Development of Australian Standards

An Australian Standard is a published document which sets out specifications and procedures designed to ensure that a material, product, method or service is fit for its purpose and consistently performs in the way it was intended.

There are two key processes, transparency and consensus, that provide Australian Standards their authority and widespread acceptance. Consensus is usually taken to mean general agreement, characterized by the absence of sustained opposition to substantial issues by any important part of the concerned interests such at the Australian Institute of Building (AIB), arrived at by a process that takes into account the views of all parties concerned while reconciling any conflicting arguments.

For information on the process used to identify the need for new Australian Standards and the process used to review drafts. the following publications are available:

Standards Development Information Guides
	SG-001: Developing Australian Standards
	SG-003: Committee members roles and responsibilities
	SG-005: Technical standards development process
	SG-011: Technical standards development process

The content of a Standard is the responsibility of a technical committee. The basis for the composition (or 'constitution') of a technical committee is to ensure balanced participation by those interests that will be significantly affected by the resulting Standard. Individual members of a technical committee are selected by nominating organizations such as AIB that may include, but are not restricted to, government bodies, industry associations, community-based and consumer organizations, employee organizations and professional, technical or trade associations. In recognition of the national status of Standards, national rather than regional or local organizations are preferred when seeking nominating organizations to cover the range of interests affected by the Standard.

A Projects Manager from Standards Australia is allocated to each committee. This staff member organizes meetings, keeps minutes, maintains the committee web site, distributes documents and drafts, manages the committee processes and provides guidance on procedures and policies. The role of committee members, such as those nominated by AIB, is to participate fully in all committee work and, based on the member’s knowledge and experience in the subject, provide technical input to the standards being prepared.

Members wishing to participate in the development of Australian Standards should visit the member participation section of this website.

	The Australian Institute of Building — Incorporated by Royal Charter
	Mail: E-mail:	GPO Box 1467, Canberra, ACT, 2601 building.codes@aib.org.au