As we reach the end of 2024, we reflect on a year filled with significant achievements and celebrations.

Through the last year, we have seen a continuation at pace of the challenges, with rapid shifts in technology, geopolitical shifts in our region and globally, and an increasingly complex trading landscape globally. This environment is known to many of you, and it is through this context that I am pleased to report to you on what has been a strong year, despite challenges, for Standards Australia.

We are committed to ensuring that we deliver our services in a way that meets the needs of you and your stakeholders and in a way that requires the least amount of effort from you to achieve the best possible outcomes in the national interest. We are equally focused on the Standards Australia of tomorrow – in spending time reflecting on the shifts that we are all seeing, and in making our strategic decisions within this context.  

Our board are not just observers to the changing environment in which we operate; we actively work together, with our executive team, and in discussion with members and key stakeholders, to ensure that the standards setting system in Australia is engaged and responding to the world around us.

Thanks to the dedication and expertise of our committee members, we successfully published over four hundred standards. We continue to develop and update these documents to ensure that products and services meet essential Australian safety and performance requirements.

Some of the highlights of 2024 included the National Volunteer Week events, where we recognized contributors who have been with Standards Australia for 15, 20, 25, and even over 30 years. We also celebrated our valued contributors through the Standards Awards, acknowledging the exceptional accomplishments of members within our standards development community.

Our Contributor and Nominating Organisation Forums offered excellent opportunities for collaboration, enabling us to discuss the improvements made to enhance your experience and to help shape our future priority areas.

On 12 November, we announced the appointment of Rod Balding as the new Chief Executive Officer of Standards Australia. Our thorough selection process sought a leader capable of meeting our organisational goals while harmonising with the exceptional efforts of our team. Rod will commence his new role once he concludes his current position. The Board, Executive team, and I are looking forward to working with him at that time.

We held our Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 29 November, reporting on progress and priorities to our Members. At the same time, we formally announced that Louise McGrath and Nicholas (Nick) Koukoulas were elected by the Members of Standards Australia as Directors, effective at the conclusion of the 2024 AGM. Nick has been elected for his third and final term, while Louise begins her first term.

On behalf of the board, I would like to express my thanks to our members, nominating organisations, contributors, and staff for your dedication and support to Standards Australia throughout the year.

We look forward to working with you all in 2025 and wish you and your families a joyful and peaceful holiday season.

Our office will be closed for the holidays from 25 December 2024 to 5 January 2025. Our Customer Success team will be available from 9 AM to 5 PM (AEDT) to assist you during this period, except on public holidays. You can reach them here.

We’re offering two in-person events in early 2025 with the support of the National AI Centre (NAIC). The workshops aim to guide businesses on how to implement AI responsibly, safely and ethically.

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Brisbane

🗣️Guest speaker: TBC

📅 Tuesday, 25 February 2025

⏰ 9:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Register for Brisbane

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Melbourne

More details to come.

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Learn more about other Standards Australia's AI initiatives and resources here.

Guidelines to engage industry, government, and support families as new research shows low awareness of the Metaverse and how children are engaging with it.

💬 Have your say - to help address the safety of children in the Metaverse, we’re seeking public comment on the draft standard DR AS 5402:2024 until 24 January 2025. This standard will provide guidance for business and industry to prioritise safety and implement protection and reporting measures. It calls for collaboration between Metaverse developers, policymakers, educators, and families to create safer online environments for kids.

Learn more and submit your comment here.

Standards Australia and the International Code Council have partnered to enhance climate data transparency and operability across the built environment through the development of a Universal Data Protocol (UDP).

Learn how the UDP will work and read the comprehensive whitepaper here.

Standards Australia announced a new partnership with Pointsbuild, a leading provider of online education and professional development.

This collaboration, centred on education, seeks to increase awareness of Australian Standards^TM and support end users in interpreting them, while also helping professionals fulfil their Continuing Professional Development (CPD) obligations along the way.

The safety of household appliances has been a major focus, especially to prevent accidents involving children. Recent updates to washing machine safety standards introduce a new two-step mechanism to prevent accidental starts by children. This world-first requirement sets a new benchmark for safety.

Discover more about the updated safety standards for washing machines and ovens and how they aim to keep your family safe.

A systematic review is the process used to identify and address aged standards. From 1 January 2025, the review frequency for aged standards is changing from 10 years to 5 years.  

An out-of-date standard could impact our community by affecting cost, safety, trade and more. We are aligning with international processes to ensure our standards catalogue remains relevant and a trusted source in local and global solutions.

Separate from the update on the Systematic Review Policy, we are seeking feedback on a number of Aged Standards belonging to inactive Technical Committees. Let us know if these standards are still used by your industry or community by Monday, 20 January 2025.

The full list of Aged Standards is available here.

Learn more about our international initiatives and how to get involved.

Check out the latest standards development news in your industry sector.

Help us keep Australians safe! Our public comment phase provides an opportunity for stakeholders and members of the public to make valuable contributions.

Draft standards open for public comment.