Welcome to another edition of ICEFAT News. This issue follows up on ICEFAT’s 31st annual convention in beautiful Vancouver Canada. The 2007 convention exceeded last years record breaking convention in terms of Countries represented, Companies present and colleagues in attendance. This is truly a testament to the commitment of all our members world-wide and to the strength, goals and objectives of this dynamic organization.

A wide range of topics were covered at this year’s convention including an update from the Best Practices Storage sub-committee whose liaison with insurance industry leaders is setting our members apart from the others. Led by this sub-committee, ICEFAT continues to set the highest standards in fine art shippinG.

Presentations from PACIN and member companies were both informative and in some cases very entertaining. ICEFAT was proud to honour the accomplishments of fellow member Harsch Transport as they celebrated their 50th anniversary of dedication to the fine art shipping industry.

In this issue of ICEFAT News you will find updates on Best Practices and new initiatives being taken regarding the TSA situation in the USA. We will also be highlighting one of the unsung heroes of our industry “the Courier”. We all work behind the scenes and in the trenches. It benefits us all to have an advocate within the museums we work with who really understand what goes on out there – air side.

As always, we are looking for ideas and topics of interest for our readership. Please let us know if there is something you would like to see or have us report on.

Drawing on experience and knowledge from all corners of the world is something ICEFAT does best.

I wish everyone the very best over the festive season.

Mark Starling
ICEFAT Chairperson