Standards

Standards are agreed specifications for products, processes, services, and performance.  Developed by experts in their various fields they provide interoperability, safety, quality baselines, implementation guidance.  They also assist in resolving design and implementation challenges and provide a means of compliance with International, Regional and National legislation and regulation.

Standards may contain technical specifications or other criteria, which help ensure that materials, products, processes, services or systems are safe and fit for their intended purpose.

Standards are developed by a large number of different bodies who use a variety of specialists and subject matter experts.  These may include, for example, manufacturers, users, government officials, experts, technicians, designers, engineers, scientists, academics and consultants.  In most cases anyone with knowledge of the product, process, design or service can contribute to the development of standards, usually through a committee, sub-committee and consultation systems.  These processes help develop and establish common design and performance characteristics and guidelines.

While some standards are freely available, in many cases there is a fee in obtaining the relevant documentation.

Standards are the basis of product safety, interoperability of products and services, promotion of a common understanding of product and can facilitate trade by removing trade barriers.

Standards can be grouped or categorised in several ways although there can be overlap between these categories.  Categories include:

• Geographic;
• Technical;
• Sectors or business operations;
• Academic discipline or research areas; and

Geographically, standards may be categorised as:

• International;
• Regional; and

 Technical standards deal with:

• Specific technologies (for example WiFi and Bluetooth);
• Manufacturing operations; and
• Industries or sectors (for example Energy, Agriculture, Water).

Business Operations may include, for example:

• Information Technology;
• Commerce and Banking;
• Health;
• Building and Construction;
• Electrical Safety;
• Motor Vehicles;
• Aviation and Aircraft; and
• Maritime and Shipping.

Academic standards are frequently set nationally and supplemented by institution-specific standards.  A number of regional and international arrangements exist to promote transfer and recognition of academic qualifications between countries. Some examples include:

• In New Zealand the NZQA plays a significant role in setting academic and educational standards. New Zealand and the European Union (EU) have completed a joint project to make it easier for New Zealand and EU qualification holders to move between countries.
• Internationally The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) plays a major role in rationalising and improving academic standards.
• The ENIC-NARIC Networks are the result of an ongoing collaboration between national information centres on academic recognition of qualifications of in total 55 countries.
• Some regional standards exist such the EU Europass.
• UK NARIC (National Academic Recognition Information Centre for the United Kingdom).

Military Standards deal specifically with military operations and military interoperability with allied nations, for example:

• the US MIL-SPEC and MIL-STD;
• NATO Interoperability Standards and Profiles (NISP); and
• UK Defence Standardisation which operates with civil and military partners to support increased interoperability and more effective acquisition.

International standards

International standards guide interoperability and compatibility worldwide.  In some cases adherence to these standards is mandatory both for practical and interoperability reasons as well as conformance with international agreements and national legislation and regulation.

National standards

National standards are developed to take into account national requirements, such as government and legislative structures, and economic drivers.

In New Zealand these are developed either by a national standards body such as Standards New Zealand, or other nationally-accredited bodies. It is a requirement of the Standards and Accreditation Act to consider international standards first, before deciding if a bespoke, New Zealand-specific standard solution is necessary or required.

Other examples of organisations that create nationally recognised standards (in their country of origin) include NIST, FedRAMP, BSI, ANSI, CNSS.

NIST is widely referenced internationally and can provide the baseline standards for regional arrangements.

Regional/joint standards

These are prepared by member organisations within a specific region, such as the European Union’s EN standards, or joint Australian/New Zealand standards (AS/NZS).

These are a number of organisations developing and issuing international, regional or national standards.  Primary examples include:

• ISO - The International Organisation for Standardisation is a worldwide nongovernmental organisation with members from that comprises standards bodies from more than 160 countries, with one national standards body representing each member country;
• IEC - The International Electrotechnical Commission;
• ITU - The International Telecommunication Union;
• IETF - The Internet Engineering Task Force;
• W3C - the World Wide Web Consortium is the main international standards organisation for the World Wide Web;
• OASIS - The Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards is a nonprofit consortium that develops open standards for cybersecurity;
• IEEE - The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers;
• JEDEC - The Joint Electron Device Engineering Council is a semiconductor engineering trade organisation that also develops standards for the electronics industry;
• NIST – the US National Institute of Standards and Technology. NIST provides a comprehensive suite of technology standards including the Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS);
• Ecma International enables the creation of standards for consumer electronics (CE) and information and communications technology (ICT). Previously the European Computer Manufacturers Association (ECMA);
• CENELEC is the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization and is responsible for standardisation in electrotechnical engineering. The European Commission has designated CENELEC as one of the three European Standards Organizations, along with the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) and the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI).
• CEN, the European Committee for Standardization, brings together the National Standardization Bodies of 33 European countries;
• BIS – the Bank for International Settlements is the oldest international financial institution and members comprise 63 national Central Banks.  The BIS conducts research and leverages technology to support international monetary and financial stability.

Published standards are widely used in the continuing development of the NZISM.  Standards in development are also monitored.

While the NZISM may include a subset of, or directly align with international standards, national or joint standards, the NZISM is also designed to reflect New Zealand conditions, and the national interests of New Zealand.

Cost, adoption rates, international interoperability and obligations, ability to influence vendors, and the threat and risk environment can be unique to New Zealand which can affect the adoption of some elements of international practice and standards. 

Existing international standards are extremely well resourced, researched, reviewed and widely published.  Care is taken not to create unique NZ solutions which lack compatibility or are not interoperable with international practice and standards.