50th Anniversary of the EMC Society

Introduction
Fifty years ago a group of engineers approached the Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE) in New York and petitioned the IRE for the formation of a Professional Group on Radio Frequency Interference (RFI). This petition had the requisite number of signatures and was officially accepted by the IRE. The first Administrative Meeting of the Professional Group was held in October of 1957 and the professional engineering group that was to grow into the EMC Society was on its way! Because of this significant organizational start, we will be celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the IEEE EMC Society this year (2007)!

Planned Activities
We have been creating and executing a plan for our 50th Anniversary. The plan has been developed and refined by the 50th Anniversary Committee of the EMC Society. It consists of oral histories of our early pioneers, a historical booklet commemorating our achievements over the years, a Power-Point Presentation on the EMC Society and its first fifty years, the development of a logo and lapel-pin to highlight our anniversary, a special issue of the EMCS Transactions highlighting historical EMC milestones, research and development of unique Awards for the 50th Anniversary, memorabilia with the 50th logo imprinted on them, and a one-day event at the 2007 IEEE International Symposium on EMC in Hawaii where the special awards will be given and people honored for their contributions to the EMC Society.

Oral histories have been generated on many of our Founders and other historically significant individuals in the EMC Society. These oral histories were done by the IEEE History Center professionals; they went and interviewed the individuals, generated transcripts of the interviews, had these transcripts reviewed by the interviewees, and then the edited versions were placed on the oral history web page of the IEEE History Center. Famous EMC individuals interviewed included Leonard Thomas, Sr. (a Founder and long-time Secretary of the EMCS Board), Warren Kesselman (Founder and long-serving Treasurer of the EMCS Board), Chet Smith (Past Member of the Board and Past Chairman of the History Committee), Ralph Showers (Founder and key contributor to Technical Activities and Standards in the EMCS), James McNaul (Founder and second Chairman of the Professional Group on Radio Frequency Interference’s Administrative Committee), Professor Sato (Founder of the Tokyo EMC Chapter and “Father of EMC” in Japan), Dr. Thomas Dvorak (Key contributor to the EMC Society in Europe and a major reason for the success of the Zurich EMC Symposium), Gene Cory (Past-President of the EMC Society), and others. You can go to the IEEE Web Site and look under the IEEE History Center for transcripts of these oral interviews.
The Historical Booklet is being developed by the IEEE History Center under contract with the EMC Society. It will consist of a history of the EMC Society including excerpts from the Oral Histories, pictures of famous EMC personalities, and additional interesting information on the IEEE EMC Society. The 50th Anniversary Committee is reviewing the first draft of the booklet and the final version is expected to be ready by July of 2007 for the 2007 IEEE International Symposium on EMC.
The EMC Society is developing a Power-Point Presentation. It will highlight the history of the EMC Society and integrate it with the electrical engineering accomplishments of mankind over the years. It is intended to distribute this Power-Point Presentation to the Chapters of the EMC Society for their use and it will be used at the 2007 International Symposium on EMC as a celebration of our past.
A logo was developed in conjunction with the 2007 IEEE International Symposium on EMC; the logo was created by the IEEE Creative Services organization and is used on 50th Anniversary memorabilia and correspondence. It is coordinated with the logo for the 2007 IEEE Symposium on EMC so that they can be used together. The logo is shown below.
The logo was used on the 50th Anniversary lapel-pin which was distributed to all members of the IEEE EMC Society along with a 2007 IEEE International Symposium on EMC bookmark and calendar as well as the CD for the 2006 IEEE International Symposium on EMC (Portland) proceedings.
Current Transactions Editor Perry Wilson is developing a special issue of the IEEE EMC Society Transactions. It is expected to highlight the significant technical achievements of the Society over the past 50 years. It is going to be different than the 25th Anniversary Transactions issue, but it will have its own unique historical slant to the 50th Anniversary Celebration.
We continue to research unique awards for the 50th Anniversary Celebration. The final day of the Symposium Week (Friday) will be devoted solely to the celebration of the 50th Anniversary and will consist of a bus-tour of the island of Oahu plus a celebratory luncheon at the Turtle Bay Resort on the North End of the island. The 50th Anniversary Awards will be given at that luncheon on Friday. It is expected that we will invite all Founders of the EMC Society to the 2007 Symposium and each will be given a special award. We are also generating special awards for individuals who have contributed in significant ways to the Society. Awards for the most important Symposium papers, the most-referenced Transactions papers, and other technically oriented awards will be given at the Friday luncheon in Hawaii.

50th Anniversary Committee
A Committee of interested individuals has been working for about five years on plans for the celebration of the EMC Society’s 50th Anniversary. Members of the Committee are listed below:
Dan Hoolihan – Chair
Warren Kesselman – History Subcommittee Chair
Len Carlson – Public Relations Subcommittee Chair
Henry Benitez – Special Awards Subcommittee Chair
Janet O’Neil – Chair – 2007 IEEE International Symposium on EMC
Bill Gjertson – Commemorative Items Subcommittee Chair
Jerry Ramie – Power-Point Presentation on EMCS History
Elya Joffe – History of Fellow Award Winners for EMCS
Joe Butler – Special Anniversary Awards – Technical Achievements
General Members - Bill Duff, Bob Goldblum, Fred Heather, Don Heirman, Todd Hubing, Herb Mertel, Mark Montrose, Henry Ott, Kimball Williams, Andy Drozd, Mark Steffka, Dave Staggs
Members of the committee are interested in feedback from Society members on the 50th Anniversary Celebration. Feel free to contact any member of the committee if you have comments or suggestions on the celebration or if you have a Symposium Paper or a Transactions Paper or an individual that you think needs special recognition as part of the 50th Anniversary Celebration.

Friday of the Hawaiian Symposium
The 2007 IEEE International Symposium is scheduled for the time frame of July 8-13 of 2007 in Hawaii. The last day of the week, Friday, will be devoted to celebrating our Society’s 50th Anniversary. The day will consist of a bus-tour of the island of Oahu followed by a luncheon at Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore of the island. After lunch, the 50th Anniversary Awards will given in a formal ceremony befitting our long history of EMC accomplishments. Plan on staying for the whole week of workshops, tutorials, presentations and special sessions at the 2007 symposium and top it off with the Friday (once in a lifetime) 50th Anniversary Celebration. EMC

50th Anniversary Celebration on July 13, 2007
at the Turtle Bay Resort in Hawaii
The beautiful Turtle Bay Resort is located on the island of Oahu, on the opposite side of the island from Waikiki Beach and the city of Honolulu, site of the 2007 IEEE International Symposium on EMC.
While minutes away from the bustle of Waikiki Beach, Honolulu, and the Hawaii Convention Center where the symposium will be held, the Turtle Bay Resort is worlds away and reflects the spirit of old Hawaii. The “official” celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the EMC Society will be held at this resort on Friday, July 13. We’ll leave the Hilton Hawaiian Village (host hotel for EMC 2007) in the morning and return in the afternoon. Join us as we drive by island highlights such as Diamond Head Crater, Sunset Beach, the Bonzai Pipeline and more!
Celebrate with us over drinks on the lush lawn facing the Pacific Ocean, followed by lunch where a special anniversary program has been planned. This opportunity was 50 years in the making!
One ticket for the lunch and island tour is included in the symposium registration fee. Companion tickets are available for purchase via the registration form on line at www.emc2007.org. Please purchase your tickets in advance, as attendance is limited.

Pristine Kawela Bay near the Turtle Bay Resort. You’ll want to walk on this beach before the Anniversary celebration begins!

The lush lawn of the Turtle Bay Resort where the EMC Society will hold its 50th Anniversary celebration on July 13.