Extensive standardisation efforts of “Sound” department internationally recognised: IEC 1906 Award for Dr. Thomas Fedtke

In standardization, requirements for products, services and processes, but also socially important reference values such as upper limits and guideline values are developed and defined. Since acoustic issues are always very close to practical requirements, standardization plays an essential role, and the “Sound” department is highly involved in many standardization committees. An international award has now particularly recognized this work.

On September 13, 2022, Dr Thomas Fedtke, head of the working group "Sound in Air" in the "Sound" department, received the IEC 1906 Award 2022. It was presented to him in Frankfurt by the German Commission for Electrical, Electronic and Information Technologies in DIN and VDE (DKE) during a ceremonial reception. With this award, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) recognises outstanding individual achievements in the development of standards and normative documents in national and international working groups.

Even though the award acknowledges individual achievements, the recognition is part of the generally very high level of commitment of the “Sound” department in the national and international standardization work. Experts from the department are active in over 20 working groups and committees and also provide the chairs in many groups. Dr Fedtke himself chairs three working groups, and even the management of an entire technical committee (IEC TC 87 - Ultrasonics) is managed by a scientist from the department. 

The standardization work covers all areas incorporated into the work of the department. The calibration of microphones and hydrophones in a wide frequency range or the development of methods for testing ear simulators are just as much a part of this as the definition and development of methods for type approval of sound level meters and sound calibrators, which are very important for the implementation of the legal tasks of the department. Sensors, measurement methods and measurement data evaluation methods developed at PTB as well as reference data sets determined are promptly incorporated into standardization projects and thus are adopted into the state of the art. In addition, many topics dealt with are necessary for the safety and correctness of medical applications, e.g. the determination of reference data for the human ear or the assessment of the sound fields of medical ultrasound devices for their safe use. Thus, the standardization work of the department's employees for example promotes the improvement of the sensitivity and specificity of medical diagnoses and thus contributes to improving the health and well-being of the entire population in Germany and the European Union.

Literature:

Newsseite der DKE: Link

Contact:

Christian Koch, FB 1.6, E-Mail: christian.koch(at)ptb.de