Standards Development

Geoff Visser

Standards Executive

South African Bureau of Standards

Overview of the SABS

1. State owned organization

2. Standards development, testing, certification and regulatory

services

3. Employ some 1500 people

4. Publish some 500 standards pa

5. Collection of some 5000 national standards (SANS)

6. Through 450 active standards development committees

Structure

• Three business units dealing with:

• Conformity assessment

• Testing

• Certification

• Training and other services

• Regulatory services

• Standards development

• Implemented Cluster Communication system internally to

communicate across business units

Sector Sector coordinationcoordination

CEOCEO

StandardsStandardsRegulatoryRegulatoryCommercialCommercial HR HR CorporateCorporate

TransportTransport

Food and Food and HealthHealth

ElectrotechnicalElectrotechnical

Mining & Mining & MineralsMinerals

ServicesServices

Mechanics Mechanics and Materialand Material

ChemicalsChemicals

TransportTransport TransportTransport

ElectrotechnicalElectrotechnical ElectrotechnicalElectrotechnical

ServicesServices ServicesServices

Food and Food and HealthHealth

Food and Food and HealthHealth

Mining & Mining & MineralsMinerals

Mining & Mining & MineralsMinerals

Mechanics Mechanics and Materialand Material

ChemicalsChemicals ChemicalsChemicals

Mechanics Mechanics and Materialand Material

GM

GM

GM

GM

GM

GM

GM

FinanceFinance

What are the challenges?

1. Standards Development

• promote standardization to all stakeholders

• broaden our stakeholder base

• secure and maintain the interest and involvement of leaders

of Industry, government departments, and significant

consumer organizations

2. Conformity Assessment

• Expand services in important markets

• Extend services to small and medium organizations

Standards

• National standards

• Developed by consensus

• In Technical Committees

• Representing the needs of the local stakeholders

Committees

1. Balanced representation of:

• Users (groups)

• Manufacturers (groups - various levels)

• Other interest groups

• The State

Benefits of Standardization

• Better communication

• Simplification

• Economy, cost saving, interoperability

• Safety, health, protection of life

• Elimination of trade barriers

• Publicly available – walk in sales (Pretoria and Regional offices)

and web store

• Version control – formal amendments process

• Standards can be referred to in tenders, contracts and regulations

Types of Standard

• Specifications (mark/non-mark)

• Codes of Practice

• Standard Methods

• CKS (Government purchasing)

• Recommended Practices

• “Private”

Concepts

• National, not SABS, Standards

• Committee-driven

• SABS maintains and channels requests to committees

• SABS acts as facilitator/publishing house

• Project approach

Routine Maintenance of Standards

• Five year review period

• Questionnaire approach

• Options:

- reaffirm

- amend/revise as necessary

- withdraw

Thank you!

www.sabs.co.za