ICML Stylebook

ICML Guidelines for Logo Usage - November 2019

Introduction

These guidelines explain the requirements and restrictions for use of the International Council for Machinery Lubrication (ICML) logo.* These guidelines must be followed at all times when using the logo to promote any affiliation with ICML. If there is any question pertaining to use of the logo, it is the responsibility of the individual and/or organization to contact and obtain approval from the ICML office. Please allow a minimum of five (5) business days for approval. These guidelines may be amended by ICML without notice at any time. Failure to adhere to these guidelines can result in serious consequences to a certificant, member, partner, or technical contributor, whether individual or organization.

* Additional guidance for use of certification marks and certification logos is provided in the Appendix.

Logo Ownership & Compliance

The logo is the sole and exclusive intellectual property of ICML. Use of the logo shall create no rights for users in or to the logo or its use beyond the terms and conditions of these guidelines. The current version of the logo may be used only by ICML staff, members, partners, and technical contributors in good standing (per ICML board definitions) and according to the terms in these guidelines.

Individual certificants are not to use the ICML logo to designate their certification status. Instead, they must use certification marks and certification logos (see Appendix).

All qualified users of the logo must take steps to ensure that it is not placed on any item, print or electronic communication in such a manner as to give the appearance that the logo is owned or controlled by any entity other than ICML.

Without further notice, ICML reserves the right to prohibit use of the logo if it determines that its use, whether willful or negligent:

is not in accordance with the terms and conditions of these guidelines,
could discredit the ICML or tarnish its reputation or goodwill,
is being conducted by someone other than an ICML member, partner, or technical contributor, or
is not otherwise authorized by the ICML staff or board of directors.

Definitions:

Certificant: An individual who holds a valid and current ICML certificate as defined by ICML. Only individuals can hold ICML certifications; ICML does not certify organizations or businesses.

Member: An individual or organization who has paid dues for any membership level defined by ICML, and whose valid, current membership is recognized by ICML to be in good standing.

Partner: An individual or organization who has made arrangements with ICML to jointly promote complementary and mutually beneficial services and events (e.g., conferences, training curricula, etc.) within specified parameters.

Technical Contributor: An individual who has made special arrangements with the ICML board to participate in a committee or other assigned role for a specified task, event, or period of time, and who operates in a limited but official capacity on behalf of ICML.

Logo Use and Integrity

The primary ICML logo is the 'stacked' logo, shaped generally like an inverted triangle. It features a bold, authoritative font (Optane Extra Bold). The logo is characterized by a world map with longitudinal lines formed inside the shape of a droplet, which represents the global scope of ICML's role in the industrial lubrication field. A yellow band rises up like a medallion ribbon on either side to display ICML's full name (in English) while hinting at the excellence and recognition ICML aspires to confer on its certificants and affiliates.

Also written in English with the Optane Extra Bold font, the slogan at the top of the primary logo varies according to user:

'MEMBER,' 'ASSOCIATE,' and 'AFFILIATE' - used by ICML members in good standing
'PARTNER' - used by partners with valid ICML agreements
'TECHNICAL CONTRIBUTOR' - used by individuals serving on certain committees sanctioned by the ICML board
'Serving the Lubrication Community' (or blank) - used only by Class II (i.e., board) members, ICML office staff, and vendors sanctioned by ICML. This specific phrase is optional and may be removed entirely for a generic logo.
There is no version of the primary logo that features a 'CERTIFIED' slogan because certificants are not to use our primary logo to designate their certification status. Rather, they are to use certification marks and/or special certification logos described in the Appendix of this document.

The color version of the stacked logo is to be used for all instances, except when black-and-white graphics are required.

The secondary logo is the 'linear' logo. The linear logo is an appropriate alternative when its horizontal configuration is well-suited for specific layouts. Its use is restricted to Class II (i.e. board) members and ICML staff.

Either logo - whether in color or black-and-white scheme - should be used on a white background when possible. A 'reversed' white-on-black logo can be used where a dark background provides sufficient contrast for readability. This white-on-black logo is not a strict reversal of the black-and-white logo and should only be used with approval of ICML marketing staff.

There are no reversed versions of the color logos.

Logos for board members and ICML staff - Color

Logos for other recognized entities in good standing - Color

Logos - Reversed over sufficiently dark, uncluttered photo

Color	RGB	CMYK	HTML
Maroon	144-18-34	18-100-85-35	#901222
Yellow	255-207-1	0-18-100-0	#FFCF01
Orange	247-141-30	0-54-100-0	#F78D1E

Minimum space (clear zone) around the logo

When used to indicate ICML's ownership of materials (e.g., giveaway items, brochures, print or electronic articles & advertisements, etc.), or to indicate ICML's relationship to another company's event or business organization (e.g., via sponsorship, partnership, or other affiliation), the ICML logo should be placed in a prominent position with a sufficiently clear and contrasted background to ensure a powerful and readily identifiable image.

In all cases, the minimum clear space above or below the logo should be equivalent to the height of the letter 'M.' The distance to the right or left of the logo should be equivalent to the width of the letter 'M.' The size of this clear zone is directly proportional to the size of the logo and must not be altered.

Minimum clear space: the height of the M above and below, and the width of the M to the left and right.

Incorrect Display of the Logo

The logos are not to be modified in any manner. Always use ICML-approved artwork or layouts; do not ever construct your own versions of the logos. When possible, use EPS or another vector format for best results. Raster formats such as PNG, TIF, and JPG are also acceptable at 300dpi for print layouts.

Pay attention to avoid the following common mistakes:

Do not stretch, warp, or distort the logo

Do not enclose the logo in a shape or box

How the Logo Can Be Used

Any ICML member, partner, or technical contributor in good standing may use the appropriately labeled primary logo for professional purposes, including business cards, literature, advertisements, or websites (or as otherwise approved by the ICML board), as long as the logo is always placed in such a manner so as not to imply certification or ICML's endorsement of any third-party organization, entity, or service.

A generic logo (with no slogan at top) may be included as part of a display to indicate that a contractual or other written sponsorship or partnership exists at an organizational level. For example, this kind of usage is common on conference sponsorship signage or to indicate that a third-party training event is aligned with an ICML exam session (see 'Use of Logo in Advertisements' section below).

Correspondence written by ICML board, staff, or technical contributors while conducting ICML business shall be on white stationery with the color version of the appropriate primary logo left-aligned at the top of the letterhead. Emails should include an appropriately labeled ICML logo in the signature.

The logo may not be used in any manner that:

in the sole discretion of the ICML board, discredits or tarnishes ICML's reputation or goodwill
is false or misleading
violates the rights of others
violates any law, regulation or other public policy
mischaracterizes the relationship between ICML and the user; specifically, used in a way that conveys an endorsement of a product or service

Use of Logo in Advertisements

In addition to the general uses described above, the generic primary logo may be used by trainer entities who have confirmed with ICML that their curricula sufficiently cover the ICML Domains of Knowledge in order to serve as suitable preparation for candidates wanting to sit our certification exams. In such a case, the trainer can use the generic ICML logo in advertisements promoting relevant training session(s) for ICML exams while the aforementioned agreement is in force.

The organization or facility that is hosting the training session may also use the generic primary logo in this manner, provided the name of the trainer or training company is clearly indicated in the ad, along with the title of the training course. At no time is the trainer, training company, or host/client organization permitted to state that ICML is a sponsor and/or has endorsed the content of the advertisement or the content of any third-party training curriculum.

The logo must not dominate the advertisement in which it is used or create the impression that the ad is sponsored, endorsed, or paid for by ICML
ICML is not responsible nor liable for the content of any such advertisement

APPENDIX

How to Use Certification Marks and Certification Logos

Certification marks are the acronyms that represent official certifications and levels offered by ICML:

MLA I, MLA II, MLA III
MLT I, MLT II
LLA I, LLA II
MLE

Certification logos are the graphic symbols that correspond with the certification marks:

Certification marks and logos identify individual certificants (not companies or organizations) who have earned certification from ICML. Often referred to as 'credentials,' these marks and logos are most often placed after a certificant's name, but the marks (MLA, MLT, LLA, and MLE) occasionally appear within the sentences of written correspondence, articles, etc.

The ICML certification marks and logos may be used only by individuals who have met all requirements for specific certifications. They must be used as personal identifiers; they should not be used in an ambiguous manner, such as disassociated from the names of certificants. A certification mark or certification logo (as well as the ICML logo itself) does not indicate certification of a business or a company and must never be used in such a manner as to suggest anyone but the named individual holds certification.

Each mark or its corresponding logo can be used only for the duration of the certification it represents (i.e., three years). If a certificant allows his certification to lapse, he can no longer use that certificate's mark or logo in any manner until such time as he renews that certification.

Guidelines	Do it like this	Not like this
Use capital letters and capital Roman numerals.	MLA II	mla2, MLA2, MLAii
Never use periods.	MLA	M.L.A.
Except in social media hashtags, always use a space with no hyphen.	MLA II	MLA-II, MLAII
When including a certification mark in a social media hashtag, avoid hyphens and spaces. This is because Twitter, for example, truncates hashtags with those characters.	#MLAII	#MLA-II, #MLA II
Use a comma to separate the mark from the individual certificant's name.	'Bob Smith, MLA I'	'Bob Smith MLA I'
If an individual has earned multiple levels of one certification, list only the highest level.	'Bob Smith, LLA II'	'Bob Smith, LLA II, LLA I'
If an individual has earned multiple certifications, list only the highest level of each, and starting with the highest Roman numeral.	'Bob Smith, MLA III, MLT II'	'Bob Smith, MLT II, MLA III'
Never associate the mark with an organization or company - only individual people.	'Bob Smith, MLA I'	'XYZ Company, MLA I'

When writing the certification mark as a word in a sentences, it is preferable to use it as an adjective followed by a suitable noun, such as, 'certificant,' 'professional,' 'practitioner,' 'certification,' 'mark,' or 'exam.' Examples:

'Bob holds the MLA I certification.'
'Sally is a certified MLA II professional.'
'We are sitting the MLT I exam next week.'

Though not preferred, the certification mark may sometimes be used as a noun. Examples:

'Bob is a certified MLA II.'
'Our company wants to hire another LLA for the lab.'

The use of certification marks or certification logos is entirely at the discretion of the certified individual. However, in an email or stationery signature, these marks and/or logos should be placed close to the certified professional's name so that it is obvious that the individual - not an employer or other entity - is the holder of the ICML designation.

Examples:

If the certified individual also happens to be an Associate Member in good standing, then the appropriate member level logo can also be displayed:

Example: an Associate Member in good standing may also display the appropriate member level logo.

Contact for Questions

If the information contained in this guide is not clear to the user, it is the user's responsibility to seek approval from the ICML office for any and all materials containing the logos or certification marks prior to production.

Any questions concerning the use of the logos or certification marks, or the terms and conditions of these guidelines, may be directed to the ICML Marketing Manager at 918-259-2950 (main) or 918-615-6575 (direct). Please allow a minimum of five (5) business days for approval of usage.