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ISO standards
contribute to making the development, manufacturing and supply of
products and services more efficient, safer and cleaner. They make
trade between countries easier and fairer. They provide
governments with a technical base for health, safety and
environmental legislation. They aid in transferring technology to
developing countries. ISO standards also serve to safeguard
consumers, and users in general, of products and services - as
well as to make their lives simpler.
Who ISO is : ISO is a network of the national standards institutes
of 157 countries, on the basis of one member per country, with a
Central Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, that coordinates the
system.
What 'international standardization' means When the large majority
of products or services in a particular business or industry
sector
conform to International Standards, a state of industry-wide
standardization can be said to exist. This is achieved through
consensus agreements between national delegations representing all
the economic stakeholders concerned-suppliers, users, government
regulators and other interest groups, such as consumers. They
agree on specifications and criteria to be applied
consistently in the classification of materials, in the
manufacture and supply of products, in testing and analysis, in
terminology and in the provision of services. In this way,
International Standards provide a reference framework, or a common
technological language, between suppliers and their customers
-which facilitates trade and the transfer of technology
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