Following the debate, Ms. Lawrence headed to the sun deck of the historic Queen Mary. The first voyage of this grand ocean liner took place in 1936, during the heyday of cruising.

The 2011 EMC-S symposium was one of the best in recent years. The convenience of the Hyatt hotel and the Convention Center was much appreciated, and the entire Long Beach experience was very enjoyable. Once again the iNARTE examination day was poorly attended with just five candidates registering. After all, it must have been a tough choice between another day inside for an eight hour exam or a final day outside to enjoy Long Beach.
This year iNARTE offered not only our traditional EMC Engineer and Technician exams, but also a new exam for MIL STD Specialists, and another new exam for EMC Design Engineers wishing to be credentialed for their electronic “Design for Compliance” knowledge, as compared to EMC testing and mitigating engineering skills. We received a lot of interest in the new EMC Design Program, but not one person was willing to be examined at the symposium.

Kathy Lawrence of iNARTE debates the merits of iNARTE certification with EMC Consultant Dan Hoolihan (right). Bruce Archambeault moderated the informal debate held on the Queen Mary.

     Booth traffic in the exhibition hall was very encouraging. We were busy most of the time and all our literature was snapped up, so we hope candidates will be coming forward for certification over the next few months.
     As predicted after the 2010 symposium, iNARTE now has more EMC certified Engineers and Technicians in Japan than in the USA. The new EMC Design Engineer program is predicted to attract many more candidates from Japan. Let’s hope it is as popular in the US once we get it fully released with the three different grade levels: Engineer, Senior Engineer and Master Engineer.

     The introduction of this major new program by iNARTE includes a Grandfather period, and this offer did attract considerable interest at our booth. One of the requirements for Grandfather applicants is a reference from academia or from an engineering institute officer. So the week of the symposium became an opportunity for Grandfather applicants to catch up with some referees and get these commitments arranged.
     Grandfathering for the Master EMC Design Engineer certification ends on December 31, 2011, so time is running out. In 2012, all applicants, regardless of experience and references, will need to pass an iNARTE examination. It is expected that examinations at the EMC Design Engineer and Senior EMC Design Engineer levels will be available during the first quarter of 2012. The Master EMC Design Engineer examination will be ready for the EMC 2012 symposium, but how many experienced EMC Master Engineers have the time or desire to take an eight hour examination? Not many we guess! So download your Grandfather application at https://www.narte.org/d/emcdegrfapp.pdf and get it back to us, your references and other documentation can come later, we just need the application and fee paid by December 31 to open your file.      EMC

Our first Master EMC Design Engineer application was received from Bruce Archambeault, who now owns certificate number, EMCD-00001-ME.