{"id":2729,"date":"2016-02-22T07:20:22","date_gmt":"2016-02-22T11:20:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/ID\/?p=2729"},"modified":"2022-05-13T16:51:43","modified_gmt":"2022-05-13T20:51:43","slug":"astm-standard-at-your-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ata-divisions.org\/ID\/astm-standard-at-your-service\/","title":{"rendered":"ASTM Standard F2089-15 at Your Service!"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Milena Calderari-Waldron<\/strong><\/h5>\n

\u00a0\"[waiter<\/strong><\/p>\n

H<\/span>ave you ever been asked to do a trial on your own? Have you ever felt stumped when asked for a definition of interpreting? Have you ever found yourself explaining your rates? Ever wondered if there is some useful language out there that you could include in your contract negotiations? Fret no more. The ASTM[i]<\/a> F2089-15 Standard Practice for Language Interpreting has come to your rescue! ATA[ii]<\/a>, NAJIT[iii]<\/a>, NCIHC[iv]<\/a>, RID[v]<\/a>, and AIIC[vi]<\/a> members in partnership with government agencies, language companies, higher education institutions and even an interpreters\u2019 labor union[vii]<\/a> came together to create a national consensus document laying down the ground rules and definitions for spoken and signed language interpreting services.<\/p>\n

How are the ASTM International Standards created?<\/h3>\n

According to ASTM\u2019s own regulations[viii]<\/a>, a standard is \u201ca document that has been developed and established within the consensus process of the Society and that meets the approval requirements of ASTM procedures and regulations.\u201d<\/em> The ASTM F43 Committee on Language Services and Products was created in 2010 in response to global market demands. Previously, the language standards existed within the F15 Consumer Products Committee alongside such things as baby strollers. The first ASTM standard for interpreting was published in 2001 and re-approved in 2007. Unlike its predecessor, the 2015 standard was re-written and it is now a\u00a0practice, not just a guide. There are six different types of ASTM standards: Test Method, Specification, Classification, Practice, Guide, and Terminology. A standard Guide is \u201can organized collection <\/em>of information or series of options that does not recommend a specific course of action.\u201d<\/em> It increases the awareness of information and approaches in a given subject area. On the other hand, a standard Practice is a definitive\u00a0set\u00a0of\u00a0instructions for performing one or more specific operations that does not include a test result[ix]<\/a>. Standard practices may have greater weight in contract negotiations, subject to the parties involved<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

The scope of the ASTM F43 Committee[x]<\/a> is \u201cthe development of standards (specifications, guides, test methods, classifications, practices, and terminology) for language services and products.\u201d <\/em>The committee works in tandem with other ASTM technical committees that have mutual interests and organizations such as the International Standards Organization (ISO). Each ASTM main committee is composed of subcommittees that address specific segments within the general subject area covered by the technical committee. Below are the subcommittees that fall under the jurisdiction of the ASTM F43 Committee on Language Services and Products.<\/p>\n

F43.01<\/a> Language Interpreting
\nF43.02<\/a> Foreign Language Instruction
\nF43.03<\/a> Language Translation
\nF43.04<\/a> Language Testing
\nF43.05<\/a> Quality Assurance in Language Services
\nF43.90<\/a> Executive
\nF43.91<\/a> Terminology
\nF43.95<\/a> ISO\/TC 232 Learning Services Outside Formal Education
\nF43.96<\/a> US TAG to ISO\/TC 37 Terminology and other Language and Content Resources<\/p>\n

Each ASTM subcommittee is composed of Producers (e.g., interpreters), Users (e.g., government agencies that contract with interpreters) and General Interest members (e.g., academics). The ASTM committee assigns one vote per organization that joins each subcommittee. For example, an interpreting\/translation industry giant is allocated one vote, and a freelance interpreter gets one vote too. Users, general interest members, and producers of the service\/product all sit at the same decision table. The subcommittee develops drafts and posts them online in a collaboration area for other subcommittee members to review and comment upon. At each drafting session, the workgroup addresses the comments submitted and issues a new draft. It is important to note that producers are not allowed to have more than 50% of the official vote.<\/p>\n

“In the United States, ASTM standards have been adopted, by incorporation or by reference, in many federal, state, and municipal government regulations.”<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n

Once finalized, the proposed draft has to be voted on at the subcommittee level. ASTM requires that at least 60% of the official voters return their ballot and there must be at least a 66% affirmative vote before it can proceed to a vote at the ASTM F43 Main Committee level. The requirements of a main committee ballot are again a minimum of a 60% return of the official voters and this time, a 90% affirmative vote to be a valid ballot. A much higher level of consensus is required here. All negative votes must be addressed. Declaring a vote as \u201cnon-persuasive\u201d must be voted on by the entire subcommittee, and it must be voted on at the main committee as well, if it was a main committee ballot. A negative vote that is found \u201cpersuasive\u201d removes the item from the ballot. It is then up to the task group to decide if they wish to rework and re-ballot the item. Creating an ASTM standard is a consensus driven process indeed!<\/p>\n

Are ASTM Standards mandatory?<\/h3>\n

The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act<\/strong> (NTTAA)[xi]<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>was signed into law in 1996. The Act made a direct impact on the development of new industrial and technology standards by requiring that all federal agencies and departments:<\/p>\n