The Institute of Noise Control Engineering of the United States of America

PREPARED FOR NOISE/NEWS INTERNATIONAL, 2000 DECEMBER.

The Institute of Noise Control Engineering of the United States of America (INCE/USA) was established in 1971 June as a profes­sional society sensitive to the needs and responsibilities of noise control engineers and dedicated to a leadership role in applying noise control technology to the benefit of mankind.

The new organization was established to help American engineers respond to the increasing demands for action to control the levels of environmental noise. The first INTER-NOISE Congress was held in the Nation’s Capital early in the month of 1972 October.

Interest in international affairs has always been a key concern of INCE/USA. Section 5 of its Articles of Incorporation states: “As interest in noise control engineering develops in other parts of the world, the Institute shall encourage and participate in the establishment of national institutes in other countries leading to an eventual federation of institutes of noise control engineering.” INCE/USA played a major role in the establishment in 1974 October of the International Institute of Noise Control Engineering (I-INCE). With the formation of International INCE, responsibility for organizing the INTER-NOISE series of international congresses was transferred by the Board of Directors of INCE/USA to the new organization.

In those years that an INTER-NOISE Congress is held outside the U.S.A., INCE/USA sponsors a national conference on noise control engineering. The first NOISE-CON was held in Washington, D.C., in 1973 October. NOISE-CON 2000 was the eighteenth in the series. NOISE-CON 2001 will be held in Portland, Maine in 2001 October. The papers presented at a NOISE-CON cover all aspects of noise control engineering. The ACTIVE series of international symposia on active control of sound and vibration began in 1995, and will continue to be held in countries around the world.

Membership of INCE/USA is now about 1100. This includes Members who are board certified, Members, Associates, and Distinguished International Members.

Noise Control Engineering Journal (NCEJ) is published bimonthly with articles covering all aspects of noise control engineering. The periodical began publication in 1973 as Noise Control Engineering. The Journal was added to its title in 1982; it is now being produced for INCE/USA the Iowa State University Press.. NCEJ is published in cooperation with the Acoustical Society of America (ASA) with whom INCE/USA has had a close working relationship.

The other periodical of INCE/USA is this news magazine which is published jointly with International INCE. The first issue of the newsletter Noise/News appeared in January, 1972. In March, 1993, the first issue of this news magazine was published as a consolidation of Noise/News and the I-INCE Newsletter. Production of this news magazine is coordinated by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

Since the original INCE/USA Member Society Profile was published in the 1995 June issue of this magazine, there has been considerable activity in electronic publications; the Institute has a web site and an electronic supplement to this magazine. INCE/USA also published a 25th anniversary CD-ROM of Congress Proceedings in 1996. The Proceedings of INTER-NOISE 99 and ACTIVE 99 were published on CD-ROM in 1999, and this year the proceedings of NOISE-CON 2000 and several past NOISE-CON conferences appeared on a CD-ROM.

From the Institute’s inception, its members have worked to create an organization dedicated to maintaining a high level of professionalism in its specialized field through certification of engineering competence, through its popularization of the latest advances in language accessible by the general public, and through its conferences and publications.

Thank You