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RAPAPORT... A new chairman sits at the helm of the International Diamond Council (IDC,) which is the consultative body created in 1975 by the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) and the International Diamond Manufacturers Association (IDMA) to regulate diamond grading standards, rules, working methods, and nomenclature.
Stephane Fischler now succeeds Edward Asscher who had served as chairman of IDC since 1990. The decision to appoint Fischler was endorsed by the WFDB and IDMA leadership, when they met at the presidents' meeting in Amsterdam during June 2007.
The new IDC chairman has a long record of public service in the diamond industry. Fischler is currently secretary general and treasurer of IDMA, and is also vice president of the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) and president of the European Council of Diamond Manufacturers.
One of his primary goals as IDC chairman, Fischler stated, is achieving general harmonization of diamond grading standards. Toward that end, he intends working in close cooperation with CIBJO, the World Jewellery Confederation.
"CIBJO's established diamond nomenclature is very similar to that of IDC and I am sure that in a relatively brief time we can come to complete understanding," Fischler said.
"We share CIBJO's vision, which is a single international standard for polished diamond grading. We appreciate that this cannot be achieved overnight, but that is what we are working toward," he added.
Fischler said that cooperation among the industry organizations could serve other goals as well. "One of the other things we would like to achieve is a minimum ISO certification standard for procedures at [gemological] laboratories. All of the labs that subscribe to IDC rules already are ISO certified, as are a number of the CIBJO affiliated labs, and we'd like to see more labs that operate internationally going in the same direction. The fact that labs operate according to strict and accepted international standards enhance the consumer’s confidence in their ability of gem labs to render reliable and consistent grading services," he said.
In the short term, Fischler said an overriding concern for IDC is to resolve the issue of nomenclature for synthetic diamonds. “We hope that the synthetic diamond producers agree to openly describe their products as ‘synthetic,’ ‘man-made’ or ‘laboratory-grown,’ which clearly will differentiate them from natural diamonds. It is a compromise that we believe other industry organizations will agree to."
Looking back his years as IDC chairman, Amsterdam-based Asscher said that recent development have made the organization more relevant than ever before. "We have seen an onslaught of issues coming our way in recent years, and no one less important than the nomenclature for synthetic diamonds. I am glad to say that IDC, with the unwavering support of its two parents, WFDB and IDMA, has taken a consistent and unequivocal position that synthetics cannot be called just 'diamonds,' but must, without exception, always be preceded by one of the descriptive adjectives: ‘synthetic,’ ‘man-made’ or ‘laboratory-grown.’”
On the other hand, Asscher conceded that IDC's earlier acceptance of the SI-3 clarity diamond grade would most probably need to be reversed. "I personally believe that the IDC's acceptance of the SI-3 clarity grade was ‘still born.’ But IDC must discuss this issue with its members, and of course with other international bodies, such as CIBJO. I am sure IDC will resolve this issue satisfactorily," he stated.
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