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==Membership== | ==Membership== | ||
ANSI has six types or categories of members and two levels of membership. The six membership types are: '''''Company''''', '''''Government''''', '''''Organizational''''', '''''Educational''''', '''''International''''' and '''''Individual'''''. | |||
The two levels of membership are '''''Full membership''''' and '''''Basic membership'''''. The table below defines the benefits extended to each of the two membership levels along with the membership categories for which each level is eligible: | |||
==Standardization and accreditation== | ==Standardization and accreditation== | ||
Revision as of 20:03, 8 February 2010
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a non-governmental, non-profit organization that coordinates and accredits the diverse standards developing organizations (SDOs), within the private and public sectors of the United States, that voluntarily develop technical standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems and services. ANSI itself does not develop any standards.[1]
ANSI is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and it also maintains an operations office in New York city. As of 2009, ANSI had 835 members and there were more than 9,000 ANSI standards. It had also accredited about 220 SDOs. ANSI's total revenue and expenses for 2008 amounted to $28,100,000 and $30,300,000, respectively.[2]
History
In 1916, the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (now the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) invited the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American Society of Civil Engineers, the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers and the American Society of Testing Materials (now ASTM International) to join in establishing a national body to coordinate the development of standards. These five organizations later invited the U.S. Department of War, U.S. Department of Navy and U.S. Department of Commerce to join them in founding such a national body, which they did.[3]
In 1918, the five national engineering societies, together with the U.S. Departments of War, Navy and Commerce, formed the American Engineering Standards Committee (AESC) with an annual budget of $7,500 provided by one founding bodies. [4]
In its first ten years, AESC approved national standards in the fields of mining, electrical and mechanical engineering, construction and highway traffic. AESC was also active in promoting international cooperation and in 1926 hosted a conference that created the International Federation of the National Standardizing Associations (ISA) which was later to merge with the United Nations Standards Coordinating Committee (UNSCC) to become the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).[3]
As its activities evolved, AESC outgrew its original structure and, in 1928, was reorganized and renamed the American Standards Association (ASA). Three year later, in 1931, it became affiliated with the U.S. national committee of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).[3]
Shortly after World War II, ASA joined with the national standards bodies of 26 other countries to help form ISO in 1947. In 1966, ASA was reorganized as the United States of America Standards Institute (USASI).[3]
ASA changed its name to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) in 1969. Throughout its various reorganizations and name changes, ANSI had been steadily increasing its efforts to coordinate and approve voluntary national standards, now known as American National Standards.
In 1987, ANSI accepted responsibility for the administration of the ISO/IEC Joint Technical Committee on Information Technology (JTC 1), the world’s largest known standardization committee. ANSI also launched a cooperative dialogue with its counterparts across in Europe. At the heart of this program was the establishment of an ANSI presence in Brussels that would provide for more timely informationon European standards activities. Then, in 1989, ANSI also began to increase its outreach to the countries of Eastern Europe, the Far East, the Pacific Rim, South America and Central America.[3]
As of now (2010), ANSI is embracing the needs of the growing service economy and strengthening consumer confidence in the products and services offered by the global economy.
Membership
ANSI has six types or categories of members and two levels of membership. The six membership types are: Company, Government, Organizational, Educational, International and Individual.
The two levels of membership are Full membership and Basic membership. The table below defines the benefits extended to each of the two membership levels along with the membership categories for which each level is eligible:
Standardization and accreditation
Participation in International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
References
- ↑ ANSI Constitution and By-Laws, Approved January, 2009
- ↑ 2008 – 2009 Annual Report
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 1918 – 2008 ANSI:A Historical Overview
- ↑ P. G. Agnew, Work of the American Engineering Standards Committee, Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 137, Standards in Industry (May, 1928), pp. 13-16. (Partially available at Website of JSTOR.org)