INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR STANDARDIZATION

The International Organization for Standardization promotes worldwide proprietary, industrial, and commercial standards. The ISO comprises national standards bodies representing 165 countries and serves a variety of functions. It facilitates communication and cooperation among its members, eases the distribution of scientific and technical information on standards and standardization, operates over 2,850 technical groups devoted to standards and other commercial and industrial research, and... maintains online databases covering international standards and other organizational activities. The ISO also seeks to ensure that standards are not used as a non-tariff barrier to international trade by formulating international standards applicable to the full scope of commercial activity in any locale worldwide. Although the majority of standards promulgated by the ISO are the result of the internal activities of its technical committees and working groups, ISO standards are not necessarily handed down to companies from the central organization. Companies often send their own internal standards to the ISO for consideration as international standards. Similarly, national standards organizations work with the ISO to make accepted national standards internationally applicable. ISO standards cover the entire spectrum of scientific, industrial, and commercial activities, including computer operating systems, manufacturing processes, product quality, safety, management technique, and environmental protection. In addition to its specific quality standards, the ISO has issued two sets of general standards, ISO 9000 and ISO 14000, to govern manufacturing and organizational processes and environmental protection, respectively. The International Organization for Standardization officially began its operations in February 1947.More