Standards

What are standards?

Trade and industry are bound by official specifications in areas such as construction requirements, codes of practice, methods of testing or terminology. Standards are used to provide uniformity, reliability and safety for all parties concerned. Many bodies issue standards, including trade associations and government departments.

Searching for standards

Australian standards

Current and draft Australian standards from Standards Australia are available in full text via the SAI Global database (previously ASO or Australian Standards Online).

SAI Global database

Access to SAI Global is available to UOW staff and students from the Library's Databases page.

In addition to Australian standards, some international standards can be searched via SAI Global. The database allows two simultaneous users to download the full text of Australian standards and multiple users to search. Standards files expire 48 hours after downloading.

Try the following options:

  • quick search - search on a keyword in the title or standard number
  • power search - use pulldown menus to tailor your search
  • international equivs - enter the number of a known international standard to search for its Australian equivalent, or vice versa
  • my international docs - view selected international standards available in full text for the current subscription year
  • standardswatch - our licence does not allow for individuals to set up their own standards watch, which provide alerts to changes to individual standards or subject areas. Contact the Electronic Services Librarian if you need to use standardswatch.

International standards

International standards organisations may provide searching facilities and options for purchasing individual standards on their websites.

In addition to Australian standards, some international standards can be searched via the SAI Global database.

Links to websites of selected standards organisations are listed below. If available, you will also find

  • whether the full text of individual standards in SAI Global needs to be
    • unlocked or, purchased separately. Unlocking is, in effect, purchasing access to the electronic standard for a period of time usually to the end of the year. Request to unlock automatically come to the Library and are acted upon if the requester is an academic staff member. Student requests need the support of an academic staff member.

     

    The Library will not purchase individual printed or pdf copies of standards. We can assist with a login to purchase standards from SAI Global at a more competitive rate than the normal rate if departments wish to purchase them.

     

    ANSI - American National Standards Institute

    • Coordinates US standards development and accreditation of US standards organisations
    • Search via SAI Global - purchase separately

    ASTM - American Society for Testing and Materials

    • Standards covering areas such as metals, petroleum, construction and the environment
    • These are subscribed to and available from the IHS Standards Expert site

    BSI - British Standards Institution

    • British, European and international standards
    • Search via SAI Global - purchase separately

    CEN/EN - European Committee for Standardization/European Norme

    • Equivalent national standards for European Union members
    • Search via SAI Global - standards must be unlocked

    DIN - German Institute for Standardization

    • German national standards body covering a range of industries
    • Search via SAI Global - purchase separately

    ETSI - European Telecommunications Standards Institute

    • Website includes search engine to locate ETSI standards covering information and communication technologies
    • Individual publicly available standards can be freely downloaded following registration
    • Or, search via SAI Global - standards must be unlocked

    IEEE - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

    • The Library subscribes to the IEEE Xplore database, which provides access to the full text of IEEE standards in PDF for UOW staff and students

     IEC - International Electrotechnical Commission

    • Standards covering electrical, electronic and related technologies
    • Search via SAI Global - standards must be unlocked

     ISO - International Organization for Standardization

    • Designs standards for implementation worldwide, based on input from national standards organisations
    • Search via SAI Global - standards must be unlocked

    JSA/JIS - Japanese Standards Association

    • Japanese standards (JSA/JIS), including English versions
    • Search via SAI Global - standards must be unlocked

    NSSN - A National Resource for Global Standards

    • Originally National Standards Systems Network
    • Information on US and international standards from a range of standards developers and government agencies

    Content by Engineering Liaison Librarian

Last reviewed: 5 April, 2011