FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 2002-09-24

Standards Council announces reappointment of Chair

OTTAWA-The Standards Council of Canada (SCC) today announced the reappointment of Mr. Hugh Krentz to the position of Chair of the SCC.

"Hugh Krentz has a strong reputation within the Canadian standards community and the work of the Standards Council of Canada and the National Standards System will be enhanced by his vast knowledge of standardization," said Allan Rock, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the SCC. Mr. Krentz became the Standards Council's eighth chair in April 2001. Mr. Krentz also holds the positions of chairman and CEO of the Canadian Steel Construction Council and, Executive Director of the Steel Structures Education Foundation.

He served as the Standards Council's vice-chair and has been a council member since 1977. Mr. Krentz has been actively involved in many of the Standards Council's committees including its former Executive Committee from 1980 to 1995. He has worked with the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) and on various committees of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Past President of the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction (CISC) in Toronto, he is currently consulting for the CISC and is also a member of the Canadian Academy of Engineering. He was elected a Fellow of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering in 1984.

Mr. Krentz has received numerous awards recognizing his contributions to structural engineering and standards development. In 1981 he was awarded the A.B. Sanderson Award for his contributions to structural engineering in Canada as a code writer, research director and author. He also received from CSA the 1990 John Jenkins Award for his outstanding contribution and conspicuous leadership in the development and advancement of national and international standards in the field of structural steel design.

The chair of the Standards Council of Canada is appointed by the Minister of Industry and oversees a 15 person volunteer Council, which governs the organization. The chair works closely with the Council and the executive director to make strategic decisions that will benefit the National Standards System.

"I am honoured to have been named Chair and will continue to work in support of promoting the use of the National Standards System," noted Mr. Krentz. The Standards Council of Canada is the federal Crown corporation that oversees Canada's National Standards System. The Standards Council coordinates the contributions of Canadians to domestic and international voluntary standards development and conformity assessment activities.

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