It has been another busy six months for Standards Australia.

On top of our regular commitments, the team has been working hard with our international colleagues in preparation to host the ISO Annual Meeting, which takes place from 18 to 22 September in Brisbane.

In hosting this important global event we have an opportunity to demonstrate our standards development leadership and showcase our expertise to the world.

The program features leading thinkers and activists from around the world, including many from Australia, coming together to cover topics of critical importance to our economy and society.

Highlights include:

• Technology sessions, covering everything from the growth of the Metaverse and artificial intelligence to cybersecurity;

• Environmental initiatives, including food waste and pollution reduction, hydrogen and clean energy, and climate adaptation; and

• Social outcomes, such as gender responsiveness, anti-corruption measures and efforts to build resilience.

There are many virtual events to access at no cost - I encourage you to view the program here and register to participate.

In addition to preparing for the ISO Annual Meeting, we have been very active in delivering new market relevant standards. In the past six months alone, we have published 70 new Australian Standards and other publications. These cover a wide range of applications, from personal safety devices and garden equipment, to clean energy, electric vehicles and managing psychosocial risk.

You can find more information on these new publications at our website.

On top of that, we have also been progressing important projects in other areas, such as webinars and workshops on broad topics including gas installation and artificial intelligence, and also our Diversity Action Plan - all of which you can read more about, below.

With the next six months shaping up to be just as dynamic as the last, we remain focused on impact and delivery.

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Standards Australia, in partnership with CSIRO's National AI Centre's Responsible AI Network, is hosting a series of virtual workshops throughout 2023, targeted toward businesses, industry representatives and government to guide the responsible adoption of AI.

Join us for workshop 3 – Standards for Responsible and Inclusive AI, to be held Thursday, September 7 at 3:00pm AEST.

This 60-minute webinar will feature prominent experts in the field:

• Aurelie Jacquet - Chair of Standards Australia’s AI Committee IT-043

• Dr Jonathan Earthy, Human Factors Coordinator, Technical Policy Group, Lloyd’s Register EMEA  

• Dr Kate Bower, Fellow, UTS Human Technology Institute  

• Sarah Dods, Advanced Analytics and AI Leader  

• Dr Eric Qin, Head of Regulatory and Quality, Franklin.ai.

The panel will explore key topics such as defining responsible & inclusive AI, challenges in implementing responsible AI, including unwanted bias, potential solutions to overcome these challenges, including human-centred design and existing standards supporting responsible and inclusive AI.

Register now

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The AS/NZS 3500 series is the key set of standards for plumbing and drainage systems across Australia and New Zealand. These standards provide a principal pathway for compliance with Volume 3 of the National Construction Code (NCC), also known as the Plumbing Code of Australia. Standards Australia is hosting a free online event that aims to provide professionals in the plumbing industry with important information on changes to the 2021 editions of the standards, which are now primary referenced documents of the NCC 2022.

Click here to register today to equip yourself with the knowledge to help achieve compliance and best practice in your plumbing and drainage projects.

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Recently, Standards Australia hosted a live event, 'Changes to AS/NZS 5601.1 2022 Gas Installations' presented by Enzo Alfonsetti from Energy Safe Victoria and Chair of the Gas Technical Regulators Committee AG006.

Read more about the event including responses to questions that weren't able to be answered in the live event.

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In February this year, Standards Australia signed the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Declaration on Gender Responsive Standards and Standards Development. By signing the Declaration, Standards Australia has pledged to take steps to make standards and the standards development process more gender responsive.

The first step is the development of a Diversity Action Plan (DAP). While gender is a priority, the plan also focuses on age, country of birth, ethnicity, education level and discipline, and employment/employer status.

This month, our Contributors received an email with a survey that will help us understand what diversity currently exists amongst our Contributor base. This data will help us shape our Diversity Action Plan so that we can raise awareness, educate and ensure the end user is appropriately represented in our standards development activities.

To learn more about the Standards Australia Diversity Action Plan, click here.

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Malcolm is a Machinery Safety consultant and trainer with 34 years of industry experience. He has chaired the Standards Australia SF-041 Committee since 2022 and was a member of the R15.06 Robotics Safety Committee (1995-1999). Malcolm also actively participated in ISO TC 199 Working Groups 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8. From 2009 to 2022, he served as the Managing Director and board member of Fortress Interlocks Pty Ltd. Additionally, he created The US Machinery Safety course B11 LMSSTM, demonstrating his dedication to promoting safety standards and fostering a secure work environment in the machinery industry.

When did you first become involved in standards development?

My first standards meeting was back in 1995 when I joined the R15.09 committee in the USA working on a revision of R15.06 Industrial Robots and Robot Systems - Safety Requirements. I look back on the subsequent meetings with fond memories - I met many people who I still work with today.

How do standards impact and interact with your industry?

Machinery Safety Standards provide the guidance to help users meet state and federal regulations and, more importantly, keep employees safe at work.

Why is access to standards important?

Standards are critical in ensuring quality, consistency, safety, and security. Without standards we are left with uncertainty. I always ask people how confident they would be when using products such as electrical appliances that have not been designed to meet the relevant standards.

What is the future of standardisation in your area of work?

Standardisation is crucial in the area of temporary works and we are striving to increase the industry's engagement by ensuring all related standards are updated to meet the industry's demands.  

Some documents are yet to be updated (e.g. formwork and shoring) but, overall, I am confident we have the support and resources to correct these quickly and regain the industry's engagement with the standard.

Standards Australia represents Australia on the two major international standards development bodies, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). Our activities are reported on our International Updates page.

Click here to view our highlights from August (PDF):

• Workshop with ISO/TMB: ISO's commitment to addressing climate change

• ISO/IEC JTC Quantum technologies: New Field of Technical Activity

• Proposal for a new Systems Committee on bio‐digital convergence

Access the latest standards development news in your industry sector via our Sectors page.

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The public comment process provides an opportunity for stakeholders and members of the public to make valuable contributions. Draft standards currently open for comment are now available via Connect.

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