Web tool turns planning for meetings into big picture for organizers

Emily M. Smith
ASME NEWS

Holding a successful ASME conference used to depend on the ability of volunteer meeting organizers to juggle a large assortment of pieces.

Now, a new ASME-created Web tool gives those organizers access to the big picture, leaving less room for important pieces of the planning process to fall through any cracks.
The tool essentially automates much of the time-consuming administrative functions of planning a meeting, freeing organizers to funnel that time into developing the content of technical sessions and papers.

With the tool, conference chairs can see an overview of the entire conference. That allows for better tracking of how sessions are progressing, the number of papers that have arrived, and which ones need to be reviewed.

The tool was developed by several ASME departments: Technical Publishing, Engineering Programs, Meetings and Exhibits, and Information Technology.

This year, it is being used to plan four conferences: the 10th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE 10), which takes place this month; the International Conference of Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering (OMAE) and the International Joint Power Generation Conference (IJPGC), both of which are scheduled for June; and the International Pipeline Conference in September. The Web tool will also be used in the organization of several more conferences in 2003.

Volunteers who want information about using the Web tool to track their conference planning should call the staff liaison for their division. For information about the staff liaison, visit www.asme.org/divisions, click on the appropriate division and then click on Contact Us located on the left side of the Web page.

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