SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 23, 2006 -- The Laser Institute of America (LIA) has announced a call for abstracts -- and instructors -- for the 2007 International Laser Safety Conference (ILSC), to be held March 19-22, 2007, at the San Francisco Airport Marriott.

The four-day annual conference covers all aspects of laser safety practice and hazard control. Technical sessions and workshops will address developments in regulatory, mandatory and voluntary safety standards for laser products and for laser use. Laser safety experts from all over the world will meet and discuss their research, programs and standards, and professionals in all fields and applications can participate in various information and networking opportunities.

The LIA said instructors are sought to present interactive workshops for these topics:

• Hot Topic for 2007! Learn about the New International Physical Agents Directive
• Organizational Laser Safety Program
• Simplified Laser Safety Calculations
• Principals of Developing Laser Safety Training
• Or submit a topic

Benjamin Rockwell, a physicist with the the Air Force Research Lab/Human Effectiveness Directorate (AFRL/HEDO), Brooks City-Base, Texas, will be the 2007 conference general chair, and John Tyrer of Loughborough University, Leicestershire, England, will be conference chair. Tyrer is a senior lecturer at the university and is director of Laser Optical Engineering (LOE), a spinout of Loughborough.

New for 2007 is the Laser Safety Practical Applications Seminar, a two-day seminar for the practical laser safety officer. This seminar will be particularly useful for laser safety officers who are not full-time laser safety professionals. Participants will be involved in practical interactive workshops, panel discussions and hot topics addressing the more common safety issues and concerns of the day-to-day operations in commercial, factory, research and medical facility settings.

Also featured at ILSC will be a welcome reception featuring the George M. Wilkening Award Presentation, to Ronald Petersen, and the R. James Rockwell Educational Achievement Award, to Darrell Seeley; a "hot topic" roundtable lunch; and vendor tabletop displays and a Vendor Program reception. LIA's Vendor Program is open to all companies and institutions (industrial, medical and educational) in the laser industry. This exhibit gives vendors and attendees the opportunity to meet and offers vendors the chance to experience ILSC firsthand.

LIA said it welcomes suggestions from laser safety officers for roundtable lunch topics. E-mail ideas to: [email protected]

Full conference registration includes admission to the plenary session, All ILSC technical sessions and practical applications sessions, workshops, Meet & Greet, welcome reception, Vendor Program reception and conference proceedings.

For more information, to register or to submit an abstract, visit: www.laserinstitute.org/conferences/ilsc