The European Federation of Corrosion: from the past to the future
Résumé
The EFC is a federation of 38 organisations (Member Societies and Affiliate Members) with interests in corrosion based in 25 different countries within Europe and beyond. Taken together, its Member Societies represent the corrosion interests of more than 25,000 engineers and scientists. Founded in 1955, its aim is to advance the science of the corrosion and protection of materials by promoting cooperation in Europe and collaboration internationally. The EFC is registered in Belgium.
The EFC Member Societies send delegates to a General Assembly which meets once a year to consider and approve policies.The administration of the Federation is in the hands of the Board of Administrators (BoA) and the scientific and technical affairs are the responsibility of the Science and Technology Advisory Committee (STAC) - members of both bodies being drawn from the EFC Member Societies.The day-to-day operation of the EFC is managed through the General Secretariat with offices in the UK, Germany and France and the Managing Officer.
The EFC accomplishes its most important activities through twenty active working parties devoted to various aspects of corrosion and its prevention. The first working party, WP1 on Corrosion and Scale Inhibition was established in 1965 while the most recent, working party on Corrosion control in aerospace was formed in 2013. The working parties help to organise, singly or jointly with other working parties, strong technical sessions at EUROCORR. Other valuable activities include participation in collaborative research and testing programmes, the organisation of courses and workshops, and the preparation of reports, guidelines and proceedings for publication in the highly regarded EFC Series of 'green books' of which there are now over sixty The working parties are overseen by the Science and Technology Advisory Committee (STAC), to which all of the working party chairpersons and six other elected members belong. This is served by EFC's Scientific Secretary. Anyone with related interests is free to participate in working party meetings, which usually take place in conjunction with EUROCORR.
EUROCORR, the EFC's annual conference is the flagship event of the European corrosion calendar. Attracting more than 1000 delegates, it is held in a different European country in September of each year. To date 38 of these conferences have been held and they have become noted for their high technical quality as well as the very enjoyable social programme.
Important benefits available to EFC Member Societies include the opportunity to nominate candidates for the EFC Awards, which include the European Corrosion Medal, the Cavallaro Medal, and the Kurt Schwabe Prize. They can also appoint two voting members to each EFC Working Party and nominate candidates for election to the Board of Administrators, and the STAC. They can influence the direction taken by the EFC by voting at the annual EFC General Assembly. What is more, everyone who belongs to an EFC Member Society qualifies for reduced registration fees at EUROCORR and a discount on the prices of the EFC publications. European Member Societies can also submit bids to host EUROCORR conferences
The EFC has recently expanded its horizons beyond the confines of Europe by admitting International Member Societies. Furthermore, companies and research organisations/ universities may join the Federation as Affiliate Members.
The Federation has also become a founder member of the World Corrosion Organisation, a prime aim of which is to increase public and political awareness of corrosion and to advise governments, industries and communities about corrosion and its mitigation.
The Young EFC is an initiative created in 2016 by the European Federation of Corrosion (EFC) who aims to support young researchers and engineers in the field of corrosion and protection of materials. Our vision has several cornerstones, namely: Building a bridge between young corrosion researchers and senior experts, Creating a network of young corrosionists, Organising and participating in conferences, workshops and other events, Promoting the interests of young researchers to the European Federation of Corrosion and the European Commission, Supporting the career at an early stage