Dr Robert Organ, Deputy Warden of the Goldsmiths’ Company Assay Office is Secretariat for the International Association of Assay Offices.  This month, it met after the Hallmarking Convention meeting in Lisbon, Portugal w here Dr Organ was elected as Chairman for the next meeting in September in Cyprus.

The IAAO is a forum for the exchange of information and promotion of technical co-operation between authorised state assay offices, with a view to provide a representative liaison body for communication with appropriate organizations.

The IAAO comprises 47 members from 37 countries. The IAAO works closely with the the Vienna Convention on the Control and Marking of Articles of Precious Metals. However, its membership is larger as not all members of the IAAO are members of the Convention.