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E L E CT R I C AL CONNE CT I ON
S P R I NG 2 01 5
Leading international engagement
in electrotechnology standards
W
hen you buy a new kitchen
appliance, you are often
told to look for a label or
mark affixed at the back that says the
appliance has been tested and certified
to Australian Standards. It is a simple
thing that accords peace of mind for
many consumers, and many people and
organisations have played a part to get
that sticker on the back of your appliance.
These people and organisations all form
Australia’s standards and conformance
infrastructure, and we all have different
roles to play.
WHAT ARE STANDARDS?
In Australia, Standards are published
documents based on consensus, which
can take the form of specifications,
procedural requirements, or handbooks.
They are living documents which are
updated to suit the changing needs of
the economy and community.
Government regulators and public
health authorities often turn to standards
in their regulation to provide a baseline
level of safety requirements for houses,
buildings, machinery and everyday
objects. Standards are everywhere in
your daily life, from the buildings you
live in to street lighting to the way your
kitchen appliances work.
STANDARDS AND CONFORMANCE
SYSTEM IN AUSTRALIA
Standards Australia is a non-profit
organisation that develops standards;
we do not enforce, regulate or certify
compliance with these Standards. What
we do is to form technical committees
on electrical standards by bringing
together relevant stakeholders into
the same room. Through a process of
consensus, these committees develop
standards and technical documents for
Australia’s net benefit.
We work closely with government
regulators such as the Electrical
Regulatory Authorities Council (ERAC),
as well as the electrical regulators in
the eight Australian states and
territories, to develop electrical and
electrotechnology standards.
Technical and safety electrical
regulatory functions are largely the
responsibility of state and territory
governments (a full list of state/territory
regulators is at
www.erac.gov.au). The
technical regulators set the rules for
electrical product safety requirements in
each state. For example, if a manufacturer
wants their product approved in the
state of South Australia, they need
to provide detailed test reports and
certificates to prove their product has
met relevant safety standards from a
recognised testing facility. Only after
receiving approval from an Australian
authority will manufacturers be allowed
to display regulatory compliance marks
or labels on their products.
AUSTRALIA’S NATIONAL
COMMITTEE TO THE IEC: LEADING
ENGAGEMENT GLOBALLY
Many of these Australian Standards
in electrical product safety, and other
aspects of electrotechnology, are aligned
with international standards. Recent
adoptions of international standards
this year include AS IEC 62271.4
High-
voltage switchgear and controlgear -
Part 4: Handling procedures for sulphur
hexafluoride (SF6)
and its mixtures,
which is a modified adoption of the
IEC standard to provide procedures
for handling of SF6 during installation,
commissioning, operations, and disposal
at the end-of-life of high-voltage
switchgear and controlgear.
Standards Australia is
the nation’s peak non-
government, not-for-profit
developer of internationally-
aligned Australian Standards.
In his first column, national
sector manager for energy
and electrotechnology
Varant Meguerditchian
writes
about the people behind
electrotechnology standards
in Australia.
Standards are living documents
which are updated to suit the
changing needs of the economy
and community.