Consumer Safety and Home Electrical Appliances: Perspectives from a Board Member of the Association

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Consumer Safety and Home Electrical Appliances
Perspectives from (a Board Member of) the
Association of Home Equipment Educators

• Joyce Rasdall, Ph.D.
• Dept. of Family and Consumer Sciences
• Ball State University Muncie, IN
• http//cstl-hhs.semo.edu/rasdall
• American National Standards Institute meeting
• U.S. National Council of IEC Technical Management
  Committee
• NEMA headquarters Rosslyn, VA
• January 5, 2005

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The Family and Consumer Sciences Profession

• American Association of Family and Consumer
  Sciences founded in 1909
• Name change from Home Economics in the early
  1990s
• Co-founders met in New York for annual
  conferences beginning in 1901.
• Ellen H. Richards first female
  graduate/professor of MIT 1 of 10 most pivotal
  female leaders in the U.S. (Smithsonian
  Institution).
• Men and women concerned with nutrition, home
  management, and unpaid, but productive work in
  homes and families.

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The Family and Consumer Sciences Profession

• 4. FCS professional specialties university
  curricula
• FCS knowledge base divisions (university
  programs)
• Consumer Sciences Depts./Schools/Colleges some
  Human Ecology or Human Services units
• Nutrition/Dietetics/Food and Food Service
  Management
• Interior Design
• Housing, Household Equipment, and/or
  Resource/Residential Property Management
• Child and Family Development
• Textiles, Apparel Design, and/or Retailing
• Family and Consumer Sciences Education

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The Family and Consumer Sciences Profession

• Pivotal mission Educate and empower consumers
  strengthen families and communities
• Career target prepare FCS professionals for
  addressing consumer and family needs in the home
  and workplace
• Food
• Clothing
• Shelter
• Other material and human resources
• Consumer management issues)

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Association of Home Equipment Educators

• Founded in 1972 by FCS leaders at Ohio State,
  Purdue, Iowa State, Virginia Tech, and other
  major universities.
• Membership categories
• University FCS educators/researchers
• U.S. Cooperative Extension specialists agents
• Appliance manufacturers family and consumer
  scientists
• Graduate students
• Other related professionals

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Association of Home Equipment Educators

• 3. Mission
• Enhance the quality of life of consumers and
  families
• Promote education, research, and outreach in
  consumer/residential technology
• Function as a forum of user needs issues,
  equipment innovations, and manufacturers
  concerns.

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Functions of AHEE members

• University education in Family and Consumer
  Sciences courses in residential technology
• Undergraduate students in these majors
• Family and Consumer Sciences Education
• Housing and Resource/Residential Property
  Management
• Consumer Sciences/Consumers and Business
• Nutrition/Dietetics/Food and Food Service
  Management
• Interior Design
• Graduate students in above programs

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Functions of AHEE members

• U.S. Cooperative Extension provide credible
  consumer product and practices information in
  each state and county in the U.S.
• Research of appliances, consumer attitudes,
  perceptions, and use of residential electric
  technology
• Publications (books, articles, monographs, and
  reports), professional presentations, etc.
• Public service and professional leadership
• Consumer Advisory Council, Underwriters
  Laboratories
• BOD, Electrical Safety Foundation International
• Committees, American National Standards Institute
• Committees, Soap and Detergent Association
• Officer, Association of Family and Consumer
  Sciences
• Other councils and advocacy functions

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AHEE Priority issues

• Provide FCS and other future professionals with
  high quality education on consumer technology.
• Enable consumers to access reliable, credible
  information resources focused on consumer
  technology
• Support effective problem solving by consumers
  regarding utility, versatility, convenience,
  storage, indoor air quality, affordability
  and life cycle costs, sustainability, etc.
• Focus on prevention of life safety risks/hazards
  thermal, electrical, stability, abrasion,
  chemical, impact resistance, smoke, CO, NOx, SOx,
  suffocation, radon, Cl, explosion, slipperiness,
  falls, etc.

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AHEE Priority Issues

• 5. Participate in development, distribution,
  application, and compliance with energy and
  product safety design standards, regulations,
  codes, and usage protocol on behalf of
  consumer/family welfare.
• 6. Provide consumer info. to a diversity of
  audiences generational, gender, disabled,
  language, culture, socio-economic level,
  education levels, etc.
• 7. Facilitate effective consumer decision-making
  regarding current and emerging residential
  technology
• Purchases in the global marketplace
• Uses/protocol in home

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AHEE Priority Issues

• Emphasize viable problem prevention strategies
  useful to consumers prevention of personal
  injuries, disabilities, fatalities, loss of
  property, and other liabilities.
• Analyze the contributions of appliance and other
  home technologies to meeting user needs and
  product utility, quality of life, life
  expectancies, standard of living, productivity,
  sanitation, wellness, family stability, etc.

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A Legacy of AHEE Functions

• Annual technical conferences at strategic sites
  (manufacturing, product testing, consumer
  organizations) vs. rather sterile convention
  environments.
• Strategic sites for interaction
• Consumer and emerging technology
• Consumer issues and education
• Quality of life issues
• Proceedings of Annual Technical Conferences
• Annual Outstanding Research Paper Award
• Annual Outstanding Education Paper Award
• AHEE Foundation
• Annual research grants for member projects
• Graduate student and new member incentives
• AHEE archives at The Ohio State University

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New AHEE Initiatives

• Considering name change to International
  Association of Residential (or Consumer)
  Technology
• Developing Web site
• Publication of new Consumer/Residential
  Technology collegiate text in 2005
• Selected members author 1 or more chapters on
• Lighting design/technology
• Ranges
• Dishwashers
• Refrigeration Refrigerators
• Portable appliances
• Laundry Equipment
• Floor care equipment

• Water heaters
• HVAC
• Electricity and other energies
• Energy Management
• Others

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Appliance Design Standards and Consumer Safety
Perspectives from (a Board Member of) the
Association of Home Equipment Educators

• Joyce Rasdall, Ph.D.
• Dept. of Family and Consumer Sciences
• Ball State University Muncie, IN
• http//cstl-hhs.semo.edu/rasdall
• January 6, 2005
• American National Standards Institute
• The USNC Council
• Meeting at NEMA headquarters Rosslyn, VA

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Residential Electrical Appliances and Consumer
Safety Design Standards Perspectives from (a
Board Member of) the Association of Home
Equipment Educators

• Joyce Rasdall, Ph.D.
• Dept. of Family and Consumer Sciences
• Ball State University Muncie, IN
• http//cstl-hhs.semo.edu/rasdall
• January 10, 2005
• American National Standards Institute meeting
• Consumer Information Forum
• ANSI headquarters, Washington, D.C.