World Standards Day, or International Standards Day, is marked every year on October 14 to raise awareness about the importance of using standardised measurements, technologies, and industries. The day is also used to commemorate the achievements of scientists for developing voluntary universal standards that can be used for various measurements.

History

The first World Standards Day was marked on October 14, 1946. The day was established by international standards bodies like ISO (the International Organization for Standardization), IEC (the International Electrotechnical Commission), and ITU (the International Telecommunication Union). Though regular commemorations only started nearly 25 years later, when Faruk Sunter, then president of IES (International Organization for Standardization) hosted the event for encouraging standardisation in industrial settings.

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Significance

Before the modern standardisation of units of measurement, the common units of measurement used to vary even at the scale of small geographic regions. In the age of globalisation, there is a critical need for units of measurement to be the same. But the technology and equipment being created in one corner of the world should also be usable in another. Think of equipment like smartphones, chargers, routers, batteries, tyres and more.

As more standardised equipment enters the market, the better it is for the consumers and further innovations in the industry. Additionally, standardisation also increases efficiency and reduces wastage.

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Theme

Every year, the World Standards Event has a theme around which events and knowledge materials are created. The theme for World Standards Day 2022 is ‘Shared Vision for a Better World.’ The theme is part of the IEC, ISO and ITU multi-year campaign to increase understanding about how standardisation is important to achieve the United Nations’ sustainable development goals.

(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)