Selected Strategic Global Standards Policy
issues of concern to the International
Federation of Standards Users (IFAN)
Presented to the ANSI Company Member Forum
March 12, 2009
by George T. Willingmyre, P.E.,
Special Advisor to IFAN
IFAN Secretariat
c/o ISO Central Secretariat
1, ch de la Voie-Creuse
CH-1211 Geneva 20
Web: www.ifan.org
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What is IFAN
The International Federation of Standards
Users, founded in 1974, is an independent,
non profit-making international association
of national organizations for the application
of standards, companies, professional and
trade associations, and governmental
agencies, concerned with the use of
standards.
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IFAN vision
To be recognized and to act as the
international voice of standards users and
to play its part in the development of a
global economy through the removal of
technical barriers to trade and the wider use
of international standards.
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Some current Issues
Progress towards 1:1:1 dream
Standardization infrastructure too complex
Numerous Treaty organizations address
strategic standards policies
Diverse information sources; distribution
chains and commercial models
Economic Realities in 2009
Selected IFAN initiatives
Co-ordination of standards users’ groups
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1:1:1 dream
Eight years ago then ISO President Mario
Cortopassi, stated a dream:
“one standard; one test; accepted
everywhere”
Many people said “nice dream”, but……
Slowly this is happening, or is it? New
industrial sectors rediscover this issue time
and again …
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ACK!!!
Source: John Lamb World Bank
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Complicated global market
standardization infrastructure
Company (internal control and external procurement (eg Wal-Mart)
Consortia, Fora e.g. OASIS; Open Group
Industry standards particularly “private standards”
National (formal): (governmental and non-governmental)
Regional (formal): non-governmental CEN/CENELEC/ETSI, PASC,
COPANT, etc.; sometimes partly financed by governments
International (formal):
governmental e.g. ITU; UNECE CEFACT;
non-governmental (e.g. ISO/IEC)
ASME, ASTM, IEEE, IETF, W3C etc. (Some IFAN
members consider some of these as National standards
activities leading to more complications)
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Leading to Duplication of Infrastructure and efforts
in developing standards
Overlapping Duplication of infrastructure:
- Industry, consortia or fora committees
- National committees
- Regional committees
- International committees
- organizational participation models
- individual participation models
- national body participation models
- formal government treaty participation models
In a global economy that cannot afford to waste human and financial
resources
Paradox: Often the same companies/organizations
people/experts participate at all levels, and in different
standards for the same subject
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Leading to diverse standards development
procedures and policies
Different standardizing bodies have (slightly) different
development procedures and often with out incentives for
common elements
Different procedures can make “parallel” standards
development between organizations difficult.
Different polices such as for Intellectual property rights can
present unforseen landmines for participants
There are Positive initiatives such as:
- the WSC (World Standards Cooperation) between ISO, IEC and ITU;
- the Vienna and Dresden agreements (ISO/CEN and IEC/CENELEC);
- WTO TBT Code of Good Practice for preparation, adoption and application of
standards
- ISO/IEC Guide 21
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Leading to duplication of standards for identical
products and processes and trade conflicts
Increasing numbers of complaints to the WTO TBT committee
of violations of the TBT Agreement.
Increasing national pressures within the global economy to
employ non tariff barriers to trade to protect their homeland
suppliers and markets
Cannot withstand the pressures from the current global
economic situation; but how will market choose the winners and
losers?
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Numerous Treaty organizations
address strategic standards policies
World Trade Organization: Agreement on
Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) ; Trade related
aspects of Intellectual property (TRIPs) ; Agreement
on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures SPS)
WIPO; UNECE; OECD; WSIS & IGF
United Nations Economic Commission for
Europe
Organization for Economic cooperation and
Development
World Summit on the Information Society and
Internet Governance Forum
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Diverse information sources, distribution
chains and commercial models
Different standardizing bodies have (slightly) different
distribution procedures.
Most target their closest stakeholders without sufficient regard
to the global community of potentially interested standards
users
User’s find it hard to obtain standards other than their “key”
standards. i.e. many useful standards (from other bodies) go
un-used.
Different commercial models of the various standard bodies
create complex (unresolved) Intellectual Property Rights issues
Note: Dream is a “one-stop-shop” portal through
which all standards can be found and procured.
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Economic Realities in 2009
Globalization of trade and competition will increase as
will use of TBTs to protect homeland producers and jobs
The current global economic environment creates
uncertain yet foreseeable unfavorable pressures on the
global standards community
A global pressure from standards users for an efficient
international standardization process is strategic tool
Duplication of standards confuses manufacturers/
importers/ purchasers; confuses the consumer and
government regulators and purchasers
Results in technical barriers to trade; safety/
environmental issues; and unnecessary cost
Dream: One standard for subjects for which a
standard is required
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Selected IFAN Initiatives
IFAN IFAN PG 14 "Social responsibility” to ISO
WG on SR “The International Federation of Standards
Users (IFAN, a D-Liaison to the ISO WG on SR) is pleased to
submit the attached comments along with a lack of support (the
equivalent of a NO vote from a National Standards Body) for
moving this draft document from the CD to the DIS stage.”
IFAN Board created an IFAN Working Group “IP
and standards” Mr. Xavier Delecroix (CVN, Luxembourg)
will chair the group.
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Coordination of standards users
groups
In the same way it is a challenge to find resources
for developing standards, it is a challenge to find
resources from the users of the standards to debate
their fitness for use.
The International Federation of Standards Users
(IFAN) aspires to help the global community of
standard users and the multiple national and
industry standards users groups advance their
causes and conserve there own limited resources.
The voice of the user is needed by the
standards developers
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Actions by Users
Standards users need to voice their views on
these issues
IFAN Premise is continuous progress on all
fronts
Standards developers need external
pressures to change
This is the job of IFAN. These issues are on
IFAN’s strategic agenda.
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IFAN Message to ANSI CMF members
IFAN has agreed on the following strategies consistent with the interests
of ANSI CMF members:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
To promote the use of International Standards;
To promote reference to international standards in regulations;
To influence the international standardization process;
To promote the principle that conformity assessment structures,
schemes and procedures respond to standards users’ needs;
To encourage openness, transparency and awareness in conformity
assessment structures, procedures and results.
To support education and training related to standardization;
To facilitate the distribution of information on standards, standards
development and conformity assessment.
To Develop IFAN
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IFAN Message to ANSI CMF members
If the company/association you represent to the American
National Standards Institute sees:
- the benefit and potential strategic impact of a globally
recognized, established and independent voice in global
standardization;
- focused on the promoting the views of USERs of standards
largely corporate standards interests;
- Active within international and regional standards developing
and policy organizations;
Then Consider Steering the IFAN program and Supporting IFAN
work through Company membership.
Contact IFAN Special Advisor (ANSI Company member GTW
Associates) George T. Willingmyre, P.E.
[email protected] or [email protected]
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