A LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT'S PEN:
IAS President's Corner

After a very successful first quarter, staff is gearing up for a very busy summer after which we will see a period of heightened (albeit stressful) activities as IAS is evaluated by the Pacific Accreditation Cooperation (PAC) as part of our signatory status to the PAC Multilateral Recognition Arrangement. PAC will evaluate IAS for continued recognition of our product certification agency accreditation program and expansion of our scope to recognize our personnel and management systems certification body accreditation programs. It is comforting to know that the IAS portfolio of accredited entities is continuing to grow—we will be crossing the 750 mark soon! A sincere "thank you" to our dedicated staff, contract assessors and our valued clients for your whole-hearted partnership.

It gives me great pleasure to introduce Michael Gardner, ICC Executive Vice President for Compliance Programs, who recently joined our parent organization and will represent ICC's corporate interest in IAS. We welcome Michael to the world of accreditation!

I would like to acknowledge James A. Rothman, PE, CEO of PFS Corporation for his 40-plus years of service to the construction industry. PFS has been an IAS-accredited testing laboratory and inspection body for many years and Jim has been instrumental in ensuring that the company maintains compliance with the relevant ISO standards at all times.

On a sad note, I would like to recognize the passing of friends:
The sudden and unexpected loss of Bohdan "Nick" Horeczko, PE, Director of Professional Services at ICC Evaluation Service, has sent shockwaves throughout the ICC family and the construction industry at large. The longest-serving member of the ICC staff, Nick died suddenly on April 8 at his home in San Pedro, Calif. He is survived by his loving wife Carolyn, seven children and seven grandchildren. A gentleman's gentleman with enormous compassion for all, Nick will surely be missed by all who knew him.

Dr. Robert White, a renowned research scientist at the Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) in Madison, Wis., and a dear friend of ours, died peacefully on March 19 while at work. I had the pleasure of working with Bob in the mid-1980's when the ASTM Committee E-5 was trying to quantify uncertainties involved in large-scale fire tests. He was internationally recognized by fire researchers and was the mentor of numerous scientists and students from all over the world. He will be missed.

We're looking forward to the accommodations of our new "green" building in Brea, Calif., as we say goodbye to the Whittier office that's been my home away from home for the past 40 years. We look forward to continuing our service to you from our new offices in mid-to-late summer.

I wish you a very enjoyable and fulfilling summer season.



Chuck Ramani, PE, CBO
IAS President