# Standards Australia > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Standards_Australia > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Standards_Australia.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standards_Australia > Source revision: 1345203700 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{short description|National standards body for Australia}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}} {{use Australian English|date=May 2020}} {{Infobox company | name = Standards Australia Limited | logo = Standards Australia logo.png | logo_alt = The Standards Australia logo, consisting of the words "Standards Australia" in black and grey capital letters, with a yellow and grey graphic to the top-right of the text. | foundation = {{Start date and age|1922}} | hq_location = The Exchange Centre | location_city = [Sydney](/source/Sydney) | location_country = Australia | products = | brands = Australian Standards | revenue = {{Unbulleted list|{{Increase}} [A$](/source/A%24)53,737,000 (2024)|A$49,106,000 (2023)}} | net_income = {{Unbulleted list|{{Decrease}} A$−8,297,000 (2024)|A$1,002,000 (2023)}} | trading_name = Standards Australia | former_name = {{ubl|Australian Commonwealth Engineering Standards Association|Standards Association of Australia|Standards Australia International Limited (SAI Limited)}} | type = Not-for-profit [public company](/source/Public_company) [limited by guarantee](/source/company_limited_by_guarantee) | industry = [technical standards](/source/Technical_standards) | assets = {{Unbulleted list|{{Decrease}} A$373,680,000 (2024)|A$380,328,000 (2023)}} | equity = {{Unbulleted list|{{Decrease}} A$341,035,000 (2024)|A$349,332,000 (2023)}} | members = 84 member organisations | members_year = 2024 | num_employees = 292 | num_employees_year = 2024 | homepage = {{url|standards.org.au}} | footnotes = {{cite web | author = Standards Australia |year = 2024| title = 2024 Annual Review | url = https://www.standards.org.au/annual-reviews/annual-review-2024 |access-date= 2025-06-18 }} }} '''Standards Australia''' is the peak [standards organisation](/source/standards_organisation) of [Australia](/source/Australia). It develops, maintains and distributes '''Australian Standards''', its brand of internationally-aligned [technical standards](/source/Technical_standard), as well as their associated publications. It also provides standards accreditation services and represents Australia in international standards development. Standards Australia is Australia's representative on the [International Organization for Standardization](/source/International_Organization_for_Standardization) (ISO), the [International Electrotechnical Commission](/source/International_Electrotechnical_Commission) (IEC) and the Pacific Area Standards Congress (PASC).{{Cite web |title=What We Do {{!}} Standards Australia |url=https://www.standards.org.au/about/what-we-do |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=www.standards.org.au |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Supporting standards in the Pacific - Standards Australia |url=https://www.standards.org.au/blog/supporting-standards-in-the-pacific |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=www.standards.org.au |language=en}} As of 2025, Standards Australia has 85 members representing groups interested in the development and application of technical standards and related products and services.{{Cite web |title=Our Members {{!}} Standards Australia |url=https://www.standards.org.au/about/governance/members |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=www.standards.org.au |language=en}} == History == Standards Australia was established in 1922 as the Australian Commonwealth Engineering Standards Association. It was renamed the Standards Association of Australia in 1929, and was a founding member of the [International Organization for Standardization](/source/International_Organization_for_Standardization) (ISO) in 1947. The association received a [royal charter](/source/royal_charter) in 1950 and incorporated under it the following year. In 1988, the organisation was renamed Standards Australia and signed a memorandum of understanding with the [Australian government](/source/Government_of_Australia) to formally recognise Standards Australia as the primary non-government standards development body in Australia. In 1999, it incorporated as a [public company limited by guarantee](/source/Company_limited_by_guarantee) under the name Standards Australia International Limited (SAI Limited). In 2003, Standards Australia sold its commercial business to a separate, newly-formed company [SAI Global](/source/SAI360) floated on the [Australian Securities Exchange](/source/Australian_Securities_Exchange).{{Cite web |title=Our History {{!}} Standards Australia |url=https://www.standards.org.au/about/our-history |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=www.standards.org.au |language=en}} == Australian Standards== Australian Standards are [technical standards](/source/Technical_standard) which cover a broad range of subjects and industries. The standards may outline product specifications, engineering and building design, codes of practice for delivering services, safety standards, test methods or management systems. The standards are widely recognised by Australian industry and the community as trusted and authoritative benchmarks of acceptable and best practice.{{Cite web |date=2023-06-26 |title=SG 003: Standards & Other Publications |url=https://www.standards.org.au/documents/sg-003-standards-and-other-publications |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=Standards Australia |language=en}} The standards are internationally recognised and aligned. Standards Australia works with [Standards New Zealand](/source/Standards_New_Zealand) to develop joint Australian/New Zealand standards (AS/NZS),{{Cite web |title=What is a Standard {{!}} Standards Australia |url=https://www.standards.org.au/standards-development/what-is-standard |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=www.standards.org.au |language=en}} and has a policy to adopt ISO and IEC standards as Australian or joint Australian/New Zealand standards wherever possible. Australian Standards are identified with the prefix '''AS''', for example ''AS 2601:2025'' ''The demolition of structures''. Joint Australian/New Zealand standards are identified with '''AS/NZS''', for example ''AS/NZS 3016:2002 Electrical installations — Electric security fences''. Where an international standard has been adopted in Australia, it is also identified with the international organisation and is often assigned the same number as the international standard, for example ''AS/NZS ISO 3602:2025 Documentation - Romanization of Japanese (kana script)'', which identically adopts ISO'' ''3602:1989.{{Cite web |title=Standards Catalogue: AS/NZS ISO 3602:2025 |url=https://www.standards.org.au/standards-catalogue/standard-details?designation=as-nzs-iso-3602-2025 |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=www.standards.org.au |language=en}} Standards Australia does not have a role in monitoring or enforcing standards, and the published standards alone are voluntary. However, governments in Australia widely refer to Australian Standards in legislation and regulations, making them mandatory in those settings. Some standards are developed specifically for adoption in legislation. == Distribution and sale of standards == {{See also|SAI360}} When Standard Australia sold its commercial arm to [SAI Global](/source/SAI360) in 2003, it granted SAI Global an exclusive licence to publish and distribute Australian Standards. Standards Australia initially retained a 40% interest in SAI Global, but progressively sold this shareholding down to zero to focus more exclusively on the development and maintenance of standards and representing Australia's interests in [international standard](/source/international_standard)isation. In 2016, SAI Global was acquired by [Baring Private Equity Asia](/source/Baring_Private_Equity_Asia) and delisted from the ASX.{{Cite web|url=https://www.saiglobal.com/en-AU/About_SAI_Global/Our_Business/Acquisition_Timeline/|title = Company Overview - SAI Global}} The price of technical standards in Australia has been seen by some industry observers to be at cross-purposes with the implicit objectives of Standards Australia as a non-profit organisation, and inconsistent with the initial creation of the intellectual property for their standards using industry volunteer labour.{{Cite web |last=Ninness |first=John |date=2018-12-17 |title=Australian Standards : The Unfair Exchange |url=https://www.amsj.com.au/australian-standards-the-unfair-exchange/ |access-date=2023-08-23 |website=Australasian Mine Safety Journal |language=en-AU}}{{Cite web |date=2019-09-11 |title=A Question of Standards |url=https://aca.org.au/a-question-of-standards/ |access-date=2023-08-23 |website=ACA – Association of Consulting Architects Australia |language=en-AU}} Standards for the construction of buildings were reported to cost an average of {{AUD|120}} in 2017, and the [National Construction Code](/source/National_Construction_Code) directly or indirectly referenced several hundred such standards.{{Cite news|first=Andrew|last=Heaton|url=https://sourceable.net/australian-construction-standards-freely-available/|title=Australian Construction Standards Should be Freely Available|date=2017-09-12|website=Sourceable|access-date=2018-03-27|language=en-AU}} A 2018 analysis of the price of a standards document ([ISO 45001](/source/ISO_45001)) to an end user showed that 40% was ascribed to the cost of sending the PDF document, 54% was a royalty payable to the distributor (SAI Global), and 6% was a royalty to the IP owner (Standards Australia). The publishing agreement held by SAI Global was due to expire in 2018, and the imminent release of the new AS/NZS 3000:2018 Electrical installations standard sparked a renewed campaign for a change of the licensing model. In 2019, the exclusive licence held by SAI Global expired. Australian Standards are now available from multiple distributors, including Standards Australia's own online storefront.{{Cite web |title=Buy Standards {{!}} Standards Australia |url=https://www.standards.org.au/access-standards/buy-standards |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=www.standards.org.au |language=en}} === Public access to standards === After negotiations broke down with [National and State Libraries Australia](/source/National_and_State_Libraries_Australia) in 2016, Australian Standards ceased to be accessible from the nine libraries that had offered public access to the standards by paying an annual fee of {{AUD|14,000}} per library. As a result, in 2018 several groups including the Building Products Innovation Council, the Master Builders Association, an Australian Senate Economics Reference Committee and the consumer advocacy organisation [Choice](/source/Choice_(Australian_consumer_organisation)) called for publication rights to be brought under government control and for standards to become freely accessible.{{Cite web|first=Lucy|last=Cormack|date=2016-06-07|url=https://www.smh.com.au/business/consumer-affairs/free-access-to-australian-standards-no-longer-available-in-public-libraries-20160607-gpd8ng.html|title=Free access to Australian standards no longer available in public libraries|website=[The Sydney Morning Herald](/source/The_Sydney_Morning_Herald)|language=en-AU|access-date=2018-03-27}} Several groups advocated that a national standard should be provided free of charge to the relevant members of the industry. Standards Australia now provides limited free online access to standards for personal, non-commercial use, limited to three standards per calendar year.{{Cite web |title=ReaderRoom {{!}} Standards Australia |url=https://readerroom.standards.org.au/getStarted |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=readerroom.standards.org.au}} Some public, state and university libraries also offer free access to selected standards. == Public and industry comment on standards == Standards Australia allows comments to be made on draft standards.{{Cite web |title=Public Comment on Draft Standards |url=https://consumersfederation.org.au/standards-2/comment-on-draft-standards/ |access-date=2023-08-23 |website=Consumers' Federation of Australia}} It also provides a mechanism to identify and record difficulties in the application of standards that are currently in force or internal inconsistencies within those standards through their proposal portal.{{Cite web |title= Submitting a proposal|url= https://www.standards.org.au/standards-development/developing-standards/proposal |access-date=2025-11-28 |website=Standards Australia}} == Examples of notable standards == * AS/NZS 1170 Structural design actions * AS/NZS 1768 Lightning protection * AS 1851 Routine service of fire protection systems and equipment * AS/NZS 2053 Conduits and fittings for electrical installations * [AS/NZS 3000](/source/AS%2FNZS_3000) Electrical installations (known as the Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules) * [AS/NZS 3112](/source/AS%2FNZS_3112) Plug and socket outlets * AS/NZS 3500 Plumbing and drainage Set * [AS/NZS 3788](/source/AS%2FNZS_3788) Pressure equipment – In-service inspection{{cite web | url=http://infostore.saiglobal.com/store/details.aspx?ProductID=374650 | title=AS_NZS 3788: 2006 Pressure equipment – In-service inspection | publisher=[SAI Global](/source/SAI360) | access-date=September 4, 2015}} * AS 3959 Construction of Buildings in Bushfire Prone Areas * AS/NZS 4490 Verification of timber properties using in-grade testing methods, including approaches such as biased position testing for structural softwood{{Cite web |date=2024 |title=Biased Position Testing For Verification Of Structural Softwood |url=https://fwpa.com.au/report/biased-position-testing-for-verification-of-structural-softwood/ |access-date=2025-06-05 |website=Forest & Wood Australia |language=en-AU |isbn=978-1-922718-42-6}} * AS/NZS 5033 Installation and safety requirements for [photovoltaic](/source/photovoltaic) (PV) arrays * AS/NZS ISO 31000 Risk management – Principles and guidelines ==References== {{reflist}} == External links == *{{Official website|}} {{International Organization for Standardization}} {{Occupational safety and health}} {{authority control}} Category:Standards organisations in Australia Australia Category:Organizations established in 1922 Category:Standards of Australia and New Zealand Category:Organisations based in Sydney Category:1992 establishments in Australia --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Standards Australia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standards_Australia) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standards_Australia?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.