ABOUT AMERICAN NATIONAL STANDARDS INSTITUTE (ANSI)
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) coordinates development and use of voluntary consensus standards in the United States and represents the needs and views of U.S. stakeholders in standardization forums around the globe.
The Institute oversees creation, promulgation and use of thousands of international norms and guidelines that directly impact businesses in nearly every sector: from acoustical devices to construction equipment, from dairy and livestock production to energy distribution, and many more. ANSI is actively engaged in accrediting programs that assess conformance to standards - including globally-recognized cross-sector programs such as the ISO 9000 (quality) and ISO 14000 (environmental) management systems.
ANSI facilitates the development of American National Standards (ANS) by accrediting the procedures of standards developing organizations (SDOs). These groups work cooperatively to develop voluntary national consensus standards. Accreditation by ANSI signifies that the procedures used by the standards body in connection with the development of American National Standards meet the Institute's essential requirements for openness, balance, consensus and due process.
ANSI is the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and, via the U.S. National Committee, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). ANSI is also a member of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF).
Regionally, the Institute is the U.S. member of the Pacific Area Standards Congress (PASC) and the Pan American Standards Commission (COPANT). ANSI is also a member of the Pacific Accreditation Cooperation (PAC) and via the ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB), a member of the Inter American Accreditation Cooperation (IAAC).
