ISO is known
as International Organization for standardization. Because "International Organization for Standardization"
would have different abbreviations in different languages ("IOS" in
English, "OIN" in French for Organisation internationale de
normalisation), it was decided at the outset to use a word derived from the
Greek isos, meaning "equal". Therefore, whatever the country,
whatever the language, the short form of the organization's name is always ISO.
ISO is a
network of the national standards institutes of 148 countries, on the basis of
one member per country, with a Central Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, that
coordinates the system.
ISO is a
non-governmental organization: its members are not, as is the case in the
United Nations system, delegations of national governments. Nevertheless, ISO
occupies a special position between the public and private sectors. This is
because, on the one hand, many of its member institutes are part of the
governmental structure of their countries, or are mandated by their government.
On the other hand, other members have their roots uniquely in the private
sector, having been set up by national partnerships of industry associations.
International
standardization began in the electrotechnical field: the International
Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) was established in 1906. Pioneering work in
other fields was carried out by the International Federation of the National
Standardizing Associations (ISA), which was set up in 1926. The emphasis within
ISA was laid heavily on mechanical engineering. ISA's activities came to an end
in 1942.
In 1946,
delegates from 25 countries met in London and decided to create a new
international organization, of which the object would be "to facilitate
the international coordination and unification of industrial standards".
The new organization, ISO, officially began operations on 23 February 1947.
When the large
majority of products or services in a particular business or industry sector
conform to International Standards, a state of industry-wide standardization
can be said to exist. This is achieved through consensus agreements between
national delegations representing all the economic stakeholders concerned -
suppliers, users, government regulators and other interest groups, such as
consumers. They agree on specifications and criteria to be applied consistently
in the classification of materials, in the manufacture and supply of products,
in testing and analysis, in terminology and in the provision of services. In
this way, International Standards provide a reference framework, or a common
technological language, between suppliers and their customers - which
facilitates trade and the transfer of technology.
