Joining nations 1947-1990

EIGHT

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, 1983-1990

THE 1983 Assembly in Trondheim was the first at which full effect was given to the ideas resulting from the review of activities in l 980/8 l. It incorporated a two-day international conference on the subject of underwater welding with both invited lectures and submitted papers. Contrary to expectations, this did not lead to any significant increase in attendance at the Assembly, but the conference itself was successful with an enrolment of approximately 400. The year 1983 saw a change in IIW publishing policy. The publi– cation of Welding in the World was transferred to the international publishing house Pergamon Press which also undertook the publi– cation of the Conference Proceedings and agreed to issue an impor– tant textbook on the physics of welding compiled by Study Group 212. Up to that time, apart from the IIW itself, only member societies or their agents had published IIW works, but none had been willing to risk the capital required to publish this textbook and so the IIW had to find an alternative. The Institute's financial position continued to be precarious, partly because widespread falls in steel consumption led to automatic decreases in national subscriptions. As a result, the Treasurer had again to propose an increase in the rates of the corresponding levy for the year l 984. Mr Skriniar having completed two of the three years of his term of office as President, the Governing Council elected Dr F Wallner to succeed him in l 984. Dr Wallner was the first President for many years to work directly in industry where he occupied a senior position with the Austrian steelmaker Yoest Alpine. He had been over a long period a member of Commission IX, had recently served as a Vice– President and had had considerable experience of working in the ISO. Accustomed to represent his company at a high level in many

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