Sir George Knibbs

Sir George Knibbs was the first Chairman of Standards Australia and Director for the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). As a founding member of Standards Australia’s Main Committee, Sir Knibbs’ work on statistics and mathematical measurement became the framework for the way we shape and form many Australian Standards™ to this day.

‍Sir George Knibbs was a pioneer for Standard Australia’s association and purpose. He was a prolific Australian scientist, the first Commonwealth statistician and first Chairman of Standards Australia.

Known for his communication around "science and its service to man," Sir George began his influential career through contributing papers to the Royal Society of New South Wales; at first on matters arising out of surveying, and then on problems of physics.

Before his appointment to Chairman of Standards Australia, Sir George had been a lecturer for the University of Sydney School of Engineering, teaching geodesy, astronomy, and hydraulics.

By 1906, Sir George was recognised with the title of first Commonwealth statistician, directing the newly formed Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics.

Sir George later became the first director of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). He worked from and for Australia but was internationally recognised for his work in vital statistics.

“Sir George Knibbs was one of the initial members of Standard Australia’s Main Committee and acted as our first Chair of the Board. He could be considered one of our most influential Standards Heroes, and one of the company’s founding fathers. His studies around science, measurement and statistics solidified the concept of standards, and his work is respected to this day,” said Adrian O’Connell, Chief Executive Officer of Standards Australia.