World Standards Day, 14 October 2011
International Standards – Creating confidence globally
In today’s world we need to have a high level of expectation that things will work the way we expect them to work.
We expect that when we pick up the phone we will be able to instantly connect to any other phone on the planet. We expect to be able to connect to the Internet and be provided with news and information… instantly. When we fall ill, we rely on the healthcare equipment used to treat us. When we drive our cars, we have confidence that the engine management, steering and braking, and child safety systems are reliable. We expect to be protected against electrical power failure and the harmful effects of pollution.
International standards give us this confidence globally. Indeed one of the key objectives of standardization is to provide this confidence. Systems, products and services perform as we expect them to because of the essential features specified in international standards.
International standards for products and services underpin quality, ecology, safety, reliability, interoperability, efficiency and effectiveness. They do all of this while giving manufacturers confidence in their ability to reach out to global markets safe in the knowledge that their product will perform globally.
Interoperability creates economies of scale and ensures users can obtain equal service wherever they travel. So international standards benefit consumers, manufacturers and service providers alike. Importantly, in developing countries this accelerates the deployment of new products and services and encourages economic development.
International standards create this confidence by being developed in an environment of openness and transparency, where every stakeholder can contribute.
It is the stated aim of the WSC partners – IEC, ISO and ITU – to facilitate and augment this confidence globally, so as to connect the world with international standards.
Download the poster (PDF, 192kb)
About the artist: Caterina Fiorani
Caterina Fiorani is a young architect, working as an independent architecture and planning professional in Rome.This is how she explains the inspiration for her poster: “There are some gestures that have universal value: one of them is the open hand, which may indicate greeting, welcome, the reassurance of a peaceful attitude, a deep confidence in human skills.
“Two open hands in contact suggest honesty, and the helpfulness of man towards other human beings, which makes it possible to cooperate for a common purpose. Moreover, two hands recall the concept of work which is the principal tool through which man can achieve quality in his production, with the essential aid of International Standards, a necessary and powerful help to reach excellence.
“The whole world is represented through dots, a standardized graphic sign which symbolizes the hope for equal dignity for human beings all around the globe.The use of colour emphasizes local differences as an added value that must never be forgotten.”
Results of World Standards Day 2011 poster competition
The World Standards Cooperation (WSC) has announced the results of the poster competition for World Standards Day 2011, which attracted 45 entries and 2 000 votes.
Open to all, the competition was to design a poster for World Standards Day, 14 October, on the theme, “International Standards – Creating confidence globally”. The competition’s organizer, the WSC, comprises the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
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THE WINNER : First prize and winner of 1,500 Swiss francs goes to Caterina FIORANI, (Italy) |
Runners up receiving 500 Swiss francs each are:
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| The team of Alexandra Schoenitz, Eurydice Avoine, Cornell Gorgas and Thibaud Cerdan (France/Germany) |
Teguh Pribadi Adi Nugroho (Indonesia) |
Eva Kohl (Germany) |
The winner, Caterina Fiorani, is a young architect, working as an independent architecture and planning professional in Rome. This is how she explains the inspiration for her poster: “There are some gestures that have universal value: one of them is the open hand, which may indicate greeting, welcome, the reassurance of a peaceful attitude, a deep confidence in human skills.
“Two open hands in contact suggest honesty, and the helpfulness of man towards other human beings, which makes it possible to cooperate for a common purpose. Moreover, two hands recall the concept of work which is the principal tool through which man can achieve quality in his production, with the essential aid of International Standards, a necessary and powerful help to reach excellence.
“The whole world is represented through dots, a standardized graphic sign which symbolizes the hope for equal dignity for human beings all around the globe. The use of colour emphasizes local differences as an added value that must never be forgotten.”
The competition was promoted via social media (Twitter, Facebook) and voting held online. It proved so popular that the deadline had to be extended to late May. The final competing entries were chosen by the WSC and displayed for voting on its Website.
The World Standards Cooperation was set up in 2001 in order to strengthen and advance the voluntary consensus-based international standards systems of IEC, ISO and ITU. Each year on 14 October, the members of the IEC, ISO and ITU celebrate World Standards Day, which is a means of paying tribute to the collaborative efforts of the thousands of experts worldwide who develop the voluntary technical agreements that are published as international standards. In addition to the poster, the three partners will be producing a World Standards Day message.