Progress By Committee

As many readers may know, a significant part of TIA's work in the industry is centered around working with member companies to develop consensus-based standards that benefit not just those members, but push the whole industry forward.  I recently discussed the way that standards-setting process is unfolding with one of our newest communications technologies, telematics.  But it's not just at the cutting edge that standards-setting work is making a difference.

The scope of influence of TIA's engineering committees is apparent in the names of those meeting just this month.  They are names like the "Mobile and Personal Communications Systems Standards Committee" and the "User Premises Telecommunications Cabling Infrastructure Committee."  They cover everything from VoIP to cabling best-practices for office buildings to environmental safety considerations in ICT manufacturing.  The meetings themselves, where volunteer engineers from member companies come together to forge standards, are as geographically far-flung as can be.  From Tampa and New Orleans this week, to Las Vegas last month and even Xiamen, China next week, it's clear that our committee members are a diverse and representative group. 

This is important in a globalizing, logistics driven world where much of the traditional need for travel has changed, while the need for one-on-one interaction to solve technical problems hasn't.  It's especially important in China, a rapidly growing market where we partner with USITO to push reform on the country's burdensome limits on foreign players entering the market among other issues.  Having engineers on the ground there, as they will be for next week's meeting of TIA's TR-45: Mobile and Personal Communications Systems Standards Committee, allows them to see firsthand the realities of such an important market for mobile systems.

Also, because our volunteers are integral members of their own companies, they bring unique perspective and immense talents to bear on the process.  This is evident, for example, when standards are being developed for VoIP hardware or hearing aid interference reduction, as overseen by our TR-41: User Premises Telecommunications Requirements Committee, which is currently meeting in New Orleans during Mardi Gras season.

While these technologies may seem a bit more commonplace then some of our newest committees' areas of interest, they run the depth and breadth of the ICT industry.  The engineering committees that work to create and update TIA's standards are truly the most knowledgeable technical minds in the industry, and through their work the industry continues to progress.

Thank you,
Grant Seiffert
President
TIA