SIS committee work is open to all. Companies, government agencies, non-profit organizations and cooperative societies – all are equally welcome to participate in the standardization process. We work together daily to create standards that ensure simpler routines, more efficient process flows, rationalized manufacturing processes and enhanced quality.
For many Swedish companies, international standards open doors to a whole new global market – and are also very useful to organizations and government agencies. Participation in a committee brings you into contact with others in your industry, enabling you to swap insights and experience with customers and competitors. Your participation also gives you access to the latest on what is happening at both national and international levels. Participation in the standardization process offers many benefits. You not only get the opportunity to broaden your expertise, you get to establish valuable new contacts, at both national and international levels. The following describes how such participation functions:
1. Join SIS. Any company, government agency or other organization may apply for membership of SIS. As soon as your organization is a member, you are welcome to participate in the standardization process. You yourself decide the degree of your involvement. Apply here for membership.
2. Join a committee or start a new standards project. As soon as you become a member, you can join an existing committee or participate in forming a new committee in collaboration with other interested parties, with the support of SIS’ well established processes. Each participant is then charged a fee to cover the costs of continuing the work. Membership of a committee enables you to be part of the process and to:
- influence the ongoing standardization process or develop new standards at the national level
- participate in and influence the international standardization process
- promote the international standards process
- gain access to a network in your own field
- gain access to advanced information
3. Develop a proposal. A committee operates on the instructions of the project’s sponsors. It is the sponsors that appoint the members of the committee. Sometimes, additional experts in various fields are co-opted onto the committee. The committee is tasked with developing standards proposals for the field.
4. Circulate proposals for consideration. The completed proposal is then circulated for comment. The idea is to gather the views of committee participants, the affected authorities and other external experts. This referral process ensures the inclusion of a broad spectrum of viewpoints, contributing to an even more generally applicable standard.
5. Vote on revised proposal. The committee processes the comments received and drafts a Swedish response, if the circulated proposal is for an international standard. If the committee is working on a national standard, it drafts a revised proposal. If the work involves drafting international standards, the revised proposal is forwarded to the member countries (i.e. the national standardization agencies) for a final vote. The revised draft of a Swedish standard proposal is approved by the Swedish committee.
When a standard has been approved, it can be finalized and published by SIS. A number of standards may be complemented with manuals, training and consulting services, which are offered by SIS.
Want to know more about how we work at SIS? Click How we work.