The big, wide world of ISO standards:

Between 1947 and the present day, ISO published more than 16 000 International Standards. ISO's work programme ranges from standards for traditional activities, such as agriculture and construction, through mechanical engineering, to medical devices, to the newest information technology developments, such as the digital coding of audio-visual signals for multimedia applications. Standardization of screw threads helps to keep chairs, children's bicycles and aircraft together and solves the repair and maintenance problems caused by a lack of standardization that were once a major headache for manufacturers and product users. Standards establishing an international consensus on terminology make technology transfer easier and can represent an important stage in the advancement of new technologies. Without the standardized dimensions of freight containers, international trade would be slower and more expensive. Without the standardization of telephone and banking cards, life would be more complicated. A lack of standardization may even affect the quality of life itself: for the disabled, for example, when they are barred access to consumer products, public transport and buildings because the dimensions of wheel-chairs and entrances are not standardized. Standardized symbols provide danger warnings and information across linguistic frontiers. Consensus on grades of various materials gives a common reference for suppliers and clients in business dealings.Agreement on a sufficient number of variations of a product to meet most current applications allows economies of scale with cost benefits for both producers and consumers. An example is the standardization of paper sizes. Standardization of performance or safety requirements of diverse equipment makes sure that users' needs are met while allowing individual manufacturers the freedom to design their own solution on how to meet those needs.  Standardized protocols allow computers from different vendors to "talk" to each other. Standardized documents speed up the transit of goods, or identify sensitive or dangerous cargoes that may be handled by people speaking different languages. Standardization of connections and interfaces of all types ensures the compatibility of equipment of diverse origins and the interoperability of different technologies.  Agreement on test methods allows meaningful comparisons of products, or plays an important part in controlling pollution - whether by noise, vibration or emissions. Safety standards for machinery protect people at work, at play, at sea... and at the dentist's.Without the international agreement contained in ISO standards on quantities and units, shopping and trade would be haphazard, science would be - unscientific - and technological development would be handicapped. More than half a million organizations in more 149 countries are implementing ISO 9000 which provides a framework for quality management throughout the processes of producing and delivering products and services for the customer. ISO 14000 environmental management systems are helping organizations of all types to improve their environmental performance at the same time as making a positive impact on business results.

 How the ISO system is managed?

All strategic decisions are referred to the ISO members, who meet for an annual General Assembly. The proposals put to the members are developed by the ISO Council, drawn from the membership as a whole, which resembles the board of directors of a business organization. ISO Council meets two times a year and its membership is rotated to ensure that it is representative of ISO's membership. Operations are managed by a Secretary-General, which is a permanent appointment. The Secretary-General reports to the ISO Council, the latter being chaired by the President who is a prominent figure in standardization or in business, elected for two years. The Secretary-General is based at ISO Central Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, with a compact staff which provides administrative and technical support to the ISO members, coordinates the decentralized standards' development programme, and publishes the output. 

How the ISO system is financed?

ISO's national members pay subscriptions that meet the operational cost of ISO's Central Secretariat. The subscription paid by each member is in proportion to the country's Gross National Income and trade figures. Another source of revenue is the sale of standards. However, the operations of ISO Central Secretariat represent only about one fifth of the cost of the system's operation. The main costs are borne by the member bodies which manage the specific standards' development projects and the business organizations which provide experts to participate in the technical work. These organizations are, in effect, subsidizing the technical work by paying the travel costs of the experts and allowing them time to work on their ISO assignments.