Interoperability

Volume 1, No. 2, February 2010, ISSN 1729-8709

Interoperability

• Guest Interview Sweden’s Minister for Trade

• Developing “ good ” standards

Comment Jacob Holmblad, Vice-President (technical management) Standards make the world go around ...... 1 ISO Focus+ is published 10 times a year (single issues : July-August, World Scene December-January) International events and international standardization ...... 2 It is available in English and French.

Annual subscription - 98 Swiss Francs Guest Interview Individual copies - 16 Swiss Francs Ewa Björling, Sweden’s Minister for Trade ...... 3

Publisher Special Report ISO Central Secretariat (International Organization for Interoperability ...... 6 Standardization) Failure is not an option...... 8 1, chemin de la Voie-Creuse CH - 1211 Genève 20 A dream… The universal remote console ...... 11 Switzerland The challenging world of screw threads ...... 14 Tel.: +41227490111 Simple solutions for more transparent financial transactions...... 16 Fax: +41227333430 E-mail: [email protected] Reliable pallets – Carrying world trade on their backs ...... 18 Web: www.iso.org What you see is what you get – Getting e-communication right ...... 20 Standardized standards? – The case of the multiple identifiers ...... 22 Manager: Roger Frost Facilitating information and documentation systems in changing times ...... 26 Editor: Elizabeth Gasiorowski-Denis Assistant Editor: Maria Lazarte Data quality – The key to interoperability ...... 28 Communication Officer: Sandrine Tranchard Platform for progress – The ISO Concept Database ...... 30 Artwork: Pascal Krieger, Pierre Granier, and Alexane Rosa Centre-fold ISO Update: Dominique Chevaux Translation: Translation Services, Interoperability – Does it fit, will it work, and can standards help ? ...... 24-25 ISO Central Secretariat Planet ISO Subscription enquiries: Sonia Rosas Friot News of the ISO system ...... 32 ISO Central Secretariat Tel.: +41227490336 CDC Fax: +41227490947 E-mail: [email protected] Consumers focus on financial services ...... 34 Building confidence in conformity assessment ...... 34 © ISO, 2010. All rights reserved. Standards supporting trade promotion institutions for export success ...... 35

The contents of ISO Focus+ are IT training for developing countries ...... 36 copyrighted and may not, whether in whole ISO training 2010 ...... 36 or in part, be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any Management Solutions form or by any means, electronic, MSS underpin efforts for safe food supply chains ...... 37 mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without written permission of the Editor. Portuguese school gives ISO 9001 top marks ...... 38

The articles in ISO Focus+ express the Standards in Action views of the authors, and do not Lockheed Martin boasts big benefits from STEP ...... 41 necessarily reflect the views of ISO or of any of its members. 360°

ISSN 1729-8709 Developing “ good ” standards ...... 43 Printed in Switzerland New Releases Cover photo : Istock, montage : ISO The risk management toolbox ...... 46 Tackling environmental challenges with the ISO 14000 family ...... 48

Coming Up 49 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ Comment

Standards make the world go around

Standards and interoperability are two sides of the same coin. As the enable a large number of cars, parked at saying goes, water seeks its own level. The rationale behind standards almost the same time, to be recharged – whether for products, terminology, symbols or systems – is precise- overnight and be ready the next morn- ing. Making this work requires an ef- ly to make “things fit together”, so that all stakeholders can commu- fective interaction of numerous and nicate and understand each other seamlessly. This principle is the first very different standards. and foremost prerequisite for effective interoperability. Organizations developing Interna- tional Standards are therefore under immense pressure to deliver standards There is an example that standardiz- Many more examples abound. But which can interact to a degree, and in ers like to bring up when talking about the interoperability promoted through ways that have never been seen before. the origins of standards – the stand- standards is disregarded (almost taken This creates opportunities, but also ardization of the stones and bricks that for granted) by users when it is func- dangers for these international organi- were the building-blocks of the first tioning well. Interoperability, in these zations. The opportunities lie in the po- major man-made structures. cases, is considered an inherent prop- tential for closer cooperation between The Egyptians quickly understood erty of the product. leading international organizations to that building pyramids would be im- But were it to fail in an essential area, establish the consistent, coherent so- possible without some form of stand- the interoperability “ disaster ” would hit lutions demanded by the market. The ards for the thousands of workers plac- newspaper and magazine headlines, and dangers are that the organizations may ing thousands of blocks to form their news channels from one corner of the fail to join forces, adopting sectorial impressive structures. Without stand- earth to the other. rather than overall solutions. Certainly, ards, neither the Keops Pyramid, nor Our increasing wealth and the in- standards would still be delivered, but the Lighthouse of Alexandria, would novative developments of the present they would be produced outside the cir- belong to the Seven Wonders of the create needs that call for more effective cle of players best equipped to secure World. interoperability, despite the growing their development.  The biblical storytelling of a language complexity of these interactions. The that became many languages to prevent development of today’s products and the Tower of Babel from reaching the systems – requiring both traditional en- sky, illustrates what happens when the gineering and electrotechnical and tele- absence of a common standard leads to technical solutions – makes rather com- a failure of interoperability – progress plicated demands on interoperability. comes to a halt. What we have seen during the past As history progressed, standards 20 to 30 years is only the beginning. were developed to further increase ef- The massive investment in the electric ficiency and reduce costs in response to car that the coming years will see, both industry needs. with respect to research, innovation and Standardization focused on the in- product development, serves as a good dividual needs of specific sectors in a example. technical systems framework. The re- The electric car of the future will sult has been the dissemination of glo- require a completely new approach bally harmonized International Stand- to interoperability, to ensure that this ards promoting the compatibility of a complex vehicle – a computer on four huge variety of products and services. wheels – operates as intended. The logistic sector is a true representa- The electric car will make heavy de- tive of this revolutionizing develop- mands on the supporting infrastructure. ment, with transport as an evident case For example, an intelligent network of Jacob Holmblad of the benefits of interoperability. recharging stations must be provided to ISO Vice-President (technical management)

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 1 World Scene

ISO 31000 highlighted at A corrigenda will be published in 2010 World Standards Day 2010 UNECE conference for the International vocabulary of metrology – Basic and general concepts and as- Accessibility has become a global con- ISO Secretary-General Rob Steele ad- sociated terms (VIM). cern for the design of products services dressed the United Nations Economic Com- Both events took place in late 2009. and environments. ISO, the International mission for Europe (UNECE) conference on Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and risk assessment and management in Geneva, Big Bang recreated the International Telecommunication Un- Switzerland, in November 2009. The event ion (ITU) have therefore chosen, within aimed to exchange experience at national, A re-creation of the conditions following the framework of the World Standards regional and international levels on using the Big Bang will now be possible with the Cooperation (WSC), to focus on acces- risk-assessment and risk-management tool, successful restart of the Large Hadron Col- sibility as the theme for World Standards when developing and applying technical lider (LHC) in November 2009. Day, to take place on 14 October 2010. standards and regulations. Operated by the European Organization According to the World Health Organi- In his presentation, Mr. Steele highlighted for Nuclear Research (CERN), the LHC is zation, about 650 million people are disa- the newly published International Standard the world’s largest particle accelerator. Lo- bled, more then 500 million of them in on risk management, ISO 31000. The stand- cated in a tunnel measuring 27 km, it lies developing countries. ard provides principles, a framework and a some 100 metres below the French-Swiss As able-bodied people grow older, fail- process for managing any form of risk (see border near Geneva. ing sight and hearing, and reduced mo- page 46). The LHC works by circulating two bility and strength, confront them with Following Mr. Steele’s address, UNECE beams of protons which travel in oppo- accessibility issues. Pregnant women, or Executive Secretary Ján Kubiš highlighted the site directions close to the speed of light. mothers with baby carriages, can also ex- standard’s applicability within the UN and ex- The beams smash into each other at allot- perience similar problems. pressed his expectation to see gathered experts ted points, creating new particles of mat- provide guidance to member States in setting ter. The resulting data promises to reveal Strategic views up a well-balanced regulatory “ toolbox ”, one fundamental insights into the nature of the universe. The International Federation of Stand- that adequately protects from hazards, without th stifling innovation or entrepreneurship. ards Users (IFAN) held its 36 Members’ As an outcome of the conference, a Assembly in Berlin, Germany. Some 35 group of experts on risk assessment and participants from nine countries attend- management will continue to consider is- ed, representing national members from sues discussed at the conference under the standards user organizations and corpo- auspices of the UNECE. rate members from both industrial and commercial sectors. The event, held in October 2009, fea- Advancing metrology tured presentations from IFAN President An investigative workshop on physi- Ross Wraight and key organizations in- ological quantities and SI units, organized volved in standardization and industry. by the International Bureau of Weights and In his presentation, ISO Secretary-Gen- Measures (BIPM), brought together metrol- eral Rob Steele outlined the current trends ogy experts and those responsible for writ- and challenges of a global world, and how ing and applying standards and health and standards could help. safety legislation. “ The world needs global solutions to The objective was complex and inter-related issues,” said to spot potential Mr. Steele. International Standards can challenges and iden- bridge gaps, but we must ensure that the tify possible steps needs of small business, NGOs and con- forward. Presenta- sumers are met, and that they understand tions highlighted the this. “ We must continuously aim to be need for improved metrology in physiologi- better and more relevant ”, he said. cal quantities. The upcoming ISO and IEC The third annual IFAN international series on physiological quantities and their conference will be held in 2010 in con- units attracted considerable interest. junction with the 37th Members’ Assem- At the annual meeting of the Joint Commit- The LHC is making good progress and bly, in Indonesia. tee for Guides in Metrology (JCGM), discus- CERN is steadily increasing the energy of sions focused on the advancement of guides the accelerator. on the evaluation of measurement data. Rep- CERN and ISO have a longstanding co- resentatives of eight member organizations operation and many International Standards attended. Work has started on the long-term have been applied in the construction and revision of the Guide to the expression of un- operation of the LHC. Notably, CERN is a certainty in measurement (GUM). liaison member of five ISO committees cov- 2009 saw the publication of the Intro- ering terminology, nuclear energy, vacuum duction to the expression of uncertainty in technology, information technology and tel- measurement, and the circulation of two ecommunications and information exchange draft guides : The role of measurement un- between systems. certainty in conformity assessment, and a CERN recently collaborated with ISO Fo- second supplement to the GUM, Models cus, kindly supplying the cover photo of the with any number of output quantities. Work November/December issue on “ Continual on a third supplement to the GUM, Model- competence, ” featuring Prof. John Ellis, an ling, is underway. eminent CERN theoretical physicist. Participants at IFAN’s member’s assembly.

2 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 Guest Interview

Sweden’s Minister for Trade Ewa Björling

Ewa Björling is Minister for Trade in Sweden’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She was appointed to the post in 2007, having served as a member of the Com- mittee on Foreign Affairs in 2002- 2007, as a deputy member of the Advisory Council on Foreign Affairs in 2006-2007, a deputy member of the Committee on the Constitution in 2006-2007 and a deputy member of the Committee on Education in 2006-2007. Her previous appointments have included Chair of the Swedish National Council for HIV Pre- vention in 2007, Board member of the Swedish Social Insurance Office in 2004-2007, a deputy member of the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation in 2006-2007, a deputy member of the Swedish Gene Technology Advisory Board in 2003-2007 and Chair of the Swedish delegation to the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly in 2006-2007. From 2003 to 2007, she was a Board member of the Swedish International Develop- ment Agency (SIDA). Prior to her national appointments, her activities have included several terms of office in municipal government. Ms. Björling is a registered dental surgeon with a university degree in dental surgery from the Photo : Pawel Flato Karolinska Institutet.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 3 Guest Interview

ISO Focus+ : Traditionally, many governments have sought to achieve objectives through regulations, but you seem to be an advocate for voluntary International Standards and encourage participation in their development. In your opinion, what are the advantages of International Standards? Do they encourage the innovation which you also advocate? Ewa Björling : Our Swedish experiences over the years have taught us that there are important benefits from participating in the international standardization process. Among other things, an active participation ensures that national priorities and circumstances are reflected in Inter- national Standards. Participation in the development of global standards can also provide a forum for exchange of technical information with representatives from international industrial and scientific organisations. This is something valuable in itself, not the least because it promotes innovations.

ISO Focus+ : Are the benefits of a glo- balized economy reserved principally for the richer nations, such as Sweden, and less for developing countries? Or can International Standards help to ensure that developing countries are not left by the side of the road? Ewa Björling : Many developing countries have expressed concerns that the increased number of standards and technical regulations, including labelling and certification schemes, is hampering their ex- Photo : Ylva Sundgren port opportunities. I share this concern. Ewa Björling says that International Standards play an important role in facilitating trade A major trade restriction for devel- through the promotion of safety, quality and technical compatibility. oping countries, but also for small and medium-sized enterprises in developed ISO Focus+ : In a recent speech, you countries, is the lack of institutional and underlined an open, international trad- I’m hoping that ISO technical capacity to handle the variety ing system as being a key element for 26000 will clarify social of these standards, certification and label- recovery from the global economic cri- ling schemes. sis of recent years. What contributions responsibility. The problems are often practical in na- do you see International Standards ture. It can be about the identification of making? by facilitate trade and improve efficiency which standards are needed for a certain Ewa Björling : I believe that Interna- in production. market. How to get access to and pay for tional Standards in general – and their The general view that International the technology that is required to comply use in technical regulations on products, Standards can promote trade is also em- with the standard? Or, how to demon- production methods and services – play pirically supported. The Organisation for strate that the product actually fulfills the an important role in facilitating trade Economic Co-operation and Develop- requirements? through the promotion of safety, quality ment (OECD), among others, has shown The harmonisation of existing national and technical compatibility. that about 80 % of all trade is affected standards, and certification and labelling International Standards can be thought by standards. Consequently, it should be schemes, or the development of new in- of as providing a common language for more efficient if we have one internation- ternational schemes, can therefore con- traders. The benefits that are derived are ally agreed standard, rather than many tribute to avoiding unnecessary trade significant. International Standards there- differing standards. restrictions.

4 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 ISO Focus 48 by roughly grown has GDP Sweden’s 1990, Since growth. economic hamper to need not does gases Ewa Björling issues? these to relate Standards International do How change? climate tackle to measures with compatible development is economic But solutions. global by solved be only can change climate like problems global that also and challenge change to climate response the the of part important in is Focus+ ISO also spur innovation and technological technological and innovation spur also and growth welfare. economic boost run, the long in and, opportunities market crease in- technology, climate-friendly in edge knowl- enhance innovation, support ogy, technol- and knowledge climate-friendly same the time. at sources energy renewable non- of use the and waste reducing while growth economic create to possible is it 9 almost by decreased emissions dioxide carbon our fluencing thecontentrightfromstart. in the development of the standard, by in- part active an take to countries veloping de- enable to is regard this in project the of goal The 14067). (ISO footprints bon car- on standard ISO the the of development in participate to want that countries by meansofInternationalStandards. services, and goods climate-friendly with trade to increased opportunities countries’ developing strengthen to order in project a launched Government Swedish the ple, solve to exam- for 2008, January In trying situation. this in issues specific more ternational Standards. In- use to inability the thus and standard a of design the influence to inability the by hampered be not should and utilised, be must potential This market. global the on compete to potential great a have tries Open and competitive global markets markets global competitive and Open spread to help could standards Climate One purpose is to support developing developing support to is purpose One and general both with work can We coun- developing that convinced am I language. provide acommon Standards International + February 2010 February

%. This clearly shows that that shows clearly This %. You have said that trade trade that said have You : : A in reduction greenhouse

%. %. At time, the same

Photo : Holger Staffansson An aerialshotoftheSwedishParliamentinStockholm. tal technology, for example. example. for technology, tal environmen- and standardization policy, trade available, we have that tools various the all with work to should efforts our we increase that belief has my meeting strengthened Copenhagen the of come Björling Ewa tional Standardsinthisarea? planning to encourage the use of Interna- What concrete action is Sweden taking or December? last Copenhagen in ference following the COP15 climate change con- Standards. How has your position evolved International on based focus single a for support your expressed and trade to ers barri- non-tariff creating risk worldwide the hundreds of climate change initiatives Focus+ ISO carbon economy. low- a towards moving in element key course, a of is, technology And progress. goods andservices. environmental on members Organization Trade World among a agreement of broader element core a as technologies, ly climate-friend- in trade of liberalization have taken is to launch an initiative on the One of the more concrete initiatives we we initiatives concrete more the of One affected by standards. About 80 You have pointed out that out pointed have You : h ustsatr out- unsatisfactory The : % of trade all is © ISOFocus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ to sustainabledevelopment. contribute to efforts facilitate and sibility respon- social of meaning the clarify will standard 26000 ISO the that responsibility. hoping I’m social voluntary take to organizations and businesses more need we But difference. practical a make can it that convinced then more I’m so world, tant tool in their work everyday around the impor- this using successfully are panies com- many that seen already have I CSR, development. global able importance of human rights and a sustain- the emphasizes strongly that policy ment develop- and foreign a and policy trade policy foreign our of cornerstones two between link responsibility important an social is (CSR) corporate of tion Björling Ewa ly makeapractical,positivedifference? Can a voluntary guidance standard real- standard? this of expectations your are What 2010. late in publication for geted guidance on social responsibility and which is tar- provide will which Standard International the 26000, group ISO developing working ISO the for secretariat and leadership the joint provides Sweden ISO Focus+ barriers. tariff non- and tariffs both remove would tion forward during 2010 and that such a solu- As the Swedish minister responsible for responsible As minister the Swedish issue this move can we that hoping I’m In partnership with Brazil, Brazil, with : partnership In For Sweden, the promo- the Sweden, For : 

: a free free a : 5 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ Special Report Interoperability

by Maria Lazarte

Have you ever wished for a remote control that could operate all your electronic equipment ? Or that spare parts were always easily available ? Most of us take for granted that we can buy paper that will fit any printer, that software will work in all computers, or that our electronic money transfers will be accepted by banks in other countries.

But the ability of products and serv- can significantly reduce manufacturing ices to interact with each other is large- costs and improve efficiency both inter- ly enabled by International Standards nally within an organization and between representing global consensus amongst organizations – for instance, data related stakeholders. standards can help ensure the quality of Promoting interoperability is one of the information transferred, avoid duplication key roles of ISO standards – from those of efforts and assure consistency between for the most basic of parts, like screws, suppliers. fasteners or rolling bearings to complex In addition, International Standards en- processes, like the standard for the ex- able the interoperability of knowledge, change of product model data (STEP) which facilitates access to information used in industrial automation. and resources to people from around the By disseminating harmonized specifi- world, whether through library and ar- cations and state-of-the-art know-how, chiving standards, country or language International Standards promote the com- codes or accessible file formats like JPEG, patibility of spare parts, accessories and to name a few. components among product models, lines ISO standards can also facilitate for- and brands. ward interoperability. For example, they Manufacturers can then outsource parts can ensure the longevity of information, confident that they will be compatible so that archive data saved on CDs can be with their products, which helps them to still be read years from now, despite ad- better channel research efforts and market vances in technology. new technologies – for example an auto- In fact, by their very nature, ISO stand- mobile manufacturer outsourcing its GPS ards all contribute to interoperability, technology. be they for road vehicles, transport and With interoperability standards, busi- packaging, building and construction, nesses can become more competitive, medical devices, information technology, which in turn results in fair prices, and and much more. a wider and better choice of products for As for the example given at the begin- consumers. ning of this article, the dream of a de- Interoperability also increases product vice to control all electronic equipment lifespan, which reduces waste and con- is not far off from becoming a reality. tributes to environmental sustainability. But its success will depend greatly on But the benefits of ISO standards are the International Standards enabling the not limited to products. Standards for interoperability of systems – from the services facilitate transactions, increase technology used by different equipment transparency and improve overall service to communicate, to a user-friendly inter- delivery in, for example, financial trans- face (see page 11).  actions or health informatics. Standards also enable the interoperability of systems and processes, which Maria Lazarte is Assistant Editor, ISO Focus+.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 7 Special Report

to incompatible and non-interoperable products and accessories as a means to Failure maximize their profits. It could be argued that, during the initial stages of a successful product’s evo- is not an option lution, this is an acceptable development strategy, particularly in small or restricted by T. S. Mohan markets. But where do we draw the line ? Once a product reaches a certain threshold – whether volume, usage or arrival Lack of interoperability in everyday products results in countless of competition – then incompatibility inefficiencies and unnecessary costs for consumers. Consider, for outlives its purpose. Furthering of this instance, personal electronic items. Mobile phone batteries and laptop strategy hinders competition, impacts the economy, creates unnecessary costs chargers are widely non-interoperable across brands despite serving and inconvenience for consumers and in- the same purpose. Print cartridges for personal printers are not only creases waste. incompatible, but their short lifespan is an environmental hazard. Moreover, the production of incompatible products is not always a good busi- The same applies to commonly used Drawing the line ness strategy. Failure to offer interoper- medical products. Blood sugar test strips able products may make it harder for and kits, as well as insulin pens and car- Popular consumer products not only innovators and small businesses to enter tridges are clear examples. In almost all serve specific needs, but eventually be- new market niches. aspects of our daily life, incompatible and come part of the human story. Can we Figure 1 illustrates the evolution of non-interoperable products burden con- imagine our lives without mobile phones a consumer product over time and with sumers and contribute to the proliferation or computers, or many of the other com- greater degrees of interoperability. It of environmental waste. This negative modities we now take for granted ? maps the gradual reduction of the propri- impact is particularly significant for de- The protection of intellectual property etary core with the growth and usage of veloping and emerging economics, where (IP) has encouraged many of these devel- the interoperable open standards driven resources are often limited. opments. But too often companies resort interfaces and components.

8 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 Overcoming mindblocks

Open Interoperable Interfaces Several mind blocks get in the way of for the Product/Service Components interoperability. Below are some sugges- Proprietary Core tions to overcome them. Interoperability Open Interoperable Interfaces for the Product/Service Components Promote healthy relationships and part-

Proprietary Core nerships between key stakeholders of con- Open Interoperable Interfaces for the Product/Service Components sumer goods. Figure 2 illustrates the need Proprietary Core for a successful and sustained public-private partnership. In addition to businesses that generate interoperable consumer Time evolution goods, interoperability is mainly driven by advocacy groups along with standards Figure 1 : The evolution of a niche consumer product into a popular one driven by openness. bodies and governmental agencies. An Indian perspective Why this non-interoperability ? The governments, its agencies and consumer advocacy groups along with indus- With over a billion people, India is an If it goes against the needs of customers try should promote interoperability stand- economy with an enormous potential. and even of business, why are non-inter- ards as a priority. At the same time, the majority of the operable goods prevalent ? The culprit is Interoperability, as well as interoper- population has a very limited purchas- the widespread commercial effort to build able products and services certifications, ing power. Given the plethora of non- brand beyond what is legitimate. This in- could be made mandatory for certain interoperable and yet popular customer cludes vendor lock-in due to proprietary products, especially with health, safety or goods, how does the Indian consumer designs, technologies or processes. environmental considerations. face it ? Very simply put, the attitude is The public at large needs to be educat- one of resignation and working around ed on the immense benefits, tangible and it. As said in many languages around the The economic damage is intangible, as well as short and long term, country by consumers and vendors alike, both subtle and huge. of interoperability. This is best done by Thoda adjust karo or Swalpa adjust business schools, universities and stand- maadi – “ Adjust a little ”. ards bodies. In fact, they should advocate The Indian consumer, like many others The latter can also create barriers for business models that promote early open around the world, puts up with the situ- other competitors striving to enter a mar- standards for the “ interfaces ” and “ com- ation fatalistically despite the time and ket. The result are fewer players (mo- ponents ” in their products and services. energy lost, the money spent less wisely, nopolies) and higher costs. Some subtly Promote public-private partnerships lost productivity, goodwill and opportuni- unethical business practices and mindsets for accelerating interoperability changes ties. The economic damage is both subtle may also come into play, such as the not- both in mindsets as well as in products and huge. The Indian consumer is a sleep- so-fair trade practice of retaining exclu- and services. ing giant who needs to be woken up – this sivity of a consumer good much beyond Proactively promote increased aware- calls for more proactive consumer advo- its “ sell-by date ”, perhaps through will- ness amongst important stakeholders cacy groups creation in industry. fully wrong usage of IP rights. about key interoperability issues in specific domains and categories that can result in action campaigns and immediate benefits visibility. Consumer Promote ethical and environmentally aware business practices.

Interoperable Best practice from the software Consumer Goods world Consumer Interoperability drives much of the Standards Advocacy open enterprise level mature software Bodies products that have been through several Groups lifecycle implementations. There are several best practices to be shared. Amongst them is the ability to de- Government sign for interoperability. This is done by Agencies first identifying all usage interfaces for a product or its components. Then, it is necessary to ensure that these are designed to be universal as well as by “ compenentiz- Figure 2 : The key stakeholders and the need for public-private partnership. ing ” as much as possible. The latter refers

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 9 Special Report

to components which are soundly archi- To achieve this, they can proactively makers, products manufacturers and serv- tected with well designed interfaces. In track market proliferations for con- ice providers. Given the fast changing fact, components are the core of a sound sumer products and services – through economic scenarios worldwide and the design for interoperability. authentic and usable market research. many opportunities in these tough times, While the design for interoperability They can work closely with stakehold- the need for interoperability has become is an iterative process, several challenges ers for public policy formulation and all the more relevant and vital.  may emerge, such as the co-existence of mentoring. They can be drivers in set- many versions of a product. The key is ting up commodity triggers for product that these should be driven by markets. or service volumes that will call for The need to ensure interoperability must more proactive interoperability designs. be triggered when consumer products or They can help identify key issues, in- About the author services cross certain threshold market compatible products and components, densities, which could be defined by pro- build consensus, formulate recommen- Dr. T. S. Mohan fessional bodies actively working for con- dations and influence decisions – public works at Infosys sumers in that technical area. or private. Technologies Already many ISO standards pro- E&R’s ECom How can standardization help ? mote interoperability for a diversity of Research Lab as a products and services worldwide. The Principal Resear- Standards bodies can pursue several ISO Committee for consumer policy cher. His research proactive avenues to push for interoper- (ISO/COPOLCO) has paid particular interests include ability. They can encourage interoperabil- attention to this issue and in 2009 or- distributed systems, ity standards for a broad range of products ganized a workshop in India dedicated high performance computing, cloud and and services as well as their components. to interoperability of consumer prod- grid as well as software architecture A need that can be brought to attention by ucts. But clearly, much more remains and engineering. He has over 22 years consumer advocacy groups. to be done. experience in the academia and industry. Standards bodies, in association with Dr. Mohan holds a Masters and PhD appropriate stakeholders including gov- More relevant and vital in computer science from the Indian ernmental agencies, consumer advocacy Institute of Science, where he worked for groups and industry can develop, publish Bringing about interoperability for about a decade before moving into the and actively disseminate interoperability consumer products and services requires industry. He can be reached at : guidelines and best practices. a change in mindset amongst key decision [email protected].

10 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 …come true This ideal scenario – with its vision of a personal controller or universal remote console (URC) that can be used with products at home, work and in public systems – is just an example of what “ intelligent ” environments and pluggable user interfaces should be able to do for you in the future. A dream that may be realized sooner than you think.

You can take your personal user interface wherever you go.

Technology enabling wireless connec- tivity and networked computing is already A dream… available, providing methods for seamless discovery, controlling and eventing. But at the moment, user interfaces still have to be authored separately for each The universal controller platform. Furthermore, many existing interfaces are neither intuitive nor easy to understand for many users. remote console What is needed is a standardized, ver- satile user interface description for products. A kind of “ user interface socket ” to which any personal device or “ URC ” can connect to discover, access and control a by Gottfried Zimmermann and Gregg Vanderheiden product. A solid user interface description alone magine you are on business travel, checking into a hotel in a foreign could support diverse URC technologies – I including direct manipulation techniques city. via desktop computers and personal dig- You enter the room and the air conditioning automatically sets to ital assistants (PDAs), or voice recogni- your preferred daytime room temperature. The TV displays a wel- tion and natural language technologies come screen. You pull out your smart phone and use it to switch to used by PDAs and wearable computers. Such an approach could also enable older your favorite news channel. products to be controlled with new user Even though all products and systems in the room are new to you, interface technologies (e.g. natural lan- you feel a familiarity because your smart phone is showing the same guage processing). interface that you use for your home appliances. Designed for all Developing product interfaces that are As this is your own personalized in- ing. No fussing around with complicated both advanced enough to satisfy the needs terface, the controls are shown in your and unknown alarm clocks. Your can of experts, while remaining simple for native language, so you don’t have to take your personal user interface wher- other users is not an easy task. decipher the labels on the systems in the ever you go. This can be partly handled through set- room which may be in a language foreign And think about elders, some of whom tings in the product. But beyond this, a to you. would like a much simpler interface than mechanism would be needed to allow us- And it gets even better. While you that offered to the general public. They ers to plug-in or connect alternate interfac- wait for the news to start, with a few would no longer have to learn how to use es that better meet their needs and conven- touches on your smart phone, you pro- a new interface each time a device has to tions. This would allow users to carry an gram the TV to wake you up with your be replaced or when they are traveling or interface that works for them across prod- favourite song at 6 a.m. the next morn- visiting family. ucts. This can be especially important for

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 11 Special Report

URC vs. the traditional universal remote

URC (universal remote console) standards enable a number of functions that go beyond the current universal remote control mechanisms. Product display information – The URC remote console is capable of knowing and displaying the complete state of a product thanks to its bi- directional communication. User notifications – Users can be notified about important events, such as when an oven reaches a selected temperature, or a microwave completes its operation. Network neutral – URC standards do not assume a particular network or protocol. The technology could work equally well over LAN, wireless Ethernet (WiFi), Bluetooth, HomePlug, etc. It could even be possible to enable communication through household wiring, so that simply plugging an appliance into a power socket is enough to connect it to the network. Modality independence – The URC standards allow for all media and modalities. The same URC could present a verbal interface to a person while driving, yet present a visual interface to the same person when in a noisy environment. Use whatever control device is handy – Users can control a product with whatever device is handy, such as programming their DVD or VCR player from their desktop computer upstairs to record a show they are missing. – In addition to allowing URCs to build a user Highly customized user interfaces the elderly, who have trouble learning new interface on the fly, device (target) manufacturers could also provide specialized, interfaces each time they encounter a dif- carefully crafted user interfaces with a particular look and feel. For instance, a custom ferent version of the same device. interface that works on any iPhone or Windows Mobile. They could provide a user Interoperability is critical to realizing interface in Flash or Silverlight. Or, they could offer a highly functional interface that the vision of personalized and pluggable only ran on their proprietary remote control, while still providing the basic information user interfaces for electronic devices and needed so the product can be controlled from any generic URC compatible device. services. An International Standard on pluggable user interfaces has a key role Dynamically upgradeable – Users that have access to the Internet could upgrade to to play here. improved interfaces developed by the target’s manufacturer. Such a standard would facilitate user Multi-language – Although there may only be place for one set of labels on the interfaces that adapt or can be adapted to front of a product, the URC standard makes it very easy for manufacturers to provide a user’s personal needs and preferences. It would allow interfaces that are easy to use labels in many languages. Alternatively, network resources can be used to call up and that employ various modalities for in- translations into languages not supported by the target device itself. put and output. And it would enable special Allows (real) natural language and intelligent controllers /agents – The standard user interfaces provided by third parties for supports the provision of additional context, status and local and remote semantic specific user groups such as children, older information to support multiple levels of natural language and intelligent controllers. persons or persons with disabilities. It would be possible, for instance, to “ converse ” with the controller as if it were a With this in mind, subcommittee SC 35, User interfaces of ISO/IEC JTC1, person who the user is asking to operate a device. Information technology, published a new multi-part International Standard in 2008

12 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 promoting the interoperability of URCs ISO/IEC 24752, does not determine a The OpenURC consortium interfaces, ISO/IEC 24752, Information specific networking protocol between a technology – User interfaces – Universal URC and a target. It only defines require- There is a growing community of tech- remote console. ments for such a networking platform. nology developers applying the URC The idea is that the URC related interac- standards. The impact of implementations The basics tion could be implemented on top of ex- will be maximized by sharing resources isting networking platforms that support and following common guidelines. This The goal of URC technology is to allow device discovery, control and eventing – is one of the objectives of the OpenURC any device or service to be accessed and such as UPnP (universal plug and play), Consortium (www.myurc.org). Every- manipulated by any controller. Users can Web services, HomePlug, etc. body can join this community to build a then select a user interface that fits their You can run a URC environment at URC ecosystem that will facilitate simple, needs and preferences, using input and home and use pluggable user interfaces flexible, and accessible user interfaces. output modalities, and interaction mecha- and similar resources in a constrained Currently, there are about a dozen Eu- nisms that they are familiar with and work environment such as a local network. ropean projects built upon the URC and well with them. However, the real power of the URC the universal control hub (UCH) technol- framework unfolds if applied to a global ogy, including research and industrial organizations such as DFKI, the University Interoperability is critical ecosystem. In such a scenario, different parties of Prague, VicomTech, Siemens and Sun to enable personalized contribute the different parts necessary to Microsystems. and pluggable user build flexible user interfaces : providers The first project of this kind in Europe interfaces. of devices and services, providers of net- was i2home (www.i2home.org), which work services, providers of controllers, spearheaded the use of URC technology providers of pluggable user interfaces, in the field of ambient assistive living. In the following, we refer to the devices and the users. and services that are to be controlled as A key component of the URC ecosys- targets, and to the controller devices and tem is the resource server, which acts as Note : The contents of this article were developed their user interfaces as URCs. a market place for sharing various re- with funding from the National Institute on Dis- To enable URCs to control a target sources enabling personalized and plug- ability and Rehabilitation Research, US Depart- without any prior knowledge of each oth- gable user interfaces. Currently, a pilot ment of Education, grant number H133E080022. er some “ common understandings ” need These contents do not necessarily represent the resource server is being operated by dot policy of the Department of Education or endorse- to be in place. UI (dotui.com). ment by the US Federal Government. The first part of ISO/IEC 24752, Part 1 : Framework, defines the components of the URC framework and specifies the “ common understandings ” between them About the authors as conformance requirements, stated in terms of high-level interaction. Dr. Gregg Vande- Dr. Gottfried A key part of this interaction is the rheiden is profes- Zimmermann sharing of control and access information sor of industrial is an expert on through XML documents. and biomedical IT usability and engineering and accessibility. He Director of the received a PhD in Learn more Trace Research and computer science Development Cen- from the Univer- While the fundamental components ter at the University sity of Stuttgart, and XML languages are specified of Wisconsin-Madison. He has worked in Germany, in 1999. In 2000, he joined by ISO/IEC standards, essential the field of technology and disability for the Trace Center of the University of almost 40 years, and is the originator of Wisconsin-Madison, USA, where he implementation guidelines and other many standards and guidelines, including focused on research and development in support documents are provided as the first computer access guidelines in the area of Universal Design in current technical reports by the OpenURC 1985, consumer products guidelines in and next-generation information and Consortium (see http://myurc.org/TR/). 1992, and first Web Access Guidelines communication technologies. In 2003, Readers interested in the technical after www2 in 1995. He serves on many he founded Access Technologies Group, aspects of the standard and its industry and government advisory and a consulting company for ICT acces- planning committees and ICT standards sibility. Recently, he became junior implementation should start with the committees. He has received over 150 professor of Media Informatics at the technical primer available at research grants and worked with over 50 University of Tübingen, Germany. He http://myurc.org/TR/ companies. Recent projects include “ Rai- has also been the technical coordinator urc-tech-primer1.0. sing the Floor ” and the “ National Public of the European i2home project since Inclusive Infrastructure ”. 2006.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 13 Special Report

The job ahead

With the continual growth in global production and trade, ISO International Standards for screw threads have gained in importance. Firstly, engineers around the world need to be able to identify screw threads correctly – there are about 500 screw threads in existence, and it is not always easy to distinguish among them. Secondly, engineers want unified basic dimensions and tolerances for screw threads, as well as the ability to check them in a uniform manner. Thirdly, engineers would like to see all screw thread standards conceived and set out in the same way. or using a similar technology system, as well as to be able to use the same vocabulary and symbols in relation to screw threads. Only ISO International Standards fulfil all these needs. Many industrialized countries have adopted, or are in the process of adopting, ISO standards on screw threads as their national standards. Currently, there are 20 of these International Standards, covering four kinds of screw threads, including a vocabulary of related terms. But there are none for the remaining types, such as but- tress screw threads. This creates several limitations, specifically concerning interoperability of products. Engineers are therefore correct in expecting that ISO/TC 1 actively fills the gaps as soon as possible. At a minimum, the committee should tackle the most The challenging world of widely used screw threads, and develop a drafting platform with a unified vocabulary, symbols, designation and technical system. screw threads Other technical committees within ISO could use this platform as a basis for drafting standards for special types of by Li Xiaobin screw threads. This would make it simpler for users to understand the requirements of these special screw threads, and Screw threads have two big advantages. One is that they connect contribute to keeping the number of screw parts together, enabling designers and manufacturers to produce high- threads in the world to the minimum ide- ly complicated machines and equipment. The other is that they can al. There is also a need to develop Inter- be disassembled, making it easy to replace worn or damaged compo- national Standards covering the designa- tions and symbols applying to most kinds nents, extending the life of machinery and equipment, and reducing of screw threads. the cost of use and maintenance. But before we get there, it is first nec- Screw threads are the basic elements of manufacturing, and they are essary to revise and supplement the ISO widely used across almost every branch in industry. Which is why the standards that already exist. This is the current mission of ISO/TC 1, and about ISO technical committee responsible for standards on screw threads 11 International Standards will be looked received the first designation, ISO/TC 1. at in this phase.

14 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 • Existing diversity If a new International Standard differs from a national one, that country will incur enormous expense in adopting the new standard. Due to the lack of consistent international standardization in this area in the past, there is currently a wide disparity between different national standards for screw threads. This makes the work of harmonization more difficult and lengthens the time required to draft a standard. • Differing interests Each industry and regional standard- developing organization has its own business interests. For example, some European countries do not use inch Modern assembly lines and electronic should include all standards for screw screw threads, while North America products require greater precision and threads and satisfy the needs of thread uses them in large quantities. ever-smaller screw threads. At the same production. • Fastener threads only time, as the connection reliability of screw The standards will address specifica- In some countries the screw thread threads becomes increasingly important, tions for profile, diameter and pitch com- standards are prepared by national the user needs more and more reliable binations, basic dimensions, tolerances fastener committees, which are only methods to gauge screw threads, calculate and designation, gauges and gauging. interested in screw threads for fasten- their strength and lock their joints. These are the five basic aspects of screw ers. This leads to a narrow scope for Development trends in the field are threads, which form a comprehensive screw thread. towards more accuracy and miniaturiza- whole and are crucial to the success of a • Expecting national standards to tion and more reliable gauging, strength standard. become international and locking. These are the bases for the For screw threads with many diameter Some large markets may expect their long-term work of ISO/TC 1. About 30 and pitch combinations – those with a national standards to be adopted International Standards will be dealt with variety of tolerances and those which are internationally outside of the ISO in this phase. used in larger quantities – each of the five consensus-building process. basic aspects will be covered as an indi- New guidelines vidual International Standard or a sepa- Clearly, many challenges lie ahead, and rate part of a standard. This will make it ISO/TC 1 has an ambitious road map. We In order to put the work of ISO/TC 1 easier to revise and refer to a particular are confident that with motivation and ef- forward promptly, the planning of new aspect in the future. fort, the committee will be successful. Our standards and the revision of current For screw threads used in larger quanti- goal is to build up a solid and globally har- ones are to be based on the following ties, it will be advantageous to add sec- monized portfolio of standards responding guidelines. tions on limits in size, measuring cylin- to the latest technologies and today’s mar- The documents are to be drafted, and ders, etc., which will enable designers to ket need for interoperability.  their priority determined according to choose and produce these screw threads global demand for each screw thread more easily. type. At present, both metric and inch It is important to take into account, as screw threads are used in international much as possible, the different existing trade, and both are clearly needed. If we national standards during the preparation About the author had no International Standards for inch of an International Standard. screw threads for example, manufacturers For each new work item, a dedicated Li Xiaobin is would continue to rely on a multiplicity working group will be established to pre- a professor at of national standards, which is highly in- pare the document. the Institute of convenient for users. For issues that could not achieve con- Basic Machinery Miniature screw threads, metric threads sensus, an annex will be added to the Standards, China with transition fit, metric threads with standard to explain differences between Productivity Center interference fit, metric extra-fine pitch nations. for Machinery. threads and metric taper threads should He is the Secre- be introduced. These screw threads form Challenges tary General of the a large family of metric threads. National Technical Committee on Screw We need to establish a system of screw There are a number of potential risks Threads of Standardization Administra- threads, and increase awareness of the to the timely completion of the ISO/TC 1 tion of China (SAC/TC 108). He is also goals of ISO/TC 1’s work. The system work programme, outlined below. the Secretary of ISO/TC 1, Screw threads.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 15 Special Report

This diversity has been a fact of the banking world. But with steady growth in the volume of transnational financial traffic, customers are demanding simpler business solutions. This in turn is putting pressure on the banking community to improve interoperability. One key tool is the International Bank Account Number (IBAN) specified in ISO’s multi-part standard ISO 13616, Fi- nancial services – International bank account number (IBAN). IBAN allows cross-border identification and validity checks of bank accounts. Originally created by the European Com- mittee for Banking Standards, it was published as an ISO standard in 1997. As an annex to the standard, the registration authority, the Society for Worldwide In- terbank Financial Telecommunication, better known by its acronym, SWIFT, maintains a list of adhering countries.

Easier for customers IBAN is comprised of an alpha-2 country code based on ISO 3166-1:2006, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions – Part 1 : Country codes. The code is followed by two check-digits (calculated according to ISO/IEC 7064:2003, Information technology – Security techniques – Check character systems) and a container of 30 alpha- numeric characters for the national bank account number (usually called BBAN for Basic Bank Account Number). All banks in Europe deliver an IBAN account number to their clients. The cli- Simple solutions ents then simply supply this number to counterparties to ensure rapid and secure for more transparent payments. IBAN has become the key for ensur- financial transactions ing interoperability of payments in Euro, an initiative driven by banks through the SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) 1). The reason for this is simple : in a participating country it is easy for a bank to check by Jean-Yves Garnier the validity of a standardized BBAN. But if other methods have been used to create this BBAN verification may be impossi- Each country has its own cultural and social background, and this ble, and the bank may be left with only diversity enriches originality in all domains of life. The same applies the banking contact details supplied by to banking and, consequently, payment instruments vary enormously the client. from one country to another. The different ways in which regulators identify financial institutions 1) The SEPA is an initiative for the creation are also an expression of this richness. Banks have created their own of a Euro zone in which all electronic payments systems, and there are a multiplicity of ways to designate customer are considered domestic, and where a difference between national and intra-European cross border account numbers. payments does not exist.

16 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 Evolution of the BIC

Why does the latest version of ISO 9362, published in 2009, refer to the BIC as a business code and not a banking code as in its 1994 edition ? BIC and IBAN were designed to identify banks, not customers. But as corporations got more involved in their financial transactions it became evident that there was also a need for their clear and unambiguous identification. Banks and corporations agreed that it made sense to use the same structure used in BIC to identify companies. After all, banks are simply companies offering financial services. The scope of ISO 9362 was consequently broadened and the BIC is now known To reach an optimal level of interoper- standards. Anyone can verify the existence as the business identification code. ability, the banking community created of a BIC and the name of the financial insti- an identifier code known as BIC. This tution on the Internet (www.swift.com) Any legal entity can now be identified ISO standard, ISO 9362:2009, Banking with a BIC, and everyone can verify – Banking telecommunication messages Reliable pillars the code. The BIC is particularly – Business identifier code (BIC), specifies useful when an account number is not a unique worldwide identifier for each Reliable interoperability was achieved relevant for identifying customers. It bank, and may also include the specific using BIC and IBAN together. European facilitates exchanges end to end from location of the bank (see Box). banks rely on both to deliver account customer to customer, and helps in The identifier was so efficient that identification to their customers. On various media, clients are provided with the handling risk and security matters SWIFT decided to use it for routing mes- BIC of their financial institution and the such as anti-money laundering sages on its network. IBAN corresponding to the account that monitoring. they maintain at this institution. Customers demand The SEPA is built on these two pillars, simpler business which allow sending payments all over IBAN promotes the interoperability solutions. Europe as securely as inside a country. of banking transactions by safely ensur- The increasing use of these standards and ing the validity of an account. It removes the evolution of their scope are driving the the need to apply different national or The BIC structure may be eight to 11 banking community and their clients to a individual bank rules each time a BBAN characters long, composed of : more efficient way of making business. needs to be verified. • Bank code (letters only) – four Worldwide adoption of the system will Because of its clear advantages sev- characters further improve not only interoperability, eral others countries have also adopted but also security, reliability, speed and • ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code (let- the standard including Israel, Mauritius, traceability.  Tunisia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Swit- ters only) – two characters zerland. In total, 46 countries already use • Location code (letters and digits) – IBAN for easier exchange of payments. two characters About the author • Branch code – three characters. Now even better with BIC The greatest advantage of BIC is its Jean-Yves Garnier IBAN on its own was not sufficient to simplicity : a unique four-digit identifier is an independent ensure the best possible interoperability for each bank in the world plus the coun- consultant and of financial transactions. It still remained try and its location within the country. Chair of ISO/TC that bank codes can only be checked in The registry is easily accessible at 68/SC 7, Core the issuing country, as usually banks are SWIFT, assigned as registration authority Banking. He served identified by their national regulatory by ISO/TC 68, Financial services, the com- on the Board of authority. mittee that developed the BIC and IBAN SWIFT.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 17 Special Report

Providing solutions With the explosion of global trading, Reliable pallets the necessity has risen to address formerly regional or local concerns in a wider international context. In response, ISO techni- carrying world trade cal committee ISO/TC 51, Pallets for unit load method of materials handling, has on their backs developed and updated a wide portfolio of standards to meet these needs. ISO/TC 51 deals with pallets of all ma- by John M. B. Mead terials, including those with integral su- perstructures (boxes) and slip sheets (thin unit handling devices usually made from Although pallets are largely taken for granted, these humble, flat, kraft board, fibreboard or plastic). structures can be said to form one of the basic blocks of global supply Its standards specify sizes, performance, chains. Billions are currently in existence, a mark of confidence based and give guidelines for repair and reuse, together with a full set of definitions. on 50 years of worldwide experience. Particular attention has been given to wooden pallets, which estimates indicate are by far the most common, used in more Their success lies in their ability to sat- tomated racking systems, stacked pallet- than 90 % of applications worldwide. isfy the needs of every user in any con- load on pallet-load, moved on twin con- Among the aspects ISO/TC 51 has stand- ceivable handling environment, whether veyors, loaded in shipping containers ardized are assessments for all aspects of for simple movements, for storage, or and moved through arctic and tropical timber size, strength and damage resist- in guaranteeing safety in point-of-sale conditions. In addition, they must sup- ance. The committee has also targeted fix- applications. port a wide variety of loads and strap- ings (nails), which as key strength factors But their task has not been easy. Emp- ping methods, and endure dynamic loads their performance is crucial. ty or loaded, pallets are handled by fork and impacts from equipment drivers in lift trucks or pallet trucks, placed in au- a hurry. World of choice The economics of operating reusable pallet systems favours wood in most circumstances. However, plastic pallets in a variety of materials and designs have been adopted to meet special operational needs.

Pallets must perform even under harsh conditions.

Moreover, the shortage and high cost of wood in some Asian countries has created further incentive for improvements. Cor- rugated paper pallets are used for lighter loads, and reconstituted wood materials are suitable for other purposes. Light- weight aluminium pallets have proved useful in airfreight applications.

Used once, used twice To define specifications and performance for the different types of pallets, we must take into account the uses and loads that a pallet may be required to meet. For instance, a basic system may need only single-face pallets with three bear- ers to carry a load on a flat truck for one

18 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 trip. The pallets would not return once wheeling ” for size and accuracy may be Where pallets are assembled from empty. needed to optimise the load. This requires components, their size and quality can be When loaded, these pallets must have entry capability on any of the four faces. controlled with a series of standards. The enough clearance to accept a pallet truck The container may then move through performance of a wood pallet is signifi- under the deck. They must not sag at the the tropics, subjecting the pallet to high cantly affected by the fixings used, and edges when lifted, as this could cause the temperatures and humidity. The pallet standardized tests can be used to demon- load to slip. And they must be of a size must be able to conform with specifica- strate their capability. that suits the truck and the storage con- tions for size and performance even under ditions at either end. Finally, as a pack- these conditions. Good everywhere aging material they must meet recycling The loaded pallet may then be stacked requirements. on top of another loaded pallet with an How can performance be assessed giv- Many pallets are designed for single- uneven top surface, and it must keep its en the large variety of conditions in which load use and for a particular set of han- stability. pallets are used ? dling and storage. They are often custom At the start of each new handling phase, ISO/TC 51 has developed a compre- sized to suit user requirements. However, the pallet is inspected for safety to ensure hensive test standard for pallets of any if designed for general use, the pallets’ no structural damage has occurred. material. ISO 8611 for flat pallets, is a trip cost would be dramatically reduced Throughout all this, the pallet must re- three-part standard providing guidance if they are then reused, either by the remain safe for humans and plants and not for methodology, performance and use cipient of the goods or by a pallet recycler harbour any health threats. Wood pallets selection and criteria, as well as maxi- who places them back on the market. shipped to most countries are required to mum working load performance. It also be treated to conform to the plant health advises on the effect of typical loads and A day in the life authorities standard ISPM 15, established strapping, on the unit load performance. by the International Plant Protection The criteria in the six tests for perform- Because pallets are prime reusable Convention. ance and the seven optional tests for du- packaging, many volume users take ad- rability have all been evaluated against vantage of available pallet pools. But pal- Safe arrival real-world performance. Acceptable lets in general pools must be able to per- deflections and accuracy reflect current form in any combination of handling and So how does a user know that the load practices and safety requirements. storage, including worst case scenarios. will safely reach its destination on a se- A pallet can only be said to pass the ISO This is what the daily challenges in the lected pallet ? tests if the conditions and load are speci- life of a pallet look like. Dealing with all these interrelated is- fied and all the related criteria are met. Empty pallets in a stack are moved by sues has required considerable flexibility For reusable pallets, there is a repair either a pallet truck or a fork-truck. The in ISO/TC 51. Defining the huge vari- and inspection ISO standard developed tynes of the forks need enough friction ety of terms used in the field has been a jointly with the European Committee for under the top deck to prevent the stack considerable task in itself. These can be Standardization (CEN). from moving. Similarly, there needs to be found in ISO 445:2008, Pallets for mate- It must be emphasised that the safety of sufficient friction between the base and rials handling – Vocabulary. a reused pallet depends on the inspection the top deck of the pallet underneath to process put in place by the user. Compa- avoid slippage. nies or agencies maintaining pools of pal- When the stack of pallets is placed in a Pallets are largely taken lets must assume responsibility for repair “ destacker ” at the production line, their for granted. assurance.  size accuracy has to conform to the limits of the machine, with no protruding parts. Size and accuracy are key. ISO/TC 51 The pallets may be placed onto a twin has defined six sizes of pallets for use track conveyor and the load automatically between the major trading regions of the About the author placed sack-by-sack or box-by-box onto the world (ISO 6780:2003, Flat pallets for in- deck, perhaps with some eccentricity. Some tercontinental materials handling – Prin- John M. B. Mead dynamic load may arise in the process. cipal dimensions and tolerance). Each re- is Chair of ISO/ Pallets may then be strapped or wrapped gion has independently developed its own TC 51, Pallets for before being conveyed to an automatic standard size, and each infrastructure be- unit load method of stacker and stored up to 30 meters high. came modular according to those sizes. materials handling. The clearances for loaded pallets will The cost of change is currently prohibi- He has worked in have to conform to the equipment. The tive, so pallets of different dimensions will the pallet industry pallets will then deflect until stability is continue to require customized handling for 30 years, beco- reached. The gaps needed for the retrieval methods, for instance, a pallet of a size ming CEO of the of each pallet cannot be too tight. For cold used for imports but not domestically, can United Kingdom’s major group involved storage, pallets must be able to withstand be shipped as goods back to the point of in manufacturing, controlling and repai- freezing temperatures. origin. On the other hand, ISO standards ring pallets, followed by a period with the A pallet with its loads may then be specify uniform accuracy requirements, industry in the USA. He has developed shipped directly in a container, and “ pin which facilitates handling. pallet quality and reuse programmes.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 19 Special Report

a Macintosh computer in Europe or the USA, knowing that the text will be correctly rendered for a Windows PC user ゆゎ in Ethiopia, without any of the “ □ ”,“ ? ” Ὢ ゎ ὧ Ὕ or other “ nonsense ” symbols that were ゆ so common in the early days of personal Ὢ ὧゎ Ὕ computers. Ὢ ゆ ὧSynched Ὕ ヒ The need for a single International ᾭ ☐ ffk ť Standard became evident in the 1980s, ヒ when hundreds of standards, or “ code- ᾭ ☐ ffk ť pages, ” were in existence. The standards varied from country to country, and even ヒfrom company to company. For example, ᾭ ☐ ffk a bank receivingť data from another bank さ could not be sure of its accuracy, un- 寢 ffi ǅ less they were both using the very same さ standard. 寢 ffi & ǅ For businesses, governments, and academics, the conflicting standards 寢さ created chaos. So, in 1991, ISO, the ffi ǅInternational Electrotechnical Com- mission (IEC) and the Unicode Con- sortium agreed to combine their ef- What you see is forts on standardization, making the characters in ISO/IEC 10646 and the Unicode Standard identical. This close relationship between ISO and the Uni- what you get code Consortium continues today. ISO/ IEC 10646 and Unicode both contain Getting e-communication right the same repertoire. Unicode, however, goes somewhat further, including de- tailed character specifications, character data, and algorithms for implementers, so characters can be uniformly treated on various computer platforms. by Deborah Anderson With ISO/IEC 10646, Virtually all modern computer operating systems and browsers text communications adhere to the International Standard for character encoding defined can be reliably sent, in ISO/IEC 10646:2003, Information technology – Universal Multiple- received and searched. Octet Coded Character Set (UCS), and its sister, the Unicode Standard (www.unicode.org). Widely used in applications and fonts, All new scripts and characters must be ISO/IEC 10646 has been adopted by many national standards bodies. approved by both the ISO/IEC and the Unicode committees. The ISO/IEC working group on coded character sets, ISO/ IEC JTC 1, Information technology, SC How it works systems and other applications for the let- 2, Coded character sets, WG 2, Universal ter “ e.” This assignment will remain the coded character set (http://std.dkuug. The standard assigns a unique number same, regardless of computer platform or dk/JTC1/SC2/WG2/), is composed of to each text element (or “ character ”) used software application. representatives from some 50 national by the world’s written languages. For ex- The success and widespread adoption standards bodies. The Unicode Technical ample, the Latin lowercase letter “ e ” is of ISO/IEC 10646 and Unicode is read- Committee on the other hand, is made up assigned the hexadecimal value “ 0065 ”, ily visible to anyone who, for example, of Unicode Consortium members, which which is its “ code point ”. This same nu- types an e-mail message with an accented largely consist of computer company merical value, 0065, is used in operating “ é ”, a Greek “ ε ”, or a Cyrillic “ И ” on representatives.

20 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 The Unicode Technical Committee en- For minorities and torical texts without worrying that their sures that new scripts and characters can historians too colleagues might not receive the same be implemented on current platforms and characters. For example, scholars working software. While national bodies promote While the scripts used to write the ma- on Linear A, a script used in Crete in the ISO/IEC 10646 in their home countries, jor languages of the world are covered second millennium B.C., would be great- computer companies apply the standard by ISO/IEC 10646, more than 80 scripts ly assisted by having these characters in to computers and software, so that the used for minority and historical lan- the standard, as that would eliminate the interchange of text can be truly interoper- guages are not yet included (for a listing, need to meticulously describe each sym- able around the globe. see www.linguistics.berkeley.edu/sei). bol when sending e-mails or documents. Similarly, historic materials, such as those in the Takri script of northern India and surrounding areas, used from the 17th Script samples : until the mid-20th century, could be made widely available for study and research.

Sample of Miao : Virtually all computers adhere to ISO/IEC 10646 and the Unicode Sample of Mende : Standard.

Fortunately, projects, such as the Sample of Linear A : Script Encoding Initiative at the Univer- sity of California, Berkeley, have been working with scholars and users to fill in the gaps. Their goal is for all eligi- ble scripts of the world to be included Sample of Takri : in ISO/IEC 10646 and Unicode. The two committees are continuing to receive, review, and accept characters and scripts into ISO/IEC 10646 (/Unicode). The latest version of the Unicode Standard, Version 5.2, now includes more than 100 000 characters (www.unicode.org/ Samples : Michael Everson versions/Unicode5.2.0/). While tremendous progress has been made, the effort to complete the job must The benefits of ISO/IEC 10646 and This means that some minority language continue, so that all historic and modern Unicode cannot be underestimated. Glo- users cannot write in their native writing scripts will be accessible and interoper- bal text communication via email, on Web system, nor can the documents reflecting able long into the future.  pages, cell phones, and in word-process- their cultural and literary heritage be made ing documents can now be reliably sent, accessible and searchable because they received and located by search engines are not part of the International Standard. because they are using a single standard. The Miao script, which is used in China About the author This has impacted business, governments, today by some 500 000 users, is not yet non-governmental agencies, academics, included in ISO/IEC 10646 (Unicode), Deborah Ander- and individuals, all of whom use the In- which makes interchanges of text using son is a researcher ternet to do business, send messages and this script in email or on Web pages very in the Department transfer documents. difficult. Another script missing from the of Linguistics at the The growing choice of characters has standard is Mende, used in Sierra Leone University of Cali- given rise to some security concerns, such and Liberia. For many modern minority fornia at Berkeley as spoofing, where look-alike characters language users, using their own native where she is project are used in domain names to redirect us- script is a matter of pride and cultural leader of the Script ers to fake Websites. These attacks can recognition, whereas being forced to Encoding Initiative. have serious effects on businesses and communicate in the official script of the She is the liaison representative to ISO/ governments, and the issue is being ac- government may bring with it political, IEC/JTC 1/SC 2 for UC Berkeley and a tively addressed by the Unicode Consor- cultural, or religious baggage. member of the USA delegation to SC 2/ tium. (See Unicode Technical Standard In a similar vein, scholars working on WG 2. She is also a Technical Director of #39 www.unicode.org/reports/tr39/). ancient scripts cannot reliably send his- the Unicode Consortium.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 21 Special Report Standardized standards? The case of the multiple identifiers

by F.X. Nuttall

In order to differentiate published books, music, film and serial publications from each other, these are often ascribed “ identifiers ” made up of alpha- numeric sequences that uniquely and unambiguously identify a resource. Within ISO/TC 46, Information and documentation, subcommittee SC 9, Identifica- tion and description, develops standards for content identifiers of information and technology.

In addition to ensuring that the world’s cultural works are classified in a clear and globally harmonized way, SC 9 standards often require that a related metadata set succinctly describe the identifier’s main characteristics. The standards are an important asset for the academic and cultural industries.

Beginnings

The first, and possibly the best-known identifier developed by SC 9, is the Interna- tional Standard Book Number (ISBN), ISO 2108:2005, originally developed in 1970. The ISBN fulfilled a well-identified business case in the physical world of paper books. But since then, year after year, more industries have felt the need to properly identify their resources and the family of SC 9 identifiers has grown to comprise nine members : • ISBN – ISO 2108:2005 for books • ISAN – ISO 15706-1 : 2002, ISO 15706-2:2007 for audiovisual works • ISMN – ISO 10957:2009 for printed music • ISRC – ISO 3901:2001 for sound recordings • ISSN – ISO 3297:2007 for serial publications

22 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 • ISTC – ISO 21047:2009 for textual works • ISWC – ISO 15707:2001 for musical works point is to agree on a set of expressions, • DOI – ISO 26324 for persistent reso- such as [ISNI #] “ is the author of ” [ISWC lution (not yet published) #]. But even for such a simple expression, • ISNI – ISO 27729 for names (not yet agreement is needed on all the terms. published). This is harder than it seems. A textual work author, for instance, is not the same From industry silos to as a musical work author. We then enter interoperability into the more complex domain of data dictionaries where terms are hierarchi- However, although most industries cally sorted and organized in classes. contributing to SC 9 recognized the need Combining interoperability maps and for a standardized identification scheme, data dictionaries moves us into the field many fell short of a strong business case of ontology. The results are elegant and justifying the investment to fully deploy reality is now knocking on SC 9’s door. powerful representations of complex busi- these standards. As a result, most identi- nesses such as the digital media industry. fication schemes are only used within an Paving the way forward But in this author’s opinion, they still fall industry sector, with little or no interac- short of solving practical issues. How can we facilitate interoperability ? tion with other sectors. One such issue hindering the interoper- How do we establish links between identi- It is only very recently that the nascent ability of SC 9 identifiers is the lack of fiers that do not necessarily look alike, and digital media market imposed new busi- “ hooks ” for establishing links between that do not share common structures ? ness rules on all industry players. For identifiers. The metadata sets defined Every identifier developed by SC 9 has example, a typical music store will only within the ISO standards are not suffi- so far responded to a market need, but carry, at best a few 100 thousand music cient. For instance, ISAN’s metadata set operated within a silo in a given industry references and 10 thousand movies. Ap- does not allow referencing the sound re- sector. Consequently, every SC 9 identi- ple’s iTunes, on the other hand, now of- cordings of its soundtrack. fier was designed differently, somewhere fers more than 12 million music tracks We are forced to revert to external, along the line, the subcommittee forgot to and Netflix more than 100 000 films. non-standardized metadata sets and fuzzy standardize its own standards. The amount of information to be proc- matching rules. Despite appearing to So what can we do ? In 2008, the SC 9 essed by the digital media value chain has work, these “ quick wins ” hinder cross- Identifier Interoperability Working Group exploded to the point where traditional industry initiatives in the long-term. methods for identifying cultural goods no Enabling the interoperability of its longer work efficiently. ISO 8459 was developed identifiers is now one of the key goals To make things worse, new “ compound of SC 9. Although the standardization of objects ” have emerged. Audio books are an during revolutionary SC 9 standards sounds like a tautology, interesting example. They are called books, technological change. it may prove to be a simple solution to a and would carry an ISBN, but they are also complex problem.  sound recordings (ISRC) of textual works (ISTC) performed by readers (ISNI). This (IIWG) was created to explore the issue. The first task of the group has been to identify the possible relationships be- About the author tween identifiers. This work will result ISAN into a map of “ interoperabilities ”. F.X. Nuttall is Figure 1 shows an example of such a an independent map for an audio-visual work (ISAN) em- expert in the field bedding sound recordings (ISRC) that are of digital copyright. ISRC performances of musical works (ISWC) Mr. Nuttall is the represented on a music score (ISMN). In Convenor of ISO/ ISNI this scenario, each contributor is assigned TC 46/SC 9/WG 6, an ISNI. International Stan- ISWC dard Name Identi- Mapping relationships fier (ISNI) and editor of the forthcoming ISO 27729. He represents the internatio- Each arrow in Figure 1 represents a nal confederation of authors and compo- ISMN relationship. The tricky part is to express sers (CISAC) in ISO/TC 46/SC 9, and is these relationships in an unambiguous a founding member of ISWC, ISTC and Figure 1– Relationships between identifiers natural language that can also be inter- ISAN. He is also the editor of ISO/IEC for an audio-visual work. preted by computers. A simple starting 21000-15, MPEG-21 event reporting.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 23 Genes, like those coded in this Interoperability DNA strand, may have different roles, but all work together as one organism. Likewise, products, services and processes co-exist Does it fit, in interconnection enabled by International Standards. When will it work, and can interoperability fails, the resulting roadblocks impair progress, raise standards help ? costs and generate inefficiency.

“ISO/TC 46/SC 9 ensures that the world’s cultural works are classified in a clear and globally harmonized way, allowing interoperability between “Many ISO standards, used extensively in several all industry players worldwide.” countries, promote interoperability for F.X. Nuttall a diversity of products and services Convenor, ISO/TC 46/SC 9/WG 6, worldwide – making life simpler, less International Standard Name Identifier (ISNI) expensive, more enriching and eco-friendly.” “By providing open access to the T.S. Mohan terms and definitions of all subject Principal researcher, Infosys fields in ISO, the ISO Concept Database contributes to increasing consistency between standards, which is a key To achieve interoperability, engineers pre-condition for interoperability.” require ISO International Standards that ensure unified basic dimensions, Reinhard Weissinger tolerances and gauging for screw Manager, Research, education and strategy, ISO Central Secretariat threads.” Li Xiaobin “Global text communication via e-mail, on Web pages, Secretary of ISO/TC 1, Screw threads cell phones, and in word-processing documents can now be reliably sent, received and located by search engines, thanks “ISO standards for pallets specify to a single character encoding uniform accuracy requirements, standard, ISO/IEC 10646 (and which facilitate handling and amendments), that ensures interoperability.” interoperability.” John M. B. Mead Chair, ISO/TC 51, Pallets for unit load method of Deborah Anderson, materials handling Liaison representative, ISO/IEC/JTC 1/SC 2, Coded character sets

24 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 “The key to interoperability is reliable data mapping. ISO 8000 data quality and ISO/TS 22745 open technical dictionaries, lower the cost and increase the reliability of data mapping.” “ISO 10303 STEP (i.e. 203, 209, Peter R. Benson, 232, and 239) has been adopted Convenor, ISO/TC 184/SC 4/QC, Quality committee across Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company (LM Aero). The standard is extensively valuable in LM Aero’s daily business for accomplishing data “Reliable end-to-end interoperability of banking interoperability with its team partners and suppliers.” transactions has been achieved using Mike Jahadi, BIC (ISO standard number) and Lockheed Martin Technical Fellow IBAN (ISO standard number) codes together.” Jean-Yves Garnier “Interoperability is critical to enable Chair, ISO/TC 68/SC 7, Core Banking personalized and pluggable user interfaces for electronic devices and services. An ISO International Standard is key.” “ISO 8459 provides common Gottfried Zimmerman definitions for data elements Junior Professor of Media Informatics, University exchanged in protocol messages of Tübingen, between systems, thus facilitating and Gregg Vanderheiden interoperability between them.” Director, Trace Research and Development Center, Janifer Gatenby, University of Wisconsin-Madison Convenor, ISO/TC 46/SC 4/WG 7, Data elements

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 25 Special Report

operability with collection management systems and digital repositories, discovery services, delivery services and reference services.

Common definitions for data exchange An important tool enabling the interoperability of standards in bibliographic and library domains comprising content schemas, protocols, profiles and models is ISO 8459:2009, Information and documentation – Bibliographic data element directory for use in data exchange and enquiry. This standard provides common definitions for data elements exchanged in protocol messages between systems. Facilitating information and Originally published as a multi-part standard, ISO 8459 has evolved over the documentation systems years. Its first part, published more than 20 years ago, addressed interloan applications, standardizing terms used in forms exchanged among libraries. Its second part looked at acquisitions applications, focusing on electronic ordering data ele- in changing times ments, and the third was dedicated to information retrieval applications. by Janifer Gatenby ISO 8459 provides common definitions for Within ISO/TC 46, Information and documentation, subcommittee library data elements. SC 4, Technical interoperability, plays a key role in facilitating interoperability among systems and organizations. Recently, the subcommittee has finalized two important standards discussed below that will ISO 8459’s original fourth part, published in the 1990s, focused on circulation underpin interoperability among library and related systems, services applications, and was subsequently used and databases. as the base for the National Information Standards Organization Circulation Inter- change Protocol, NISO NCIP (Z39.83). Organization of data elements The standard does not prescribe content The last and fifth part, published in 2004, for cultural institutions encoding, allowing different ontologies looked at data elements for the exchange and controlled vocabularies. of cataloguing data and metadata. The The first is ISO 2146, Information and Registries are employed to provide 2009 version of ISO 8459 replaces and documentation – Registry services for li- services involving multiple databases and revises all former parts. braries and related organizations, soon systems, particularly for the discovery to to be published, which will facilitate the delivery process. For example, the World- Consolidation organization of data elements concern- Cat institution registry (www.worldcat. ing services and resources of cultural org/registry) – which used the ISO 2146 It was always the intention to consoli- institutions. model in its conception – includes infor- date the five parts of ISO 8459. These ISO 2146 will provide a model for mation on libraries’ resolver services. were originally developed during a period establishing standard data elements and This information is used by third-party of revolutionary technological change. structures to be used in the creation of systems to seamlessly provide authorized Data transmissions leapt from paper to registries describing the collections, par- access to restricted content. electronic communications, which ad- ties, activities and services provided by As discovery becomes increasingly vanced from narrowband to broadband libraries and related organizations. global in scale, systems require either in- to Web-based protocols. The ISO 8459 The abstract model in ISO 2146 is ob- ternational registries or a series of inter- drafters anticipated that numerous ele- ject-oriented, so that it can be converted to operable regional and national registries. ments would need to be redefined, deleted machine readable formats such as XML. Registry information also supports inter- or added.

26 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 It was not easy to determine a method for consolidating the different elements. After several false starts, it was decided to map these elements to data elements within protocols in current use. Missing elements were added, and those that had no clear current role were discarded. This approach offered, in addition, a simple method for elements in one protocol to be mapped to another. The protocols and schemas mapped include : • EDItEUR • ISO 10161 for interlibrary loan application (ISO ILL) • Z39.83 (NCIP) • OpenURL Request Transfer Message • Open Archives Initiative-Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH) • Z39.50 • SRU (search/retrieval via URL) • SRU record update • ISO 20775:2009 for schema for holdings information rieties of acquisitions requests. Overdue ferent protocols, although the names are loan notices, interlibrary loan recalls and almost always different. • ISO 2146 for registry services for acquisitions claims were all considered as By inheriting element names and def- libraries and related organizations (not varieties of claims. initions, new standards can be devel- yet published). oped in an efficient manner that directly Most of these standards – except relates them to existing standards in the EDItEUR and OAI-PMH – employed ISO 8459 was developed field.  one or more of the ISO 8459 parts in during revolutionary their development. With the exception of the basic Dublin Core elements (ISO technological change. 15836:2009), which were included in the About the author original part 5 and ONIX 1), no metadata The conceptual grouping enables sys- standards for bibliographic description Janifer Gatenby were mapped because the scope of ISO tem developers, who typically employ multiple standards, to use the identified has worked at the 8459 is on exchange of information at the Online Computer message level. inter-relationships and definitions in their database designs. The full French transla- Library Center There are 588 data elements in the (OCLC) since consolidated version, 451 of which were tion serves development of multi-lingual interfaces. Other national bodies associ- 2000. Her current sourced from the original five parts role is Research (consolidated from more than 991 ele- ated with ISO may also consider translation into other languages. Integration and ments) and 137 added from the selected Standards which protocols. Aligning data elements involves her with Web, data and identifier In total, 876 elements were mapped services that enable external systems to from the protocols to the data elements, The main role, however, is not to sup- interoperate with OCLC’s data resources. as equivalents or as examples. The actual port system development directly, but to She has been involved in the develop- protocol mappings (which are not part of act as a reference for the development of ment of many International Standards, the official standard) are available for on- new protocols, models and schemas. including ISO 23950:1998 for informa- line searching at : iso8459.oclc.org. ISO 20775:2009, Information and tion retrieval (Z39.50) and the ZIG, SRU, At the same time, the elements were documentation – Schema for holdings SRU record update, the ISO Holdings consolidated along conceptual lines so information, and the OpenURL Request Schema (ISO 20775), the registry model that loans, inter-library loans and acquisi- Transfer messages both drew heavily on (ISO 2146) and OpenURL Request Trans- tions requests were all considered as va- ISO 8459 during their development. fer Message. She is currently involved NISO’s NCIP also refers to ISO 8459, in the development of the International and the delivery community has expressed Standard Name Identifier (ISO 27729) 1) Stands for ONline Information eXchange and refers to an XML schema for representing book interest in the mappings that show the and the International Collection Identifier industry product information equivalences of the data elements in dif- (ISO 27730).

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 27 Special Report

caused by confusion between the impe- rial and metric systems, a simple error that continues to cause fatal mistakes that could easily be avoided. Data quality is an important problem both for individuals and companies of all sizes. The cost of poor quality data represents a significant tax on all transactions, paid by every company and every individual.

Not gone unnoticed

Industry experience shows that by identifying duplication in vendor, material and service master data, companies can save as much as 15 % of their expend- iture. This is a huge saving. The problem has not gone unnoticed. While ERP application providers have fo- Data quality cused their energy on solving data access, and providing a consistent data view, specialized master data quality solution companies are focused on solving master data The key to interoperability quality problems.

The meaning of master data by Peter R. Benson quality

Master data identifies and describes in- There is no doubt that we are in the information age, when those dividuals, organizations, locations, assets, working directly with products or services are a minority, greatly materials, goods, services, processes, pro- outnumbered by those dealing with the digital representation of goods cedures, rules and regulations. Understanding the role master data or services. plays for determining the quality of data as a whole, was an important part of the This shift can be traced to the late at the capability of musical notation as a work of ISO/TC 184, Automation systems 1950s, when it was first noticed in the data record, and of course, Beethoven’s and integration, SC 4, Industrial data, USA that the population of white collar skill in using it. WG 13, Industrial data quality (working workers exceeded blue collar workers. It is not hard to understand the signifi- group developing ISO 8000). The origin of this change probably has cance of data quality, as most of us have ISO 8000-110:2009, Part 110 : Master its roots in Guttenberg’s invention of the suffered from the consequences of data data : Exchange of characteristic data : printing press in 1440, and while it took errors, and cases are reported daily on Syntax, semantic encoding, and conform- 550 years before we saw the first signs of every news media. ance to data specification describes the the World Wide Web, it only took another In my case, a simple transposition of fundamental characteristics that define 10 years for the search engines to emerge two digits in a social security number on master data quality : syntax, semantic en- and play a dominant role in information my tax return caused the IRS (Internal coding and fitness to requirements. retrieval. Revenue Service in the USA) to ask for Syntax is often taken for granted, but The result has been ever faster and an explanation as to how I could claim to in the early development of the standard cheaper access to information. be divorced for 10 years from a 14-year- a request was submitted asking that term Data quality is at the heart of commu- old girl living in Utah. Luckily, the mis- “ information ” be used instead of “ data ” nication between both individuals and understanding was easily fixed. on the grounds that the two terms were machines. But beyond simple transpositions, synonymous, and information as a term In recording music, the fidelity of the which can be attributed to human error, was more marketable. final product will depend on the technol- the failure to explicitly tag data is too of- In the end, the document actually ogy used to record, transport and recreate ten the source of catastrophic and even proved that the terms were different, and the original sound. When you consider fatal errors. it did so without even having to be read. that Beethoven continued to compose Examples include the loss of the Mars How was that possible ? The document masterpieces even after he was complete- Climate Orbiter and the Korean Air MD- was created as a pdf file but arrived with ly deaf, you cannot fail to be impressed 11 crash in 1999 – both accidents were a file extension of pdx – which is not a

28 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 known syntax. While the document may An able duo The only challenge is confirming the have contained good information, poor fulfillment of requirements, and for this data quality made it inaccessible. It follows that if ISO 8000-110:2009 a data requirement statement is required. Semantic encoding was more challeng- specifies that conformity to the require- This can also be provided as an empty ing. Although it was clear that there was ments be measured by a computer, the database, a spreadsheet template or any a problem, the solution was more diffi- requirements must also be computer sen- form fill document or Web form. Funda- cult to agree on. The absence of explicit sible and this is achieved using ISO/TS mentally, creating quality master data that semantic encoding is at the heart of the 22745-30:2009, Industrial automation is compliant with ISO 8000-110:2009 is unit of measure errors referred to earlier. systems and integration – Open techni- easy – and that is the intent. Simply requiring that all data be explic- cal dictionaries, and their application to itly labeled is the first half of the solution. master data, part 30 : Identification guide Towards better quality The resolution of the labels to a definition representation. is the other half. The quality of the label The multi-part ISO/TS 22745 contains By putting this all together, ISO 8000- definitions themselves was considered specifications on how to create data re- 110:2009 is providing industry with a first out of scope. quirement statements and provide exam- step in the journey towards better quality ISO 8000-110:2009, requires that se- ples in XML. data. It is also a critical component of the mantic encoding exists either by reference Cataloging at Source (C@S) initiative. to an external open technical dictionary, Many expect that this initiative will fun- or by being contained in the data itself. ISO 8000-110 is damentally change business by providing Conformity to data specifications has providing industry with a immediate access to authoritative data its root in the definition of quality in ISO first step towards better in a usable form. This will bring with it traceable data that can be reliably mapped 9000:2008, Quality management systems quality data. – Fundamentals and vocabulary. between applications – the end of incom- In ISO 9000, quality is defined as the plete data and inaccurate information. degree to which a set of inherent charac- Finally, ISO 8000-110:2009 is start- In practice, companies use the XML teristics fulfills requirements. ISO 8000- ing to raise awareness of the importance format contained in ISO/TS 22745-30 to 110:2009 extends this by requiring that of portable master data. By this we mean specify data requirements, and they also conformity to the requirements be meas- master data that can be maintained inde- use the XML format contained in ISO/TS ured by a computer as the conformance to pendent of hardware, operating system 22745-40 for the exchange of master data. a data specification. and application software. With the de- Both use the ISO/TS 22745 open techni- ployment of Software as a Service (SaaS) cal dictionary for semantic encoding. architectures, ISO 8000-110:2009 port- A number of application providers have able master data is the antidote to data A typical data clause also realized that an ISO/TS 22745-30 lock-in.  data requirements statement can be used The contractor, sub-contractor or to represent any requirement for data, supplier shall, as and when requested from a tax return through to any Website form, and provides an easy way to create to do so, supply technical data in ISO 8000 quality data. About the author electronic format on any of the items covered in this contract as follows : A requirement in most countries Peter R. Benson is Project leader for The data shall be ISO 8000-110:2009 Providing the data necessary for the ISO 22745 and ISO compliant. safe and efficient operation of plant and 8000. He is Conve- equipment is an established legal require- nor of the ISO/ • The data shall comply with ment in most countries. Buyers have been TC 184/SC 4/QC registered ISO/TS 22745-30 quick to indicate their intended use of ISO (quality commit- compliant Identification Guides. 8000-110:2009 in their purchase orders tee). Mr. Benson is • The data shall be encoded using and contracts. See Box for an example of the Executive Di- concept identifiers from an ISO/TS a typical data clause. rector and Chief Technical Officer of the 22745 compliant open technical For this requirement, it is important Electronic Commerce Code Management dictionary that supports free that creating ISO 8000-110:2009 com- Association (ECCMA). He is an expert in resolution to concept definitions. pliant data does not require the payment distributed information systems, content of any license fees, or the use of special- encoding and master data management. • The data shall be provided in ized software and is within the technical Mr. Benson is known for the design, an ISO/TS 22745-40 compliant ability of all businesses regardless of the development and global promotion of the Extensible Markup Language (xml) size. UN Standard Products and Services Code format. While XML is the preferred format, (UNSPSC) and more recently for the ISO 8000-110:2009 quality data can be design of the eOTD, an internationally re- provided as a spreadsheet, database or cognized open technical dictionary based even a word processed document. on the NATO codification system.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 29 Special Report

The ISO/CDB allows users, including standards writers, to retrieve this information. A great advantage is that differences and overlaps between definitions of the same or similar concepts can be easily spotted, contributing to future consolidation and harmonization of terms in the various subject fields of ISO.

Over 4 000 graphical symbols The ISO/CDB contains at the moment, more than 4 000 symbols from different subject fields (for use on equipment, safety signs, public information symbols, Platform for progress symbols for use in diagrams), and additional symbols are being added. The ISO Concept Widely used codes Many ISO standards contain coding schemas, and a selected number of these, including country, currency, language Database and script codes, are now available from the ISO/CDB. Additional coding schemas will be added in the future. by Reinhard Weissinger Publicly accessible ver the last few years there has been a significant increase in The ISO/CDB applies an access model O based on a public information layer (im- the use of databases to store structured content from ISO standards, plemented through a “ guest login ”). This whether published or under development. means that most of the information is publicly accessible without requiring any special authentication or subscription. More and more ISO committees are us- To address this challenge, the ISO It is expected that this access model will ing databases to store structured elements Central Secretariat has developed a new facilitate the dissemination of knowledge such as : application, called the ISO Concept Data- about standards, and will also contribute • Terms and definitions base (ISO/CDB). The ISO/CDB provides to increasing the demand for standards a harmonized platform for the search, de- documents. • Graphical symbols velopment and maintenance of structured Additional access features to be add- • Codes of all types content. The first version was released ed soon include download services, and • Data dictionaries in October 2009, and can be accessed at access to the ISO/CDB through Web- • Product properties cdb.iso.org. services. With the ISO/CDB it is possible to search • Elements of classification systems for concepts from over 18 000 ISO stand- Maintaining and developing • Units of measurement (including con- ards. Initially, three important categories of content version factors). concepts are covered : terms and definitions, graphical symbols and codes (country, cur- In addition to being the key resource Until now, no platform was available rency, language and script). Additional ones for standardized elements, the ISO/CDB to bring the content from the more than will be added in the future. is also a platform for their maintenance 18 000 ISO standards into a single source. and development. This means that in the Standards users have also been in- More than 160 000 terms foreseeable future, structured elements creasingly requesting to have this content still under development in different com- available in reusable formats. This would The ISO/CDB contains terminological mittees will be visible from the ISO/CDB. allow them to upload data into their own entries extracted from the terms and defi- This will facilitate committee-internal systems and applications. They would nitions clauses of almost all ISO standards and cross-committee dialogue, and har- also be able to exchange product-related (close to 160 000 entries as of December monization of such elements. information directly between computers, 2009). An additional 45 000 terminologi- For this reason, a special group under which is not possible if the content re- cal entries are included from standards the ISO Technical Management Board sides only in the form of documents. that have already been withdrawn. has developed the Procedure for the de-

30 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 lection of standards remains consistent and up-to-date. Standard 1 Standard 2 Standard 3 Standard n Standards architecture and component-based development Repository of terms and other structured elements More generally, what is described above, points in the direction of the appli- = ISO Concept Database cation, more than today, of an architectural approach to standards development that Figure 1 – Terms defined in standards will be kept in a common platform. ensures consistency of related standards. A core element here is the creation of velopment and maintenance of standards ing to revise a standard or to publish an repositories of components which, similar in database format, published as Annex amendment for an existing standard. to software libraries, can be (re)used in ST in the ISO Supplement to the ISO/IEC With the standards as database proce- individual standards, and which are main- Directives. The TMB procedure, which is dure, the standards can be seen as being tained as an integrated whole – rather than available at www.iso.org/directives, sup- continuously in “ maintenance mode ”, at present where they are maintained sepa- ports the four main processes of the devel- which facilitates faster and possibly more rately as parts of individual documents. opment and maintenance of standards : frequent updates. From this perspective, the ISO/CDB can • Development of new standards be seen as a step towards a new approach. New structures of content One that will lead to more rapid standards • Maintenance of existing standards Many ISO standards contain “ terms development and standards maintenance, • Withdrawal of elements from and a higher degree of consistency be- standards and definitions ” clauses comprising the terminology used in a particular standard. tween suites of related standards. • Systematic review of standards. Prior to the ISO/CDB release, it was not ISO is in the process of implementing easy to ensure consistency between con- Conclusions this procedure with a view to making a cepts across standards, or coordinate con- The ISO Concept Database provides a second release of the ISO/CDB available cepts used in related, but different subject new platform, in terms of visibility and during the first half of 2010. fields. accessibility of content. It has brought together into a single source, structured ele- Impact on future standards Most of the information ments used in many ISO standards, both development published and under development. is publicly accessible. More granular access Making these elements visible also poses a challenge because in some in- The visibility of key components in stances, overlaps, contradictions and lack standards, such as terms, symbols and A new model, already applied by some of alignment between standards become codes, will contribute to a higher degree ISO committees, may evolve which re- apparent. But this can also lead to ensur- of harmonization between standards in quires the collection of all terms, defini- ing increased consistency in future work. the same and related subject fields. tions and other structured elements in a The ISO/CDB has the potential to be a The ISO/CDB can be used as a conven- centralized repository. key element in a new approach to stand- ient tool, during the development of new New elements are first added to this ards development. This approach is char- standards, to investigate which subjects centralized repository and go through a acterized by applying more architectural have already been addressed in existing check to ensure consistency with existing approaches to the standards development standards, and to compare new content terms. Only after this step, a new entry can process, and introducing repositories of with existing material. be referenced from the standard in which re-usable components as one of its key Beyond this, the ISO/CDB constitutes it is used. In this form, consistency checks building blocks.  an important tool for accessing the con- will become part of the regular standards tent of standards at a deeper level. It can development process. be helpful for finding out which subject Terms representing a particular con- fields have been covered in which stand- cept will be used more consistently be- About the author ards and by which committees. cause they will be kept in the repository of terms, outside of any specific standard. Reinhard Ongoing maintenance Standards can then reference or incorpo- Weissinger is rate these terms (as shown in Figure 1). The ISO/CDB supports a model of con- Manager, Research, tinuous maintenance for the content of Education and More frequent releases standards, which is simpler than the con- Strategy at the ISO ventional model. The ongoing modification of structured Central Secretariat The usual ISO process to maintain elements will generate a need for more and business leader standards requires a ballot on a new frequent releases and updates of existing of the ISO/CDB project (new work item proposal) aim- standards. This will ensure that the col- project.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 31 Planet ISO Planet ISO

tional Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Sustainable bioenergy Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, host of COP 15, the UN Climate Change ISO will develop an International Stand- Conference. ard to address sustainability issues linked to bioenergy. The standard will be produced ISO 20121 is expected to be finalized in by a new ISO project committee, ISO/PC 2012 to coincide with the London Olympics. 248, Sustainability criteria for bioenergy. ISO/PC 248 will bring together interna- New ISO Web and voice conference tional expertise and state-of-the-art best tool practice to discuss the social, economic and environmental aspects of the production, A Web and voice conference tool is now supply chain, and use of bioenergy, and available for ISO meetings. The tool is ex- identify criteria that could prevent it from pected to make an important contribution to being environmentally destructive or so- the work of technical committees and save cially aggressive. valuable time and resources. The decision to develop the standard re- Web conferencing allows people with an sponds to the growing international interest internet connection to join a meeting from in bioenergy, and the current lack of global- their computer. With the new Web and ly harmonized sustainability criteria. voice conferencing tool – GoToMeeting ISO tackles sustainable events Already some 29 countries are involved (www.gotomeeting.com) – users can make as participants or observers, including large No one would deny that conferences, presentations, view and work on documents, markets such as China and the USA. Brazil concerts, sports competitions and festivals and share information displayed on their (ISO member ABNT) and Germany (ISO have clear and unique social, economic and screens and saved in their computers, in a member DIN) will provide the secretariat environmental benefits. At the same time, secure online environment. and leadership of the committee under a the organization of these events can gener- The voice conference option allows users twinned arrangement. ate considerable waste and have other nega- to actively talk to each other. ISO offers a The future standard (ISO 13065) should tive impacts. To harmonize the event indus- free call back option. This means that parti make an important contribution to this glo- try’s global efforts to tackle this challenge, cipants can join the meeting from anywhere bal goal by, for example, helping avoid ISO will develop an International Standard in the world and the telephone charges are technical barriers to trade on bioenergy. ISO promoting the sustainable management of paid by ISO. 13065 will disseminate technical know-how events. To set up a Web and voice conference for and stimulate the ongoing pursuit for qual- The standard will be produced by a new your committee, send an e-mail with your ity through the incentive to research. ISO project committee, ISO/PC 250, Sus- meeting details to [email protected]. Up The standard is expected to be a key tool tainability in event management. About 30 to 20 people can participate. But be care- in helping governments meet their alterna- countries are already involved as partici- ful, this must be done at least three weeks in tive fuel targets. pants or observers. advance. A reply will be sent 10 days prior In addition to tackling social and envi- Fiona Pelham, Chair of ISO/PC 250, ex- to the conference with all necessary details ronmental issues, the standard will make plains, “ The future standard will provide e.g. PIN, telephone number, dedicated URL bioenergy more competitive to the benefit a framework which event planners, ven- and helpful guidance. of both national and international markets. ues and other members of the event supply There are an estimated seven ISO meet- ISO 13065 will be particularly valuable in chain can use to implement, maintain and ings held each day somewhere in the world. helping developing countries producers to improve sustainability within their way of Already several meetings have been held compete. working.” with GoToMeeting, and the number contin- ISO/PC 248 will hold its first meeting in The standard (ISO 20121) will take a ues to grow ! April 2010. management systems approach requiring identification of key sustainability issues like venue selection, operating procedures, supply chain management, procurement, communications, transport and others. It will respond to the unique needs and nature of the events sector with an innova- tive and flexible approach geared to pro- ducing results. It will be applicable to any organization or individual (whether clients, suppliers, or event managers) working with all types of events (exhibitions, sporting competitions, concerts, etc.). The proposal for the development of ISO 20121 was jointly submitted by the ISO members for Brazil (ABNT) and for the United Kingdom (BSI). Following London’s original bid for the 2012 Ol- ympics, which recognized the need for such a standard, BSI developed a national standard, BS 8901, which generated international interest. Among the organizations to have expressed support for an International Standard are the Interna-

32 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 Participants learnt about possible strate- gies for communicating to new audiences through the use, of social media tools like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and the other Web 2.0 channels. From a marketing and sales perspective, XML, e-books, standards in mobile format Former ISO Secretary-General Alan and e-learning platforms were presented as Bryden speaks on green standards during opportunities for the development of new Singapore’s energy week. products and services. Former ISO Secretary-General Alan Participants actively participated in the Bryden was the keynote speaker. He high- discussions by proposing priority actions lighted the contribution of International for ISO and IEC during break-out brain- Standards to promoting the development storming sessions. and use of clean energy technologies and practices to an audience of about 400 participants representing SPRING’s key stakeholders. Mr. Bryden gave concrete examples of current developments in ISO and IEC (In- ternational Electrotechnical Commission) in areas of particular interest to the region, such as sustainable building design and operation, intelligent transport systems, “ green ” IT (e.g. data centres and smart grids), electrical vehicles and related infra- structures, energy management and the promotion of renewable energies. Participants in the ISO and IEC Forum Singapore has embarked in an ambitious (© Johannes Stern). programme covering many of these areas, with an emphasis on electrical cars and re- Surfing on hot topics The feedback received from the audience confirmed the success of the event and the newable energy. Mr. Bryden met with key Over 100 marketing and communication necessity for marketing and communication industrial players and government agen- experts from more than 60 organizations experts in the ISO and IEC communities to cies during the event in November 2009, from around the world, attended the 2nd ISO meet regularly. A 3rd edition of the ISO and and welcomed Singapore’s increased in- and IEC Marketing and Communication Fo- IEC Marketing and Communication Forum volvement in, and take up of, International rum in December 2009. will therefore be organized within the next Standards. The event promoted the exchange of two years. views and experiences, and looked at new Surfactants committee restarted opportunities for communicating on stand- Singapore’s green commitments The ISO committee on surface active ards and standardization activities and in- agents, ISO/TC 91, recently reactivated, has creasing their use and sales. It was open to In the context of Singapore’s energy held its first meeting in 17 years. ISO members, IEC national committees, week, SPRING, the ISO member for the as well as ISO and IEC distributors and country, organized an event focusing on Also known as surfactants, surface active resellers. quality and standards. agents are found in many household products such as soaps, detergents, condition- ers and shampoos. They are also used in industrial manufacturing, in areas as varied as food processing, metallurgy, pharmaceu- ticals and public works. Excluding soap, the worldwide estimation of surfactants exceeds five million tonnes. The first ISO/TC 91 plenary held after its reactivation took place in November 2009, in Tokyo, Japan, hosted by JISC, the ISO member for the country. Some 14 participants from key organizations in the field attended the meeting held at the Japan Soap and Detergent Association. The committee reviewed its scope, and discussed nine proposals for the revision of current standards. Two new working groups (WG) on ana- lytical methods (WG 1) and microbiology (WG 2) were established. ISIRI, ISO member for the Islamic Re- public of Iran holds the secretariat of ISO/ TC 91, which has 17 participant and 34 ob- Participants in the first ISO/TC 91, Surface active agents, plenary in 17 years. server countries.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 33 CDC Consumers,CDC Developing – Consumers, Countries, ConformityDeveloping Assessment Countries, Conformity Assessment

Building confidence in conformity assessment

by Sean MacCurtain Over 110 conformity assessment experts representing 37 countries and 15 international organizations attended the 22nd ISO Committee on conformity assessment (ISO/CASCO) plenary in Gene- va, Switzerland, in November 2009. It offered members the opportunity to discuss issues of common concern in conformity assessment. In his opening remarks, ISO Secretary- General Rob Steele spoke about the ability of standards and conformity assessment to build confidence and trust. He went on to encourage all players to act together to ensure the implementation of conformity assessment standards. Mr. Steele emphasized that the current economic situation required ISO committees to re-examine what was really needed, including whether the needs of Consumers focus on suppliers, customers and consumers of the conformity assessment community are being met. financial services Addressing the plenary, the committee’s Chair, Olivier Peyrat, highlighted the year’s achievements, particularly with regards to the increased awareness of the ISO/CASCO toolbox (set of conformity by Dana Kissinger-Matray microfinance and mobile exchange of assessment standards and guides), and The world financial crisis has had se- financial data and transactions the progress made in the technical work rious negative impacts on consumer wel- • Financial literacy : disclosure and programme. fare in many respects. This was one of informed choice, minimum required In addition to highlighting the work in the main reasons behind the decision by information, commonly understood progress, the plenary approved the 2010 the ISO Committee on consumer policy terms and definitions allowing com- parability of financial services, and ISO/CASCO plenary in Geneva, (ISO/COPOLCO) to hold an international Switzerland, in November 2009. workshop on financial services and con- consumer education (interest rates, sumer protection during its annual meet- consumer redress, debt management) ing in May 2010. • Ethics in financial services : consum- The workshop will take place in con- ers’ participation in ethical invest- junction with the ISO/COPOLCO plenary ments ; concerns with “ pay day ” meeting in Bali, Indonesia, on 26 May loans, fair financial contract terms, 2010, hosted by the ISO member for the high interest rates, vulnerable con- country, the National Standardization sumers and “ cooling off ” periods, Agency (BSN). independence of financial advisors and It will explore how International Stand- core criteria for best practices. ards can help ensure consumer protection for certain aspects of financial services. For more information, Areas to be addressed include : contact [email protected]. • Access to financial services, includ- Dana Kissinger-Matray is Secretary of ing alternative mechanisms such as the ISO Committee on consumer policy.

34 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 work programme, which includes the development of auditor specific competence criteria in collaboration with relevant ISO technical committees. Among the other highlights were : • The ISO/UNIDO publication, Building Trust, aimed specifically at developing economies and considered a reference for conformity assessment • CASCO’s recently introduced inter- pretation process which has resulted in the completion of two requests with another four in progress.

Sean MacCurtain is Secretary of the ISO Committee on conformity assessment (ISO/CASCO).

Participants in the ISO/ITC regional consultation event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

support the international competitiveness The event was organized with the finan- Standards of small and medium sized enterprises cial contribution of the Swedish Interna- supporting (SMEs). tional Development Cooperation Agency For the first time, TPOs and NSBs (SIDA). trade promotion came together to discuss challenges and find the best approach to develop Roswitha Franz is Project Manager, institutions for ISO Development and Training Services, and strengthen cooperation. The three- at the ISO Central Secretariat. export success day event was hosted by the Depart- ment of Standards Malaysia (DSM) in collaboration with the Malaysia Exter- by Roswitha Franz nal Trade Development Cooperation ISO, in collaboration with the Inter- (MATRADE). national Trade Centre (ITC), organized In her opening remarks, DSM Direc- a regional consultation event in Kuala tor-General Ms. Puan Fadilah Baha- Lumpur, Malaysia, in December 2009. rin stated that both Standards Malaysia Some 40 senior officials from trade pro- and MATRADE have unique objectives motion organizations (TPOs) and national but that, at the same time, complement standard bodies (NSBs) representing 16 each other by providing services to the countries in the region came together to private sector to facilitate export trade. She went on to say that consultations and collaborations between TPOs and NSBs are important to address the constraints of exporters. The consultation, through country case studies, plenary discussions and break- out sessions, led to clear definitions of the individual roles of TPOs and NSBs, as well as to the identification of possible areas of collaboration, for example, information linkages, capacity building and advisory services, and interventions along sector specific value chains. Based on the consultation, a joint ISO/ ITC publication will be developed em- phasizing the linkages between NSBs and TPOs as well as focusing on the key issues, solutions and best practices.

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 35 CDC Consumers, Developing Countries, Conformity Assessment

pate in the creation of standards, while the software – and training in using it – helps national standard bodies (NSBs) build capacity and internal knowledge. Though all countries in the project’s first stage benefited from the same assistance, attention was given to meet the specific needs of each country. Subsequent phases of the project will include the implementation of a number of IT tools. Participants and trainers at the ISO An inter-departmental ISO Central Sec- Secretaries’ Week in November 2009. retariat team has worked on the specification of tools, the definition of requisites ISO Secretaries’ Week (June) and the preparation of monitoring indicators to make sure that the different needs • 14 June IT for developing are addressed. Procedures for ISO secretaries countries ICTDEV is carried out under the ISO • 15-16 June Action Plan for developing countries. eServices for ISO secretaries • 17-18 June by Diego Giol Diego Giol is Project Manager, ISO Development and Training Services, at ISO Central Secretariat. Drafting standards in accordance with Over 50 ISO members in developing the ISO/IEC Directives part 2, using countries are expected to benefit from IT the ISO authoring template tools and related assistance (ICTDEV) over the next two years. ISO Secretaries’ Week (November) Launched last September, the ICTDEV project aims to assist ISO members in de- • 1 November veloping countries to not only strengthen ISO training 2010 Procedures for ISO secretaries their information and communication • 2-3 November technologies, but to further help in the eServices for ISO secretaries by Glenn Bosmans process and management of national • 4-5 November standards creation. So far, Tanzania, ISO Central Secretariat (ISO/CS) each Drafting standards in accordance with Mauritius, Lebanon, Macedonia, Nigeria, year organizes training for ISO members the ISO/IEC Directives part 2, using Uzbekistan, Cote d’Ivoire and Ethiopia and professionals engaged in standards the ISO authoring template have benefited from the project. development activities. In 2010, a total of 13 individual courses will be made In addition, ISO will organize the available, with the majority being or- following courses in 2010 : ganized as part of three ISO Secretaries’ Weeks. Each week will consist of three • 13-15 April individual courses to be held over five Introduction to ISO eServices (with days. emphasis on national mirror commit- The purpose of Secretaries’ Week is to tee (NMC) document dissemination train ISO members hosting, or consider- service) ing to host, secretariats of ISO technical • 4 - 6 May committees and subcommittees. More Marketing and promotion of Interna- specifically, the training focuses on the tional Standards appointed secretaries and their support • 12-14 October staff. Participants in Nigeria benefit from ISO’s IT Introduction to ISO eServices (with The following are scheduled to be held tools and related assistance (ICTDEV). emphasis on NMC document dissemi- in Geneva this year : nation service) Accessing and participating in interna- • 29-30 November tional standardization requires the ability ISO Secretaries’ Week (March) Good standardization practice to use and implement electronic commu- • 22 March To attend, participants must complete nication and IT tools. Assistance is pro- Procedures for ISO secretaries the pre-registration form available at vided in the form of equipment, software, www.iso.org/training-dates. Participa- and training courses which are held at the • 23-24 March tion is free, but places are limited. No fi- NSB premises. eServices for ISO secretaries nancial assistance is granted. The provision of hardware (which in- • 25-26 March cludes a server, PCs and peripherals) Drafting standards in accordance with Glenn Bosmans is Project Manager, makes sure that ISO members dispose of the ISO/IEC Directives part 2, using ISO Development and Training Services, the appropriate infrastructure to partici- ISO 98 at ISO Central Secretariat.

built from existing activities and should MSS underpin efforts for not cause excessive paperwork or lack of flexibility. “ On the other hand, a solid QMS can safe food supply bring important net benefits, not only to farmers, but also to their clients and customers.” ISO 22006 does not add or change any chains of the requirements in ISO 9001 and is not intended for certification, although it can be a useful tool in helping prepare for certification to ISO 9001. The relevance of the ISO management system standards (MSS) ISO 22006 is part of the ISO 22000 approach to a wide range of issues is again underlined – this time family of standards developed by ISO in relation to food safety. technical committee ISO/TC 34, Food products, focusing on the food and feed supply chains. Farmers can now improve their over- operation activities to help determine how all performance and financial results, as they fit together and where there is need New SC on MSS well as increase customer confidence and for improvement. satisfaction with a new ISO management Mark Ames, the standard project lead- ISO/TC 34 has set up a new subcom- system standard for implementing an ISO er, says : “ ISO 22006 takes a recognized mittee, SC 17, on food safety manage- 9001 quality management system (QMS) generic management solution and turns it ment systems to handle the development for crop production. into a down-to-earth tool that farmers can of future guidelines and standards in the ISO 22006:2009, Quality management link to their particular needs.” ISO 22000 family. Its secretariat is op- systems – Guidelines for the application erated by Danish Standards, with Jacob of ISO 9001:2008 to crop production, can ISO 22006 is a down-to- Faergemand as Chair and Berit Behba- be used with farm operations of any size, hani as acting secretary. Its first meeting growing all types of food, feed and non- earth tool for farmers. in September 2009 in Copenhagen was a food crops. big success, attracting participation for ISO 22006 provides step-by-step guid- six continents. ance through the requirements of ISO Richard Cantrill, Convenor of the work- The intention is to demonstrate to the 9001:2008 with a practical approach to ing group that developed the standard food industry, from farmers to retailers, crop operations. The standard provides (ISO/TC 34/WG 12) adds : “ The standard that ISO can deliver the standards needed pertinent subject-specific tips and sug- will give farmers a powerful advantage. by all stakeholders of the global supply gestions, and uses agricultural terminol- Although on the one hand, the application chain for food and feed. ogy. Among its unique features is a user- of a quality management system can take The first concrete result of its work friendly flow diagram listing all the farm some initial added effort, overall, this is came with the recent publication of ISO

Portuguese school gives ISO 9001 top marks

by Sandra Feliciano A Portuguese school has seen many benefits from ISO 9001 implementation including better control of educational and other school activities, greater customer satisfaction, and improved school image.

technical specification ISO/TS 22002- • The likelihood of introducing food Should you visit Colégio João de Bar- 1:2009, Prerequesite programmes on safety hazards to the product through ros (CJB), an ISO 9001-certified private food safety – Part 1 : Food manufacturing, the work environment high school near Coimbra, Portugal, you which sets out requirements for prerequi- • Biological, chemical and physical con- must use your digital card at the main site programmes needed to realize safe tamination of the product, including gate, or be verified by a smiling guard as products and provide food that is safe for cross contamination between products a legitimate non-card holding visitor, to human consumption. • Food safety hazard levels in the access the campus. It is intended to be used in conjunction product and product processing After a short walk you’ll reach a marble with, and to support, ISO 22000:2005 environment. entrance displaying many sports trophies which gives requirements for a food safe- Jacob Faergemand comments : “ As the and a plasma monitor screen scrolling ty management system. introduction of food safety hazards can oc- management data such as quality objec- The new technical specification has a cur at the manufacturing stage of the food tives, client satisfaction survey findings, huge potential impact since, according to supply chain, a hygienic environment is the school quality policy, exam and sports the latest figures, some 8 200 organiza- essential. That is why this ISO technical results and other information for students, tions in 112 countries were independently specification is very useful in reducing the teachers and employees. certified to ISO 22000:2005 at the end of likelihood that products will be exposed to Every second year it shows clips from 2008. hazards, that they will be contaminated, the school’s famous biennial musical ISO/TS 22002-1 specifies require- and that hazards will proliferate.” show attended by more than 1 000 peo- ments for establishing, implementing and The new technical specification applies ple, and the local press. maintaining prerequisite programmes de- to all organizations involved in the manu- But these are not the only features that signed to help food manufacturers be able facturing step of the food chain, regard- make CJB unusual. The school, which to control : less of size or complexity.  opened in 1988 to provide education serv-

38 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 ices to approximately 700 students between the ages of 10 and 18, is one of very few in Portugal to have achieved ISO 9001 quality management system (QMS) certification.

Dispelling the myth Although the Portuguese educational system is highly regulated, only 18 high schools had become ISO 9001-certified by April 2009.

More is yet to come, including ISO 14001.

The myth still exists that ISO 9001 was designed mainly for industry, is nearly impossible to implement in such a com- A plasma monitor screen at CJB school’s entrance scrolls continuous information about plex human environment as a school, and quality process indicators and objectives, client satisfaction survey results, reminders of the school quality policy, exam and sports results and other information for students, teachers and that most institutions bold enough to try employees. have trouble merging national regulations with the requirements of the standard ; management, and top-down motivation. • Not be imposed by top management, also, that it results in unnecessary records According to him, the key was in as- but implemented only after verification duplication and excessive bureaucracy. sembling a group of teachers who spent of benefits by employees. Not exactly encouraging ! three years analyzing and testing the A pioneering group of teachers attended standard, and developing the best way to a 270-hour ISO 9001-based QMS train- Secret of success apply it to the school. ing course, followed by a second course, ISO 9001 implementation was based on So, what is the secret behind CJB’s suc- “ Improving management towards excel- two principles – that the quality manage- cessful ISO 9001 certification ? Having lence ”, lasting 280 hours, 90 of which ment system (QMS) should : an engineer as school director and owner covered internal audits. (who also owns an accredited vehicle in- • Reflect school practices so it would The total training programme started spection centre) may well have inspired be easily understood and accepted by in December 2003 and was completed a more enlightened approach to quality employees in February 2006, during which time the teacher group developed all QMS documentation. However, the group decided to apply for ISO 9001 certification only when they felt the system was successfully implemented and accepted by all. This was achieved in September 2007, following the final certification audit by EIC – Empresa Internacional de Certifi- cação, S.A.

System integration Apart from a few short-term executive training courses, the group managed the implementation process by themselves without any external consultancy help. The result was a smooth integration of national regulations and ISO 9001 requirements.

Benefits CJB’s quality team, from left : Professional Management Course Director, Rosàrio Goucha ; CJB’s objective in implementing an Portuguese Department Coordinator/School Theatre Director, Irene Paquim ; Social and ISO 9001-based QMS was to improve the Human Science Department Coordinator, Manuela Trindade ; Dean/Pedagogical Director, Valter Branco ; French Department Coordinator/Pedagogical Subdirector, Fàtima Vestia ; control of procedures, achieve greater ac- Chemistry and Physics Department Coordinator, Afonso Neves. curacy in assessing educational activities,

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 39 Management Solutions and promote the school image. To what extent have they achieved those goals in the two years since certification ? According to the quality team, they consider their QMS to be in its teen years and still developing, yet they have already seen many benefits to the school through : • Establishing measurable objectives • Setting indicators and goals to evaluate objectives • Better control of educational and other school functions • Better assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of all school activities • Better control of procedures and documentation • Validation of learning assessment A colourful scene from the school’s 2009 musical show, a celebrated local event held every tools two years. • Greater customer satisfaction Four other key recommendations can Looking ahead • Improved school image through certifi- be also added : cation of the implemented system. Don’t start QMS implementation As visitors leave the school, they 1. before comparing local legal re- might notice two solar panels on the quirements and those of ISO 9001, and roof. This environmentally friendly en- creating a matrix showing the equivalence ergy system was designed, built and between the two. Education is highly reg- installed by teachers and students of ulated in many countries, and most ISO the school’s advanced electronics class. 9001 requirements may already be taken Although it was a pilot project and does into consideration in applicable regula- not yet free the school from its monthly tions, even if under a different name or energy bill, more is yet to come, includ- form. ing ISO 14001 environmental manage- Taking these initial precautions will ment system implementation — the next avoid much unnecessary paperwork and challenge !  duplication of activities.

The myth still exists that About the author ISO 9001 was designed mainly for industry. Sandra Feliciano Advice to others is an auditor, consultant and trai- For CJB, ISO 9001 implementation and Take full advantage of ISO 9001 ner in management certification has been an intensive four- 2. clause 7.3 Design and Development. systems and mem- year process culminating in very worth- This allows educational institutions to ber of subcommit- while benefits for the school. So what exercise their pedagogical autonomy and tee SC 36, Informa- advice could be given to other schools promote those educational characteristics tion technology for contemplating the same journey ? that differentiate them from other schools. learning, educa- Obviously, before beginning the proc- Use ISO 9001:2008 clause 7.6 Con- tion and training, of the joint technical ess, the school management should ex- 3.trol of monitoring and measuring committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information plain the concepts of quality manage- equipment to stimulate discussion about technology. She also works on IPQ/APQ ment and quality management systems to methods to increase the accuracy of tests, CT 80, the technical committee for qua- all employees, and outline the expected exams and other learning assessment tools. lity management and quality assurance at advantages of QMS implementation. It Enrol school students in the project. Instituto Português da Qualidade (IPQ), should organize Q&A and awareness ses- 4. You may be surprised at the huge the Portuguese liaison with ISO TC 176, sions covering ISO 9001 requirements, amount of energy and ideas they offer Quality management and quality assu- with the aim of taking ownership of its if properly guided. Their involvement rance, and also sits on IPQ’s CS/11 sector own tailor made system, and not one im- can even be integrated in the educational committee for education and training. posed by a consultant. curriculum. [email protected]

rected to a secure Web site information vault where they can download the engi- Lockheed Martin boasts neering data, directly and quickly. What used to take weeks is now done in a matter of minutes. big benefits We are in an age where large amounts of data are required to be moved throughout the LM Aero enterprise – across depart- ments and among widely dispersed sites. from STEP STEP is a fundamental part of our strategy. It is the great enabler that provides the highest quality data exchange available by Mike Jahadi and allows us to exchange product data with our suppliers and team members on As part of ongoing efforts to foster product affordability, in 1998 a daily basis. Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company (LM Aero) implemented the Savings across the board international data exchange standard ISO 10303 – commonly known as the Standard for the Exchange of Product Model Data, or STEP – At LM Aero, STEP has realized signifi- in all its programmes (i.e. F-16, T-50, F-2, F-22, F-35 etc.). cant savings and process improvements. For example, within engineering design, pilot programmes have shown a 10 % im- A majority of total aircraft cost today Seamless information flow provement in reliability of data exchange, comes from our suppliers of raw material, a 10 % process savings for non-compos- fabricated parts, entire subsystems and Traditionally, large volumes of engi- ite parts, and a 50 % process savings for neering data were transmitted manually, support equipment. It is imperative that composites. in hard copies, to potential suppliers in bid prime contractors “ lean out ” the supplier For manufacturing, the projected sav- packages. Data often had to be interpreted value chain, and one of the ways to do this ings for tool design on Computer Aided and re-entered into different data systems, Design (CAD) and Computer Aided is to take advantage of advances in digital resulting in time delays and errors. Manufacturing (CAM) systems is 27 %, information transfer. Using STEP, data quickly and accu- and 38 % for NC (Numerical Control) Lockheed Martin Aeronautics initiated rately transmitted electronically to first- CAM systems due to elimination of data full implementation of the STEP standard tier suppliers, and if needed, retransmit- re-entry. for technical data exchange with its sup- ted to lower-tier suppliers. In a major rebid of F-16 machined pliers. Since then, STEP has provided sig- The production data base is updated parts, involving about 2,300 part numbers nificant improvements in accuracy, cost, daily. Potential suppliers are notified and about 50 potential suppliers, use of and delivery time of purchased items for via e-mail of business opportunities that STEP provided a 95 % reduction in mate- aircraft. could be of interest to them. They are di- rial costs and a 52 % reduction in labour

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 41 Standards in Action by the prime contractor – not counting 500 billion in annual revenue and sales. similar savings by the suppliers. About Lockheed Martin PDES, Inc. is a global leader in acceler- After the certification of ISO 10303- ating the development and deployment 203:1994 Industrial automation systems of the STEP standard for digital product Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, and integration – Product data represen- data. tation and exchange – Part 203 : Applica- USA, Lockheed Martin is a global tion protocol : Configuration controlled security company that employs about 3D designs of mechanical parts and as- 140 000 people worldwide. The STEP is a fundamental semblies, the protocol has been extensive- corporation is principally engaged in part of our strategy. ly valuable in LM Aero’s daily business the research, design, development, to accomplish data interoperability with manufacture, integration and its team partners and suppliers. sustainment of advanced technology The importance of membership in systems, products and services, and PDES, Inc. has been validated across the New areas for interoperability in 2008 reported sales of USD 42.7 Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company billion. and is aligned with our business impera- LM Aero is also investing in other ar- tives of perform, perfect, win and grow. eas of the STEP standard to address in- Lockheed Martin’s operating units are Initiatives like PDES, Inc. are consistent teroperability challenges such as the fol- organized into broad business areas. with our focus on seamless information lowing application protocols (AP) of ISO flow across the entire virtual value stream. 10303 : Aeronautics, with approximately Membership has brought us great payback, • Part 209 : AP : Composite and metal USD 11.5 billion in 2008 sales, particularly because of our participation in structural analysis includes tactical aircraft, airlift, STEP pilot projects – lessons learned and • Part 232 : AP : Technical data package and aeronautical research and knowledge sharing have been invaluable. (TDP) development lines of business. PDES, Inc. has provided a very effective forum for our companies to cooperate. • Part 239 : AP : Product life cycle sup- Electronic systems, with port (PLCS) approximately USD 11.6 billion in The bottom line • Product data management (PDM) 2008 sales, includes missiles and schema. fire control, naval systems, platform The principle driver behind standards integration, simulation and training like STEP is the increasing emphasis on affordability by the customer, which in STEP provided a 95 % and energy programmes lines of business. turn is driven by reduced defense budg- reduction in material ets in the USA and abroad. Therefore, the costs. Information systems and global entire industry has to strive to become a services, with approximately USD leaner manufacturer.  11.6 billion in 2008 sales, includes In the case of Part 209, LM Aero sees C4I, federal services, government and this as a technology to enable data inter- commercial IT solutions. operability and data retention for compos- About the author ite parts and engineering data analysis. In Space systems, with approximately Dr. Mike Jahadi is addition, Part 232 enables TDP delivery USD 8 billion in 2008 sales, includes a Lockheed Martin to our customers. space launch, commercial satellites, Technical Fellow. Part 239 (PLCS) is becoming widely government satellites, and strategic adopted for logistic support, and LM Aero He is responsible missiles lines of business. is working toward the implementation of for the identifi- this standard. Last year, Aerospace In- cation and prio- dustries Association (AIA) endorsed the ritization of new use of the PLCS standard by its member technologies in companies. support of product design manufacturing and analysis of Accelerating STEP manufacture and support in a digital for- all CAD/CAM/CAE related research mat that is customized for the fighter air- and development activities within LM Prior to implementing STEP, the proc- craft industry. Aeronautics and across Lockheed Martin ess for exchanging data between compa- To achieve this capability, Lockheed Corporation. Dr. Jahadi is President and nies and vendors was considerably slower Martin banded together in 1988 with Chairman of the PDES, Inc. Executive and more expensive. Custom software for other industrial companies and formed Board. In addition, he is an associate data exchange had to be developed, and PDES, Inc. fellow member of the American Institute data re-entry added to the overall expense Lockheed Martin is a founding mem- of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), of building fighter aircraft. ber of this consortium that continues and serves as Chairman of the AIAA STEP, on the other hand, captures the today with 24 industry and government Computer Aided Enterprise Solutions complexities of fighter aircraft design, members who represent more than USD Technical Committee.

Developing “ good ” standards

by Jerry Smith and Pete Nielsen

Now, that’s a good standard ! It may not sound like much, but in our sometimes stuffy world of standards, this is high praise. But what does it take for a standard to receive such an accolade ?

We have observed a few characteristics attributable and unverifiable knowledge in of “ good ” standards, as well as various global forums. Standards publishers must approaches to establishing consensus- live apart from that world because critical based information and communications systems, upon which lives, fortunes and technology (ICT) standards. You may nations depend, demand that technical ex- find these observations to be applicable in cellence from bona-fide experts underlies the development of good standards. the standard on which these systems are built. What is a good standard ? Recognized SDOs/SSOs have established reputations within their relevant Many technically excellent standards technical, professional and marketplace will never be hailed as good standards. communities, as objective authorities in Technical excellence is a baseline re- their spheres of activity. To the end-user, quirement for all standards. Without it, a accreditation means that the standard standard has no chance of being consid- has been created, approved, adopted and ered good. published via a formal process, and that At a minimum, standards should spec- configuration management of the specifi- ify all requirements needed to achieve a cation has been established. stated level of compatibility or interoper- Accreditation will ensure clarity and ability in a product-independent manner, a degree of control by the SDO/SSO. It and include them in a way that is : means that that a formal process is in • Clear, coherent and non-ambiguous place to manage and maintain/update the • Technically implementable, not bound document, with mechanisms to track ver- to specific technologies sions, fixes and addendums. A standard • Testable from an accredited SDO/SSO will also be free of intellectual property restrictions • Scalable. and related constraints. For ICT standards, it is imperative to allow for, and even require, porting across More is needed platforms, enterprises, industry sectors, regional and national boundaries and glo- Despite all the above, a technically bal entities. excellent standard, published in a timely Another prerequisite is that the stand- manner by an accredited organization, ard is published by an accredited standard does not guarantee that it will be recog- developing organization or standards set- nized as a good standard. ting organization (SDO/SSO). This is not A standard specifies how a set of inter- simply about branding, or about keeping operating technologies should interface. with tradition. But it is what is done with that specifi- Today, we live in a world of wikis, cation by systems developers – how and where anonymous experts propagate un- how often it is implemented – that meas-

ISO Focus+ February 2010 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ 43 360° ures the true success of a standard. Stand- ards are ultimately judged by marketplace acceptance ; specifically, whether commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) systems are built and sold, based on particular open standards. For this to happen, the following is needed : • End-users (manufacturers) must be aware of the standards • Standards must be easily available to end-users • Standards must be seen by end-users as solving real problems and providing real utility. The CEO of a major aircraft company recently stated at an industry conference, “ Markets – not standards committees – determine which standards will be the winners.”

Decided by votes As more vendors offer compliant effective means to capture user-discovered COTS, prices go down, the number of defects will allow fixes and enhancements By incorporating user, consumer, and standardized products goes up, and reli- to be incorporated in later versions. business operations requirements into ability, robustness and interchangeabil- standards, we encourage industry to de- ity increases. This significantly enhances Performance vs. process velop and build compliant commercial interoperability. products, available as open standards Specifying the process for building a conforming COTS, or compliant COTS. A balancing act product can be a recipe for disaster. Us- Each time implementations are built in ers and consumers are interested in the accordance with a standard, it is a vote Having looked at characteristics of a performance of the final product – not the of confidence in that standard. The over- good standard, it is reasonable to ask how process used to get there. riding metric for determining whether a to develop one. Although standards crea- standard is good is how ubiquitous and tion may be regarded as science, their de- Teamwork involves work numerous are the conforming implemen- velopment process may be considered an tations – in other words, how many votes art, requiring balancing issues to achieve Participants in the standards setting are cast in its favour. a result that is technically functional and process should include the end user com- attractive to end users. munity of technologists, vendors, test- Below are some observations from stand- ers, users, academics, consumers and ards processes that have worked well. governments. High membership fees and resource-intensive investments – such as Standards vs. technology extensive face-to-face meetings requiring significant travel expenses and time away There is a tipping point in timing be- from the office – can be barriers for small tween technology evolution and stand- and medium-size enterprise participation ards setting. If a standard is established in standardization activities. too early, innovation and creativity may If participation is unaffordable for be stifled. Setting it too late may invite small and entrepreneurial players, then marketplace chaos and unnecessary costs. innovation in the standards process will Most readers will remember the battle be- have to come from the established, well tween Beta and VHS videotape standards funded organizations, who are not gener- as a good example. ally known for innovation.

Good vs. perfect Reaching over the wall Waiting until a standard is perfect before Though it is a touchy subject, we publishing invites would-be standards us- should not fail to mention the reality of ers to charge ahead with proprietary solu- “ rice bowls ” – a polite antagonism be- tions. The art is in knowing when a stand- tween constituencies in the standards de- ard is ready for initial release. Setting up an velopment world. Addressing the clash

44 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 In fact, most people – even engineers and technologists – find standards and the standardization process to be a boring topic. Programme and project managers are keenly interested in budgets and sched- ules but frequently view standards as ob- stacles. CEOs usually do not see standards and participation in standardization activities as helping boost their stock price for the next quarter. Standardization is not a high profile issue with politicians. Consumers are only interested in the final product and fail to appreciate the role and value of standards in helping them obtain interoperable goods and services. An effective standards development process needs to appreciate this often discouraging reality, and to push on. The other side of this reality is that if : • The standard is timed right, and • It solves a real-world problem, and • It addresses end user concerns, and • It allows freedom of implementation, and • End-users are aware of it, then… …industry players will line up to implement the standard. of styles between the consortia, Internet lective egos and special interests subvert and de jure communities, such as ISO, the process. That is a very good indication you have is an ongoing challenge to SDO/SSO developed a good standard.  leadership. Our observation is that each Marketplace realities community has much to contribute to the standardization process. If all goes well, we now have a tech- We have found that consortia of com- nically excellent standard developed in mercial and non-profit entities are good a timely manner by SDO/SDO experts, at rapid technology development and the who collaborated closely with the end formal de jure standards process is good user community. But is it a good stand- for consensus building ; but the reverse is ard ? Not yet. generally not true. We are sorry to acknowledge that the world is usually not holding its breath waiting for your standard to be published. Standards are ultimately judged by marketplace acceptance. About the authors

Jerry Smith Pete Nielsen is Contrary to popular conception, the manages Chief Operating de jure standards activities, professional participation Officer (COO) of societies, industry associations and con- in global Animus Solutions, sortia generally don’t actually compete : standards Inc, a Florida-based each has a role, scope, and purpose upon activities IT consultancy, and which to capitalize. for the US serves as Honorary Combining the best that each commu- Department Consul for the Re- nity has to offer is a very effective model of Defense, public of Uganda. for standards creation, accreditation and and has served as Secretary of He is also COO of the Intellegere global acceptance. The trick is in finding subcommittee SC 4, Industrial data, Foundation, a non-profit foundation esta- a level playing field that encourages open of ISO/TC 184, Automation systems blished to enhance standards awareness in collaboration. The lesson is to not let col- and integration, since 1998. the global marketplace.

by Maria Lazarte and Sandrine Tranchard Organizations can now benefit from a well-stocked toolbox for risk management featuring : • ISO 31000:2009, Risk management – Principles and guidelines • ISO Guide 73:2009, Risk management vocabulary • ISO/IEC 31010:2009, Risk management – Risk assessment techniques.

Tackling uncertainty Risks affecting organizations may have The risk management consequences in terms of societal, environmental, technological, safety and security outcomes ; commercial, financial and economic results, as well as social, cul- toolbox tural and political reputation impacts. ISO 31000:2009 will help organizations of all types and sizes to manage risk effectively. ISO 31000 provides principles, a framework and a process for managing any form of risk in a transparent, systematic and credible manner within any scope or context. It recommends that organizations develop, implement and continuously improve a risk management framework as an integral component of their management system. Kevin W. Knight AM 1), Chair of the ISO working group that developed the standard explains, “ ISO 31000 is a practical document that seeks to assist organizations in developing their own approach to the management of risk. But this is not a standard that organizations can seek certification to. By implementing ISO 31000, organizations can compare their risk management practices with an internationally recognized benchmark, providing sound principles for effective management.” ISO Guide 73:2009, Risk management vocabulary, complements ISO 31000 by providing a collection of terms and definitions relating to the management of risk. ISO 31000 is designed to help organizations : • Increase the likelihood of achieving objectives • Encourage proactive management • Be aware of the need to identify and treat risk throughout the organization • Improve the identification of opportunities and threats

1) Order of Australia

46 © ISO Focus+, www.iso.org/isofocus+ ISO Focus+ February 2010 • Comply with relevant legal and regula- about the most appropriate approach to ards, developed with a view to providing tory requirements and international treat particular risks and select between a ‘best practice’ approach.” norms options. • Improve financial reporting ISO/IEC 31010 will assist organiza- To be used by all • Improve governance tions in implementing the risk management principles and guidelines provided ISO 31000, ISO Guide 73, ISO/IEC • Improve stakeholder confidence and 31010 can be applied to any public, pri- trust in ISO 31000. ISO/IEC 31010 reflects current good vate or community enterprise, associa- • Establish a reliable basis for decision practice and answers the following tion, group or individual. The documents making and planning questions : will be useful to : • Improve controls • What can happen and why ? • Those responsible for implement- • Effectively allocate and use resources ing risk management within their for risk treatment • What are the consequences ? organizations • Improve operational effectiveness and • What is the probability of their future • Those who need to ensure that an efficiency occurrence ? organization manages risk • Enhance health and safety perform- • Are there any factors that mitigate the • Those needing to evaluate an organiza- ance, as well as environmental consequences of the risk or that reduce tion’ practices in managing risk protection the probability of the risk ? • Developers of standards, guides proce- • Improve loss prevention and incident The application of a range of techniques dures and codes of practice relating to management is introduced, with specific references to the management of risk. • Minimize losses • Improve organizational learning • Improve organizational resilience. “ Risk is inherent in all activities. And it can be argued that the global financial crisis resulted from the failure of boards and executive management to effectively manage risk. ISO 31000 is expected to help industry and commerce, public and private, to confidently emerge from the crisis, ” said Mr. Knight.

Risk assessment

When risks occur, organizations always have to ask the question : “ Is the level of risk tolerable or acceptable, and does it require further treatment ? ” Risk assessment is an integral part of risk management which provides a structured process for organizations to identify how objectives may be affected. It is used to analyse risk in terms of consequences and their probabilities, before the organization decides on further treatment, if required. The third standard, ISO/IEC 31010:2009, Risk management – Risk assessment techniques, has been de- other relevant International Standards. ISO 31000 and ISO Guide 73 were veloped jointly by ISO and its partner Risk assessment is not a stand-alone ac- developed by the ISO Working Group IEC (International Electrotechnical tivity and should be fully integrated into on Risk Management while, ISO/IEC Commission). the other components in the risk manage- 31010:2009 was prepared by IEC techni- Risk assessment provides decision- ment process. cal committee 56, Dependability, together makers and responsible parties with an Eric Mahy, Project leader of the stand- with the ISO Working Group on Risk improved understanding of risks that ard comments, “ISO/IEC 31010 has been Management. could affect achievement of objectives, developed for application by both the risk as well as of the adequacy and effective- management novice and the seasoned risk Maria Lazarte is Assistant Editor, ISO Focus+. ness of controls already in place. The professional. It forms part of an integrat- Sandrine Tranchard is Communication Officer, standard provides a basis for decision ed risk management structure of stand- ISO Central Secretariat.

The brochure includes an overview of • Material flow cost accounting the standards making up the ISO 14000 • Carbon footprint of products (and its family. The best known standard is ISO calculation) 14001:2004. By the end of Decem- • Phased implementation of an EMS ber 2008, the standard was being used • Eco-design

by organizations in 155 countries as a

framework for environmental manage- • Quantitative environmental evaluation ment systems (EMS) to manage better • Competence requirements for GHG the impact of their activities on the envi- validators and verifiers. ronment and to demonstrate sound environmental management. Other published The ISO 14000 family is designed to be standards, which can be used independ- implemented according to the same Plan- ently or in combination with ISO 14001 Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle underlying and with each other, address the follow- all ISO management systems standards. ing topics : A table in the brochure classifies the ISO 14000 standards according their optimal • Environmental performance Tackling place in the PDCA cycle. Other sections • Environmental labels and declarations cover the following aspects : environmental • Life-cycle assessment • ISO’s overall contribution to the envi- challenges with the • Greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting, ronment, which goes beyond the work verification and accreditation ISO/TC 207 ISO 14000 family • Environmental management and sustainability by Roger Frost • An introduction to ISO/TC 207, including its ISO has published a new, updated bro- origins and the global par- chure providing a basic introduction, as ticipation in its work. its title indicates, to Environmental management – The ISO 14000 family of In- Because the work of ISO/ ternational Standards. TC 207 is constantly evolv- The 12-page, colour brochure is the ing, the committee’s section latest edition of a successful publication on the ISO Web site should be first released in 1998, two years after consulted for the latest infor- the launching of the first standards in mation on its work programme the ISO 14000 family. Since then, the and membership. However, the ISO 14000 standards have achieved a new edition of the ISO 14000 worldwide impact and the brochure brochure answers a need for a gives a concise idea of how the fam- basic, but comprehensive intro- ily has evolved to provide compre- duction for distribution at confer- hensive solutions to the range of ences, or requested by potential environmental challenges facing users of the standards, and by business, government and society students. today. Environmental management The brochure was authored by – The ISO 14000 family of Inter- experts from ISO technical com- national Standards, which is pub- mittee ISO/TC 207, Environmen- lished in English and French paper tal management, which is respon- editions, is available free of charge sible for the ISO 14000 family. (fee for postage and handling of bulk They point out that the ISO 14000 orders) from the ISO Central Sec- standards not only provide envi- The ISO 14000 family of environmental management standards.indd C retariat through the ISO Store or by 1 ronmental benefits, but also significant contacting the Marketing, Commu- tangible economic benefits, including the 23.11.2009 10:21:36 nication and Information department ([email protected]). It can also be obtained following : • Environmental communication from ISO national member institutes. The • Reduced raw material/resource use • Environmental aspects in product brochure is also available as a PDF file on • Reduced energy consumption standards. the ISO Web site (www.iso.org). • Improved process efficiency Further documents now under devel- • Reduced waste generation and disposal opment provide tools for the following costs activities : Roger Frost is Head of Communication Services, • Utilization of recoverable resources. • Eco-efficiency assessment ISO Central Secretariat.

How standards support innovation Professor Knut Blind, a European academician working in the field of standardization, recently spoke with ISO Focus+ to share his observations of how standards support innovation and competition. In his first ISO Focus+ interview, Prof. Blind says, “Standards clearly support the diffusion of new products into the marketplace, and that supports economic growth. If you just have ideas that don’t get turned into new products, then there will be no economic benefit.” He goes on to discuss the add value of standards to CEOs, and why it’s important for them to participate. “It’s clearly worthwhile for most companies or A world fit for whole economies to invest in standardization, but it’s still not easy to convince CEOs, especially in small and medium- sized companies, about the value of en- children gagement in standardization.” For more of Prof. Blind’s interview, don’t miss the next issue of ISO More than 2 000 children die every The input from other stakeholders will Focus+.  day as a result of an accident and every also be covered, including the LEGO year tens of millions more worldwide Group, the Toy Industry Association, the © Cern, CMS are taken to hospital with injuries that European Association for the Co-ordina- often leave them with lifelong disabili- tion of Consumer Representation in Stand- ties, according to a 2008 report by the ardization and the Danish Consumer Coun- World Health Organization (WHO) and cil. Child-oriented initiatives – such as ISO the United Nations Children’s Fund 14000 Kid’s Programme and Underwriters (UNICEF). Laboratories and Disney’s Smart Safety The World Report on Child Injury Pre- Programme – will also be covered. vention concludes that many injuries are An interview with Arnie Rubin, CEO preventable. According to its findings, if of Funrise Toys Ltd. and President of the proven prevention measures were adopt- International Council of Toy Industries ed everywhere, at least 1 000 children’s (ICTI), discusses the challenges to in- lives could be saved every day. ternational harmonization and the added The March 2010 issue of ISO Focus+ value of “one standard, one test and one brings together a portfolio of articles that certification of compliance”, as well showcase ISO standards as prevention as the importance of ISO International measures, as well as areas of particular Standards, particularly ISO 8124 for the concern for children and how they are be- safety of toys. ing addressed by ISO. If one single message emerges from Articles will cover an array of stand- this issue, it is: ISO improves the safety ardization topics, from the safety of toys and well-being of children and contrib- to child seat restraint systems, child- utes to the overall improvement of their resistant packaging on dangerous goods, daily lives. protective equipment against drowning, Learn more about how ISO standards child-resistant lighters and bicycle safety, serve as proven prevention measures in to ISO/IEC Guide 50, Safety aspects – our next issue of ISO Focus+ – contribut- Guidelines for child safety – which, if taking to making a better, safer world for en into account, prevent many injuries to our children, for us, and the entire human children or at least reduce their severity. race. 