Jul 26, 2016

A decade later, BSN and ASTM celebrate their partnership.

In May, ASTM President James A. Thomas commemorated the 10th anniversary of the memorandum of understanding between the National Standardization Agency of Indonesia (BSN) and ASTM. A certificate of recognition and letter of appreciation was delivered during the 37th Pacific Area Standards Congress meeting. The MOU was signed in 2004, and ASTM and BSN routinely review the MOU and use the opportunity to discuss the partnership it enables and reaffirm the agreement.

Over the years, BSN has adopted, consulted or referenced close to 350 ASTM standards. The standards come from 50 different ASTM technical committees, but with significant numbers from the following: C01 on Cement; C09 on Concrete and Concrete Aggregates; D02 on Petroleum Products, Liquid Fuels and Lubricants; D04 on Road and Paving Materials; and D20 on Plastics.

BSN's engagement with ASTM includes active participation in training and academic outreach as well as committee activities, including attendance at the November committee week meetings.

BSN is actively using and monitoring the work of various ASTM technical committees. Recent discussions have focused on topics as wide ranging as outdoor fitness equipment, paint, aviation and commercial real estate site assessment. For example, ASTM staffers have recently spoken with aviation experts from the private and public sectors of Indonesia, as well as the Philippines and Vietnam, to inform the group about ASTM's involvement in the aviation sector and to encourage their participation and use of ASTM technical information and services.

An August meeting at ASTM's Beijing office brought together BSN representatives with ASTM International staff members to talk about standards and their use. This time, their discussion focused on the use of standards for outdoor fitness equipment, paint, plastics and consumer products.

An example for the Asia Pacific region, Indonesia has long had an interest in educating students about standards. BSN has been instrumental in starting education programs in their country with professors teaching the value of standardization and attending recent meetings of International Cooperation for Education about Standards, which ASTM has also attended. To date, ASTM has more than 30 student members in Indonesia.

Through the MOU, ASTM and BSN have conducted training for technical committee participants and other stakeholders. Virtual and on site programs have addressed topics ranging from the standards development process and electronic tools to intellectual property and technical topics related to ASTM standards. When BSN's Ari Wibowo participated in ASTM's Standards Expert Program, he studied the process that BSN would use to adopt ASTM standards as national standards. He also looked into the structure and history of ASTM. While here, Wibowo met with ASTM staff members, attended committee week meetings and visited other standards institutes.

Training opportunities for this MOU partner will continue in 2015, as BSN has again been invited to participate in the SEP. BSN is already considering topics for the expert, including aspects of toxicity testing in nanotechnology, ASTM standards used in plumbing codes and ASTM standards used in various aspects of construction, such as geotextiles and concrete.

Learn more about the ASTM MOU Program.

Standards Body

National Standardization Agency of Indonesia

Location

Jakarta, Indonesia

Major Activities

Standardization and accreditation

MOU Signed with ASTM

2004