2006 PAWM CONFERENCE REPORT
At our March 2006 training conference at the Best Western Eden Resort in Lancaster, we were pleased to have in attendance both Director Shelhamer and Chief Deitzler. Additionally, we were pleased to have Doug Rudy in attendance all week. Doug was very helpful in discussing many of the issues where we are attempting to attain uniformity. Inspector Ed Harding attended the conference from Tuesday thru Thursday at his own expense to avail himself of the training being offered. All other state staff was denied expenses to attend this year. Given that we have only about two dozen local programs left, we were pleased to have 27 local staff in attendance
.
Starting on Monday afternoon we had reports from President Buckley, Director Shelhamer and Chief Deitzler. All three spoke to the current issue of local program losses as well as the tremendous demand put upon state staff to complete scheduled device inspections throughout the state. Autumn Thomas, Director for the PFMA Scanning Certification Program reported on the status of their operations which now involve scanner inspections in over 1300 establishments in seven states. State Representative Joseph Markosek, 25th district; spoke to issues related to gaining budgetary support and visibility for the state program.
On Tuesday we enjoyed presentations on several areas of the weighing and measuring industry that we don’t normally see. Representatives from Rice Lake Weighing Industries gave a presentation on their Multi-Dimension Measuring Device (MDMD) utilized by the shipping industry. This commercial device not only weighs packages, but also precisely measures their volume for charge purposes. Additionally, they spoke on the issue of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and the use of wireless Palm Pilots for the inspection and calibration of scales in the field.
Also on Tuesday, we received a presentation on the new NIST requirements for motorized field test weight carts utilized as standards in the testing of large capacity scales. These requirements became mandatory as of 01/01/2006 and involve a retrofit kit that upgrades the wheels, gas tank and battery, three sources of variability in weight carts. These three mandatory updates are among many other requirements and restrictions being implemented on weights carts because of their potential to affect the ability of the cart to maintain its calibrated weight. A variation of three or four pounds in fuel, hydraulic oil, battery liquids or debris stuck on the wheels can adversely affect the outcome of an official test. James and Jeff Santarpio of Dunbar Mfg. conducted this session. These new requirements can be found in the most current issue of NIST Handbook 105-8.
James Gownly, Metrologist with the General Services Laboratory, also spoke to this issue and detailed how the Lab would be handling those carts that have not yet been brought into compliance. We believe the state bureau has five or six of these units that will need upgrading as do many of the industry carts now in use in the field.
Wednesday was devoted to a course on the method of sale for L P Gas in portable containers. Also covered in this session were the selection, installation, reporting and official examination of the typical non-automatic indicating beam type scale utilized in the L P Gas industry. This course, presented by Dean Ely, concluded with an open book test and although the test scores varied widely, we are pleased to report that all field staff passed.
At the awards banquet on Wednesday evening, two major awards were presented. The Mary Bach Consumer of the Year award was presented to Attorney Charles Pascal of Leechburg in Armstrong County for his efforts in bringing the parking meter issue to light. The lowly parking meter, like most other commercially used timing devices, has traditionally been the orphan child of enforcement efforts. Even though their use generates millions of dollars in fines and fees annually, they have rarely been certified as required by law. Mr. Pascal’s efforts brought this serious issue into the public spotlight which resulted in a statewide effort to get a handle on the problem.
The second award was the Associate Industry of the year award which was presented to the PFMA Scanning Certification Program for their continued efforts in leveling the playing field in the area of retail scanning accuracy. This program, which now represents over 1300 grocery and convenience stores in seven states, has improved pricing accuracy across the board through the use of statistics and strict adherence to the scanning regulations. Ms. Autumn Thomas, Program Manager for the program, accepted the award for PFMA.
On Thursday, PAWM offered a 5 1/2 hour course on NIST Handbook 44 presented by Otto Warnlof, a retired administrator from the NIST Office of Weights and Measures. This instruction is a required refresher course for all ISWM Certified Scale Technicians and Scale Persons. The course concluded with a 44 question final exam which seemed to highlight the need for more extensive training for field inspectors. Of the 23 inspectors who took the course, 7 failed.
We were of course disappointed that the state staff was not permitted to attend this training. This type of basic training is extremely vital especially to the temporary staff, which has received little or no official training as required by Act # 155. Next years conference will be held at the same location in Lancaster during the last week of March.
