The TC Blog
THE TC BLOG By Bernard Gospel – Technical Committee Secretary TechSec@AMPS.org.uk
WHAT HAVE STANDARDS DONE FOR US? Managing Director: Come in! Ah! It’s Jenkinson from engineering again, what is it this time Jenkinson? Jenkinson: I would like to talk to you about standards, sir. MD: Standards, so, what have standards done for us? J: Well sir, we design and build our generating sets to BS ISO 8528 which is an internationally accepted standard for generating sets. MD: Yes, yes, Jenkinson, so what else have standards done for us. J: Well, sir, our electrical installations are to BS 7671 Requirements for Electrical Installations. So then comply with the health and safety laws. That’s BS OSHAS 18001. MD: Oh! Health and Safety again. So apart from Generating sets, electrical installations, and safety, what else have standards done for us? J: We now have our quality systems independently certified to BS EN ISO 9000… MD: Implementing that cost us a lot of money, Jenkinson, and why so many letters? J: Letters? Oh yes, this shows where the standard came from. ISO is the International Organisation for Standardisation, and EN is Euro Norm, European Standards, so this started as an International standard, then was adopted by EN and BSI in turn adopted it as a British Standard. There is an agreement to develop and adopt common international standards to avoid barriers to trade. MD: Barriers to trade, don’t like the sound of that Jenkinson, but it did cost us a lot of money… J: Yes, it did cost us money to implement, but there are several points: • We reviewed our systems and streamlined them, making us more efficient. • The consensus is that adoption of standards saves money • Finally, our customers often insist on us meeting standards like BS EN ISO 9000, otherwise they will not trade with us. MD: So apart from Generating sets, electrical installations, safety, quality, what else have standards done for us…? So, leaving this fictitious company behind us, why not take the point and review standards, what they are, how they are produced and what they do, and do not do, for us. Firstly, where do standards come from?
BSI overview Appointed by, but independent of, the UK Government, BSI Group (Formerly the British Standards Institution) is the UK National Standards Body (NSB), who develop international, European and British standards. The British Standards Institution is a Royal Charter Company and is governed by its Royal Charter and Bye-laws. As it has no share capital BSI is what is termed a “non-profit distributing company” because profits are re-invested back into the business.
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Formed in 1901, BSI was the world’s first National Standards Body and over a century later is globally recognized as champions of best practice. BSI is responsible for originating many of the world’s most commonly used management systems standards and publishes over 2,700 standards annually. These standards address issues of today from clear billing to energy management and disability access to nano-technology; spanning domains including Aerospace, Automotive, Built Environment, Food, Healthcare and ICT.
BSI’s standards are underpinned by a collaborative and rigorous approach, working with industry experts, government bodies, trade associations, businesses of all sizes and consumers to develop standards. BSI is also independently assessed and accredited globally by ANAB (ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board) and by over 26 other accreditation bodies throughout the world including UKAS (United Kingdom Accreditation Service). BSI is also renowned for its marks of excellence including the consumer recognized BSI Kitemark™, which today ranks amongst the UK’s most trusted brands. BSI’s influence is global, playing a key role within the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). As one of the founding members of ISO, it ensures that international standards developed address today and tomorrow’s business and societal needs, while delivering real benefits to an organization and its stakeholders.
What is a standard and what does it do? In essence, a standard is an agreed way of doing something. It could be about making a product, managing a process, delivering a service or supplying materials – standards can cover a huge range of activities undertaken by organizations and used by their customers. Standards are the distilled wisdom of people with expertise in their subject matter and who know the needs of the organizations they represent – people such as manufacturers, sellers, buyers, customers, trade associations, users or regulators. The BSI portfolio extends to more than 30,000 current standards. They are designed for voluntary use, so users are not forced to follow a set of rules that make life harder, they are offered ways to do their work better. Standards are knowledge. They are powerful tools that can help drive innovation and increase productivity. They can make organizations more successful and people’s everyday lives easier, safer and healthier. If you comply with a British Standard then it is pretty clear that you take your responsibilities seriously as an organization, and indeed compliance is often taken as evidence of due diligence. It certainly speaks volumes about your attitudes to doing things properly.
