IEC Central Office
3, rue de Varembe
P.O. Box 131
CH - 1211 GENEVA 20
Switzerland
Phone: +41 22 919 02 11
Fax: +41 22 919 03 00 info@iec.ch
Mission
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading global
organization that prepares and publishes international standards for all
electrical, electronic and related technologies. These serve as a basis
for national standardization and as references when drafting international
tenders and contracts.
Through its members, the IEC promotes international cooperation on all
questions of electrotechnical standardization and related matters, such
as the assessment of conformity to standards, in the fields of electricity,
electronics and related technologies.
The IEC charter embraces all electrotechnologies including electronics,
magnetics and electromagnetics, electroacoustics, multimedia, telecommunication,
and energy production and distribution, as well as associated general
disciplines such as terminology and symbols, electromagnetic compatibility,
measurement and performance, dependability, design and development, safety
and the environment. Objectives
The Commission's objectives are to:
- meet the requirements of the global market efficiently
- ensure primacy and maximum world-wide use of its standards and conformity
assessment schemes
- assess and improve the quality of products and services covered by its
standards
- establish the conditions for the interoperability of complex systems
- increase the efficiency of industrial processes
- contribute to the improvement of human health and safety
- contribute to the protection of the environment. Standards
IEC's international standards facilitate world trade by removing technical
barriers to trade, leading to new markets and economic growth. Put simply,
a component or system manufactured to IEC standards and manufactured in
country A can be sold and used in countries B through to Z. IEC's standards are vital since they
also represent the core of the World Trade Organization's Agreement on
Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), whose 100-plus central government members
explicitly recognize that international standards play a critical role
in improving industrial efficiency and developing world trade. The number
of standardization bodies which have accepted the Code of Good Practice
for the Preparation, Adoption and Application of Standards presented in
Annex 3 to the WTO's TBT Agreement underlines the global importance and
reach of this accord.
IEC standards provide industry and users with the framework for economies
of design, greater product and service quality, more inter-operability,
and better production and delivery efficiency. At the same time, IEC's
standards also encourage an improved quality of life by contributing to
safety, human health and the protection of the environment. Conformity assessment
The IEC's multilateral conformity assessment schemes, based on its international
standards, are truly global in concept and practice, reducing trade barriers
caused by different certification criteria in various countries and helping
industry to open up new markets. Removing the significant delays and costs
of multiple testing and approval allows industry to be faster and cheaper
to market with its products.
As technology becomes more complex, users and consumers are becoming more
aware of their dependence on products whose design and construction they
may not understand. In this situation, reassurance is needed that the
product is reliable and will meet expectations in terms of performance,
safety, durability and other criteria.
How can the industrial user and the final consumer be sure that the product
they buy conforms to the criteria of an IEC standard? The IEC's conformity
assessment and product certification schemes exist to provide just this
reassurance, and the regulatory nature of some products now also sees
recognition of the CA schemes amongst some government regulators.
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