Press Releases

For Immediate Release 03-39

Contacts: Caroline Chetelat, (410) 956-1050 cchetelat@abycinc.org

With the recent merger of ABYC and the Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology, ABYC was presented with the opportunity to combine ABYC's 5,000-volume collection of donated books, magazines and technical reports, as well as boating safety videos and footage of laboratory crash and fire tests, with the approximately 1,500-volume collection of resource materials from Westlawn's Connecticut office.

Skip Burdon, President and CEO of ABYC said, "This was certainly a noteworthy grant that directly impacts ABYC's ability to serve the needs of both our members and the marine community at large." "Mercury Marine was one of the primary donors to ABYC's original library/resource center project, and their continued support of this project is applauded and in keeping with their commitment to industry education and training." Burdon concluded by stating "Mercury Marine has been a key member and active participant in ABYC's consensus based standards development process and their overall positive impact on boating safety and quality assurance is highly commendable and appreciated."

The ABYC library project entailed:

• Purchasing of appropriate library cataloging software;
• Obtaining and integrating the content from Westlawn's office in Connecticut to ABYC's office in Maryland;
• Making the library catalog accessible to members and the boating public; and
• The hiring of Ms. Mari Ramsey as ABYC's summer intern to coordinate the overall management of this project. Ms. Ramsey hales from Annapolis, MD, and is finishing up her studies at the University of South Carolina.

Jim Hubbard, Chief of Staff for Mercury Marine said, "Mercury Marine has always had the highest regard for ABYC and the continuing contributions it makes to the marine industry overall." "We are pleased to be able to continue our support to the ABYC Foundation for expanding and improving ABYC's Marine Research Library and Resource Center," concluded Hubbard.

The ABYC Research Library and Resource Center was dedicated in June 1997 at its Edgewater, MD headquarters to serve as a national public resource of information about watercraft safety.

Mercury Marine, a division of Brunswick Corporation of Lake Forest was founded in 1939, and has been a member of ABYC for nearly 25 years. Mercury is the world's leading manufacturer of marine propulsion systems. Its product brands include Mercury and Mariner outboards, Mercury MerCruiser sterndrives and inboards, Mercury Racing products, Mercury Precision Parts and Accessories, Mercury and Typhoon propellers and Mercury Jet Drives.

ABYC has been developing, writing and updating the safety standards for boat building and repair in the United States for going on 50 years. ABYC is actively involved with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as well as certification programs for marine technicians. These standards are available on CD-ROM and in printed form. To order the CD-ROM, you may call ABYC at (410) 956-1050. Membership and general information can be requested by also calling (410) 956-1050 or by visiting the ABYC Web Site at www.abycinc.org.