach the courses on-site and facilitate online courses as well.

According to Kilgore, a course on the topic helps bring clarity to the industry. "There is so much misinformation, misapplication and misunderstanding," she says. "Attendees range from seasoned professionals to industry newcomers. These trainings provide a forum to discuss site-specific challenges and gain perspective from others in the classroom who have faced similar situations."

The online E1527 course is four weeks long, with an expectation that enrollees commit about four hours each week to the training. With 12 narrated modules, the course offers information, ongoing forums and weekly Web seminars to pull each portion together, plus quizzes and a case study.

"Given today's 24/7 access to information and 24 hour work schedules, online classes are very attractive to many working professionals," says Zovic. One online course participant, who works in financial services, says she is relatively new to the environmental world and reviews Phase I assessment reports in her work. Choosing to take the course online, she says the course is comprehensive and "it made everything make sense."

For More

This sampling of ASTM International's training program represents just a few of the courses available on diverse subjects. For more, check the program online.

If you have a request for a new training course, please contact David von Glahn, ASTM International (phone: 610-832-6591).