British Standards Institute: Significance and Application for Startups

What are standards? 

Standards are documents providing rules, guidance and characteristics of goods and services. They are established by consensus and issued by certified bodies. Their aim is to provide results that can be repeated and to achieve order in any given business context. 

Why are they important?

They are important for businesses because they follow government policies regarding competitiveness, fair trade, consumer protection, environment and sustainability as well as regulatory compliance. They provide a common framework that adds to the consistency in a given industry and reduce the need for duplication during research and development. They contribute to productivity of a business in four main ways. 

Firstly, they reduce cost and time wasted on “trial and error”. Companies following standards do not waste time or money on testing, they just apply the established guidelines or rules to their operations. 

Secondly, they allow production at scale by replacing specific, individual solutions with standardised ones. This makes companies more competitive and distinct from their market competitors. 

Thirdly, standards in a company lower the cost of regulatory compliance and the costs of non-compliance. The business does not need to worry about those costs because following existing guidelines and rules prevents them for having to pay additionally. 

Lastly, standards contribute to shortening the time to market of new products. Again, because the guidelines, procedures and models already exist.

Where can you find them?

Usually there is one standardisation organisation per region and per country. For example in the EU, there are three standardisation bodies: the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation (CENELEC), and the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). Additionally, each European country will have one, or more, individual national standardisation body: Italian Ente Nazionale Italiano di Unificazione (UNI), Latvian Latvian Standard (LVS) or British BSI. 

British Standards Institution (BSI) is the national standards body in the UK. It was formed independently in 1901 and established by the Royal Charter. It is sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), issuing national standards in the UK and representing them on the international arena. It is concerned with standards developing business directives and development of trade but also with protection of consumer interests and fairness of transactions. 

How are they applicable to startups?

Startups can benefit from purchasing standards in two ways. They can become more competitive and they can improve their operations set a high standard of their products or services from the very start of their business operations. 

Standards are important because they makes a companies that have them stand out and be  guarantors of high standard of products sold or services provided and, hence, they increase the competitiveness and reliability of those companies.

How can they get involved?

The best way to get a business involved in standardisation would be to identify the company’s goals and the main area of development and to find a provider will be the best fit for these needs. 

Alternatively, there are opportunities to get involved in creating new standards with the leading standards companies. Usually, anyone can apply and contribute to creating new standards in various ways: suggesting an idea for a new standard, viewing and commenting on proposals or drafts.

Things to look out for/ challenges?

The main drawback to acquiring standards is that it may be a substantial cost to the business, especially at the beginning of its operations. However, depending on the provider, different packages and deals are available to make buying standards economically efficient for the business.

Region	Organisation
Europe	CEN - the European Committee for Standardisation. It puts together national standardisation bodies of 33 european countries. Its job is to develop european standards on products, materials, services and processes, for example construction.
	CENELEC - the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation. It is responsible for standardisation in the electrotechnical engineering field.
	ETSI - the European Telecommunications Standards Institute. It produces standards for information and communications technology globally. These standards also include fixed, mobile, radio, converged, broadcast, and internet technologies.
Americas	ANSI - American National Standards Institute. Its job is to oversee standards and conformity activities in the US. It facilitates the development of American National Standards and have an impact on the standards adopted around the world, in China, India, and Europe.
	COPANT - Pan American Standards Institute. It develops standards for both Americas focusing on technical and engineering standards.
Asia	SARSO - the South Asian Regional Standards Organization. Its job is developing and issuing standards in the South Asian Countries such as Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
	PASC - Pacific Area Standards Congress. Its primary role is to support the region’s engagement in the international standardisation system. It operates in of Africa, both Americas, South and East Asia, and Russia.
Middle East	CSO - GCC Standards Organisation. Its main propose is to facilitate integration and interdependence between the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Countries such as: UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait.
Africa	ARSO - the African Organisation for Standardisation. Its goal is to issue standards to facilitate and develop the industrialisation and intra-African trade.

Author: Zofia Bonarowska -

Author: Zofia Bonarowska -

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DISCLAIMER

This article has been written by law students for the sole purpose of providing informative insight. The information in this article is intended for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice, nor should the information be used for the purpose of advising clients. You should seek independent legal advice before relying on any of the information provided in this article.

Sources

About GSO, <https://www.gso.org.sa/en/about-gso/> accessed 6 June 2023

African Organisation for Standards, <https://www.arso-oran.org/> accessed 6 June 2023

American National Standards Institute, <https://www.arso-oran.org/> accessed 6 June 2023

BSI competitors and similar companies, <https://craft.co/bsi/competitors> accessed 6 June 2023

COPANT, <https://copant.org/en/sobre-nosotros/> accessed 6 June 2023

Key Players in European Standardisation, <https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/single-market/european-standards/key-players-european-standardisation_en> accessed 6 June  2023

PASC, <https://pascnet.org/about-us/who-we-are/> accessed 6 June 2023

SARSO, <https://sarso.org/south-asian-regional-standards-organization/> accessed 6 June 2023

Standardisation, <https://www.gov.uk/guidance/standardisation> accessed 6 June 2023

What is a standard?, <https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/standards/Information-about-standards/what-is-a-standard/> accessed 6 June 2023