Six months on from the merger, it is a good time to present an "interim report" on how things have gone so let's do a quick roll call:
1. The Packaging Board has been successfully established and is exercising real influence on members' behalf. For example, it is playing a key role in the organisation of Starpack and taking the lead in organising a "Packaging Master Class" on the future needs of the retail sector, which will be a central feature of a prestigious Materials Congress in London next April.
2. This year¹s Starpack Awards were amongst the best ever, with record entry levels and increased numbers of award-winners, while the School and Student Starpacks 2006 have been launched and work on next year¹s industry version is well advanced.
3. Our Diploma in Packaging Technology and Certificate in Packaging courses have attracted high numbers, with this success complemented by locally organised courses and company-based "corporate partnering" schemes.
4. Members can now become chartered scientists and chartered engineers and a number have already gained enhanced status. Many are also accessing a much wider bank of specialist and technical information.
5. The production of Packaging Professional, the members¹ journal, has been successfully brought in-house to IOM3's editorial team, its look changed and greater focus brought to its content.
6. PIABC, the qualifications awarding body, had to go through Government re-accreditation because of the merger, which is almost complete.
Space restricts my ability to provide more examples but, with all this happening, the fears of some that the "packaging identity" in IOM3 would be lost do not seem to be borne out in practice.
There is still much to do but I can sum up by saying that, following the extensive changes of the past year, we are providing members with a wider range of better quality benefits, exercising greater influence on their behalf and are well placed to bring in further developments now the transition has been successfully concluded.
