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38 SMT007 MAGAZINE I FEBRUARY 2025 also be one of the most exciting things that you do for yourself and your career. It's an opportu- nity for industry experts to discuss subjects you might know nothing about. Maybe it's some- thing your company has been struggling with, or you've wondered about. You can be there to represent your company and take informa- tion back. You were in the "room when it hap- pened." It helps you understand where some of those requirements come from. I know standards committee work is not for everyone. Some come into the meeting room excited, and five minutes into the meet- ing, they say, "is is not for me." at's fine. Everyone is different. But give it a chance. It's a great way to learn, and you can take the knowl- edge with you. Marcy LaRont: Teresa, when did IPC first start doing standards? IPC started developing standards in the early 1960s. Take some time to research the stan- dards. Look at the original publication dates. It's interesting. Johnson: What is it like to participate in devel- oping a standard, a "day in the life," if you will? It depends. Some committees are small— maybe five to 10 people—and the discussion is less formal. It's more conversational, and good work comes from those small groups. Some- times, those groups will grow larger as more people become interested in the topic. We also have massive groups, like the IPC- A-610 or IPC-J-STD-001. ese are actually two task groups working on two standards: IPC-J-STD-001 requirements for soldered electrical and electronic assemblies, and IPC- A-610, the acceptability of the assemblies. Sev- eral revisions ago, we realized we had a greater than 85% participant crossover. We would dis- cuss and establish the process requirements in the J standard, but when we got to 610, the same people argued that the new requirements weren't right. at makes it very difficult to use the documents together if that is what is desired. So, we brought these groups together for discussion. is combined group can be 125 people or more. LaRont: How do you have a meaningful discourse with that many people in a room? We use a modified version of Robert's Rules for our discussions. ere's a leader for the group, people raise their hands to speak, each topic is properly introduced, and the leader ensures that ever yone is aware of what com- ment or content they're working on. Runners circulate microphones to ensure ever yone can be heard. Ever y comment is given equal treatment. We want anyone to feel comfort- able voicing their opinion. ere's also the leadership aspect. Leaders might spend a couple of hours preparing for a meeting, making sure minutes are posted, work- ing with IPC staff liaisons, or proofing a document before we're finished. ere's more time spent by the leader- ship with IPC staff, ensur- ing all documents are pre- pared, comments reviewed with recommendations, and being ready when the big group comes in the room.