American Society of Mechanical Engineers

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is a professional body, specifically an engineering society, focused on mechanical engineering. The ASME was founded in 1880 by Alexander Lyman Holley, Henry Rossiter Worthington, John Edison Sweet and Matthias N. Forney in response to numerous steam boiler pressure vessel failures. The organization is known for setting codes and standards for mechanical devices. The ASME conducts one of the world's largest technical publishing operations through its ASME Press, holds numerous technical conferences and hundreds of professional development courses each year, and sponsors numerous outreach and educational programs.

The organization's stated vision is to be the premier organization for promoting the art, science and practice of mechanical and multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences to the diverse communities throughout the world. Its stated mission is to promote and enhance the technical competency and professional well-being of its members, and through quality programs and activities in mechanical engineering, better enable its practitioners to contribute to the well-being of humankind. As of 2006, the ASME has 120,000 members.

Core values include:
*Embrace integrity and ethical conduct
*Embrace diversity and respect the dignity and culture of all people
*Nurture and treasure the environment and our natural and man-made resources
*Facilitate the development, dissemination and application of engineering knowledge
*Promote the benefits of continuing education and of engineering education
*Respect and document engineering history while continually embracing change
*Promote the technical and societal contribution of engineers

ASME Codes and Standards

ASME is one of the oldest and most respected standards-developing organizations in the world. It produces approximately 600 codes and standards, covering many technical areas, such as boiler components, elevators, measurement of fluid flow in closed conduits, cranes, hand tools, fasteners, and machine tools.

Note that:
* A Standard can be defined as a set of technical definitions and guidelines that function as instructions for designers, manufacturers, operators, or users of equipment.
* A standard becomes a Code when it has been adopted by one or more governmental bodies and is enforceable by law, or when it has been incorporated into a business contract.

The ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC)

The largest ASME standard, both in size and in the number of volunteers involved in its preparation, is the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC). BPVC is a standard that provides rules for the design, fabrication, and inspection of boilers and pressure vessels. It is reviewed every three years. The BPVC consists of twelve volumes as follows:

* I - Power Boilers
* II - Materials
** Part A - Ferrous Materials Specifications
** Part B - Nonferrous Material Specifications
** Part C - Specifications for Welding Rods, Electrodes and Filler Metals
** Part D - Properties (Customary units)
** Part D - Properties (Metric units)
* III - Rules for Construction of Nuclear Facility Components
** Division 1, Subsection NCA - General Reqs for Divisions 1, 2, and 3
** Division 1, Subdivision NB - Class 1 Components
** Division 1, Subdivision NC - Class 2 Components
** Division 1, Subdivision ND - Class 3 Components
** Division 1, Subdivision NE - Class MC Components
** Division 1, Subdivision NF - Component Supports
** Division 1, Subdivision NG - Core Support Structures
** Division 1, Subdivision NH - Class 1 Components in Elevated Temp Service
** Division 1, Appendices
** Division 2, Code for Concrete Reactor Vessels and Containment
** Division 3, Containment Systems & Transportation Packaging of Spent Nuclear Fuel
* IV - Heating Boilers
* V - Nondestructive Examination
* VI - Recommended Rules for the Care and Operation of Heating Boilers
* VII - Recommended Guidelines for the Care of Power Boilers
* VIII - Pressure Vessels
**Division 1 - Design and construction code for pressure vessels up to 3000 psig pressure, and having design factor 3.5 on tensile and other yield and temperature considerations.
**Division 2 - Alternative Rules
**Division 3 - Alternative Rules for Construction of High Pressure Vessels
* IX - Welding and Brazing Qualifications
* X - Fiber-Reinforced Plastic Pressure Vessels
* XI - Rules for In-service Inspection of Nuclear Power Plant Components
* XII - Rules for Construction and Continued Service of Transport Tanks

The ASME Pressure Piping Code (B31)

*B31.1 - Power Piping
*B31.3 - Process Piping
*B31.4 - Pipeline Transportation Systems for Liquid Hydrocarbons and Other Liquids
*B31.5 - Refrigeration Piping
*B31.8 - Gas Transportation and Distribution Piping
*B31.9 - Building Services Piping
*B31.11 - Slurry Transportation Piping Systems

Notable members

*Abdul Rahman Al-Athel
*Nancy D. Fitzroy. [cite web | title = Fitzroy, Nancy Deloye ASME President, 1986-1987 | publisher = ASME | url = http://www.asme.org/Communities/History/Resources/Fitzroy_Nancy_Deloye.cfm | format = cfm | accessdate = 2008-02-18]
*Alexander C. Monteith
*Hugh Pembroke Vowles
*Adam Gent
*Henry Gantt

ASME Student Professional Development Conference (SPDC)

The Student Professional Development Conference or SPDC is a conference that is run and maintained by ASME. The purpose for the conference is to allow students to network with other students from different colleges and engineers that are out in the work field, host competitive student contests, and gives them the opportunity to see what ASME can do for them professionally. Conferences are held in ten different districts with each district representing a certain section. Districts A-F are held in North America, District G is in Asia and Australia, District H includes most of Europe, District I is in Central and South America, and District J covers the MIddle East and parts of Africa. The location for each district changes every year and colleges attend the conference that is closest to them. [cite web | title = Student Professional Development Conference | publisher = ASME | url = http://districts.asme.org/SPDC/ | accessdate = 2008-03-27]

ASME Student Competitions

Without a doubt, students attend the conference for the competitions. There are four competitions held at each conference and they are:
*Old Guard Oral Presentation Competition
*Old Guard Technical Poster Competition
*Technical Web Page Competition
*Student Design Competition

Each competition has its own set of rules and prizes. The most prestigious out of the four is the Student Design Competition as it allows engineering students to showcase their abilities, engineering knowledge, and creativity. Every year a problem statement is put up on the ASME SDC website which states the problem that must be solved and the various constraints that go along with it. The first-place team at each district is then invited to compete in an international competition held at ASME's International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition (IMECE). [cite web | title = Student Design Competition | publisher = ASME | url = http://www.asme.org/Events/Contests/DesignContest/Student_Design_Competition.cfm | accessdate = 2008-03-27]

See also

* ASME Y14.41-2003 Digital Product Definition Data Practices
* List of ASME Presidents

References

* White, John H., Jr. (1968). "A history of the American locomotive; its development: 1830-1880". Dover Publications, New York, NY. ISBN 0-486-23818-0.
* Frederick Remson Hutton (1915) [http://www.archive.org/details/historyoftheamer014404mbp "A History of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers". ASME.]

External links

* [http://www.asme.org ASME.org]
** [http://peerlink.asme.org ASME Peerlink Website]
*Outline of ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code
** [http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/asme-boiler-vessel-code-d_8.html by EngineeringToolBox.com]
** [http://www.asme2004.com/about_asme.html by IHS Inc.]
*An [http://www.onetb.com/forum.htm ASME Code discussion forum] for all Code related questions
*Click [http://www.asme.org/Codes/About/Links/Links_Codes_Standards.cfm here] to download the following introductory PDFs on ASME codes:
**An Introduction to Codes & Standards for Students
**ASME Codes & Standards - Examples of Code Use for Mechanical Engineering Students

* [http://www.asme.org/Communities/History/ASMEHistory/Brief_History.cfm A Brief History of ASME]
* [http://www.asme.org/Communities/History/ASMEHistory/Sense_Past_Historical.cfm A Sense of the Past] by Eugene Ferguson (1974)
* [http://www.asme.org/Communities/History/ASMEHistory/Writing_History_Postscript_by.cfm Writing ASME's History] by Bruce Sinclair (1980)
* [http://www.asme.org/Events/Contests/Old_Guard_Prize_Oral.cfm Old Guard Oral Presentation Information]
* [http://www.asme.org/Events/Contests/Old_Guard_Technical_Poster.cfm Old Guard Technical Poster Information]
* [http://www.asme.org/Events/Contests/Old_Guard_Technical_Web_Page.cfm Technical Web Page Information]

* http://www.asme.org/Codes/International_Boiler_Pressure.cfm