A small team of Standards Australia staff recently attended the first ‘in person’ ISO Annual Meeting since 2019, in Abu Dhabi.

It was a valuable opportunity to meet attendees from around the world, and our delegation took every opportunity to put forward our thought leadership across a broad array of issues.

The post-COVID hybrid format was unique for this event, allowing us to interact in-person with 900 international standards representatives in-person, but also in virtual sessions with external stakeholders, allowing for important conversations on key challenges and opportunities.

The event’s theme was collaboration - in particular, it focused on using standards to achieve a better and more sustainable world.

Each ISO Annual Meeting has three key elements: (1) organisational governance and strategy for ISO; (2) member body exchange and networking; and (3) outreach to the wider world to increase awareness of the role that standards can play in addressing global issues.

A key focus of ISO’s strategy is addressing the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). At Abu Dhabi, there were a number of engaging and dynamic sessions which explored what ISO needs to do on SDGs and climate change, while contributing timely solutions to address core human needs for food, shelter and mobility.

ISO members were also challenged by a debate where opposing thought leaders shared their views on how relevant ISO would be in ten years. Standards Australia’s General Manager, Operations - Kareen Riley-Takos - was one of the four participants in that session, widely regarded as one of the best of the week.

Our General Manager, Engagement and Communications – Adam Stingemore - was a panellist on a session covering the global standards market, and our Head of International – Karen Batt - contributed to the panel session on the London Declaration – One Year On, which reviewed climate change through actions taken in various economies by ISO members.

Importantly, the election for the next ISO President was held. Of two strong candidates - one from China and one from South Korea.  Dr Sung-Hwan Cho, (Korea) President and CEO of Hyundai Mobis, was elected President for a two-year term commencing 1 January 2024.

This year’s ISO Annual Meeting, hosted by the UEA Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT), was significant not just because it was the first in three years. Attendees were acutely aware the event was held in a time of global turmoil, which only reinforced our need to work closely with our international colleagues to align our plans to meet the significant demands of the future head-on. Meetings like these are a forum for us to work together to find simpler and faster ways to deliver the right solution to market, in the right format, at the right time.

So, I am pleased to say the next ISO Annual Meeting will be hosted by Standards Australia for the first time since 2001. The week-long meeting will be held in Brisbane at the International Convention and Exhibition Centre in September 2023.

— Adrian O'Connell, Chief Executive

The Board of Standards Australia approved the appointment of three new Members at their August meeting. These include:

• Governance Institute of Australia Ltd.
• Steel Reinforcement Institute of Australia.
• The Institute of Plumbing Australia Inc.

Organisations interested in applying for membership to Standards Australia are invited to review the criteria which is intended to update and broaden the company's membership, with the aim to grow Standards Australia's relevance and reach and reflect a modern Australia.

Information regarding our Members and the criteria for membership is available here.

Standards Australia will host the 2023 International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Annual Meeting in Brisbane.

“This event is an incredible opportunity to showcase our expertise to the world, and demonstrate our leadership in standards development,” said Adrian O’Connell, Standards Australia’s Chief Executive Officer.

Find out more here.

TEDxSydney brings together world-leading experts and professionals: providing a platform where people across industries can connect by sharing ideas, with a cultural focus and emphasis on conversation, debate and more.  

TEDx Sydney is helping us celebrate our centenary year through a partnership underpinned by a custom-made event, Tomorrow’s Technology: Shaping our Future.    

Tomorrow’s Technology: Shaping our Future is curated to Standards Australia’s network that includes more than 6,500 contributors, nominating organisations, members, stakeholders and staff, who continuously provide their time, skills, and knowledge to ensure the company delivers the highest quality industry products and service.

The live event will be held on October 6 from 3.00pm to 4.30pm (AEST) and will focus on Critical and Emerging Technologies.

Register your interest to attend here.

Standards Australia is hosting a virtual panel session on World Standards Day, Friday 14 October, which this year acknowledges the organisation's shared vision for a better world.

The panel will include Secretary-General of ISO, Sergio Mujica, IEC Secretary General & CEO, Philippe Metzger and leaders from Standards Australia. It will reflect on current challenges across the Oceania region, such as regional climate change, and cybersecurity and the role standards can play for both big, medium and small businesses. Stakeholders from across the region will be able to share their feedback.

Event details:

• Date: Friday 14 October 2022
• Time: 11:00am Suva / 10:00am Sydney / 09:00am Port Moresby – 1.5 hours
• Register: participants should register via eventbrite

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If you flip over a plastic food container, you’ll see tiny writing on it – something like “AS 2070”. This means the product meets the Australian standard for plastics safe to use for food.

These often unrecognised standards are a part of daily life. Australia has a set of exacting standards which set quality benchmarks for many products.  They act as guidelines for design and manufacture of plastic items, shaping the specific polymers used, the ability to use recycled content, and compostability.

We worked with CSIRO to map existing plastics standards around the world. We also went looking for missing links which, if filled, could help to better manage plastic waste.Find out more here.

The house fire death toll in New South Wales has climbed to 13, more than triple last winter, with fears the number will rise as eastern Australia’s long winter continues.

The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting a cold and wet spring, meaning many households are still reaching for the heaters and electric blankets.  

Standards Australia has issued an urgent warning, particularly to residents in South-eastern states, to ensure they are only buying electric blankets, and other heating devices, that meet Australian Standards (AS/NZS 3350.2.17:2000).

Find out more here.

To keep our catalogue contemporary and relevant, we will be seeking feedback on a number of Aged Standards (documents over ten years old), belonging to inactive Technical Committees. A list of these aged documents will be released from 10 October 2022 until 12 December 2022 and will be available on our Aged Standards Review page.

Due to system maintenance, accessing Connect, Public Comment, Standards Academy and Committee Workspace will be temporarily unavailable between the hours of 08:00 AEST on 15/10/2022 till 17:00 AEST on 16/10/22. We thank you for your patience.

Over the last 100 years, individuals from technical, business, academic, government and community backgrounds have contributed their expertise to developing standards - helping make Australia a safer and more efficient country.

In September, we celebrated heroes who contributed to standards development at an international level.

Read more about our standards heroes here, and our centenary here.

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 September (PDF):

• ISO Annual Meeting 2022
• Opportunity to review ISO 18295 Parts 1 and 2 on Customer contact centres
• New ISO/IEC report offers guidance on the responsible adoption of AI

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

The public comment process provides an opportunity for stakeholders and members of the public to make valuable contributions. With the launch of our new public comment platform, draft standards currently open for comment are now available via Connect.