The second free ISO Up-Date webinar in the 2025/26 season taking place on Tuesday, 17th February (16:00 – 17:00 CET) organised by the EUATC with the support of the ISO Secretariat, looks at the importance of the standards regime needed by the language industry to work successfully in the US market.
In particular the webinar will focus on the work of ASTM International through its Committee F43 on Language Services and Products, which was formed in 2010 to develop voluntary consensus standards for translation, interpretation, and language training.
While ISO standards are often used globally for certification (e.g., ISO 17100), ASTM standards are highly influential in North America and frequently used by government agencies and procurement teams to establish, define, and measure quality in language services.
The two presenters, Professor Alan Melby and Steve Lank, are recognised globally for their expertise in standards development.
Alan Melby is Professor Emeritus of general linguistics at Brigham Young University and president of LTAC Global, a small non-profit dedicated to promoting the development and use of standards in the translation industry. He began working on a machine translation project in 1970. He is an ATA-certified French-to-English translator and a member of the Standards Committee of FIT (International Federation of Translators).
Steve Lank is the CEO of Denver-based Cesco Linguistic Services. He has over 38 years of experience in the language services industry, having started his career as a freelance translator and project manager, and later holding senior management positions in Ireland, Spain, and the U.S. He has been active in standards development with ASTM International since 1998 and currently chairs the ASTM Subcommittee F43.03 for Translation. He earned an MA in Spanish Translation and Interpreting from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, is an avid volunteer for industry associations, and is a regular speaker at industry events.