Announcement of a Public Meeting to be held on April 27, 2006

Letter to All Respirator Manufacturers

Issue Date: March 16, 2006

From: Heinz W. Ahlers, Acting Chief, Technology Evaluation Branch, National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory

Subject: National Institute for Occupation Safety and Health Announcement of a Public Meeting to be held on April 27, 2006, to Discuss Expediting the Respirator Certification Process, Isoamyl Acetate (IAA) Testing, N95 Filtering Facepiece Priority, CBRN NFPA 1981 Standard, and Changes to Post-Certification Audit Selection

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory (NPPTL), Technology Evaluation Branch, is announcing a meeting for all respirator manufacturers to be held on Thursday, April 27, 2006, at the Marriott Key Bridge Hotel, 1401 Lee Highway, Arlington, Virginia. An agenda is being developed and will be posted in the near future. The meeting will begin at 1:00 p.m. and will adjourn by 4:00 p.m.

Some topics to be addressed include user fit-test instructions, speeding up the respirator certification process, isoamyl acetate (IAA) testing, equipment malfunctions, N95 filtering facepiece priority, and CBRN NFPA 1981 Standard and changes to post-certification audit selection. All manufacturer representatives, manufacturer application preparers, and other interested parties are welcome to attend.

Interested parties should make hotel reservations directly with Marriott Reservations at
1-800-228-9290 or 703-524-6400 before the cut-off d ate of Wednesday, April 5, 2006. You must reference the NIOSH/NPPTL Meeting to receive the special group rate of $180 per night. An area map, a listing of the local airports, and d riving directions from the airports to the hotel are posted. You may obtain detailed driving directions from any location to the hotel by accessing the Marriott Key Bridge web site at http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/WASKB and clicking on 'Maps & Transportation' on the left side of the page.

Please confirm your attendance to this meeting by completing and submitting a registration form. You may register electronically by accessing the on-line registration link at this web site, or you can download the pdf form and send it by e-mail (npptlevents@cdc.gov) or fax (304-225-2003) to the NPPTL Event Management Office.

For further information, please contact the NPPTL Event Management Office, 3604 Collins
Ferry Road, Suite 100, Morgantown, West Virginia 26505-2353, Telephone 304-225-5138,
Fax 304-225-2003, E-mail npptlevents@cdc.gov.

Presentation for this Meeting [PDF]

National Institute for Occupation Safety and Health Announcement of a Public Meeting to be held on April 27, 2006, to Discuss Expediting the Respirator Certification Process, Isoamyl Acetate (IAA) Testing, N95 Filtering Facepiece Priority, CBRN NFPA 1981 Standard, and Changes to Post-Certification Audit Selection [PDF - 27 KB]