ASME is lead in standards consortium that will open in China next year

ASME is the lead organization in a consortium of standards developers that will use a recently obtained award from the U.S. Department of Commerce to open an office in Beijing next month.

Benjamin H. Wu (middle), Deputy Under Secretary, Technology Administration, US Dept. of Commerce, and Heidi Hijikata (fifth from left), Standards Liaison, International Trade Administration, US Dept. of Commerce, presented the Commerce Award at the World Standards Day dinner in October. From left to right are June Ling (ASME), Jennifer Henderson (CSA America), William Berger (ASME), Al Callahan (CSA America), and Mark Sheehan and David Wizda of ASME.

The primary aim of the Consortium for Standards and Conformity Assessment is to advocate the use of US and Canadian technical standards in China as well as promote the development of Chinese standards programs that are compatible with programs in North America, said Mark Sheehan, ASME's managing director, development, Codes and Standards. In October, the consortium received $399,500 from the Commerce Department's International Trade Administration. The maximum amount for an award given by the trade administration is $400,000.

The other members of the consortium are ASTM International, the American Petroleum Institute and CSA America. All four members of the consortium are world leaders in standards development.

While emerging as an industrial power and a key player in the global economy, China has recently begun to develop internationally recognized technical standards that are key to allowing free trade among nations, Sheehan said. The consortium will enable U.S.-based international standards developers to establish a continuous presence in Beijing in order to build relationships, he added.

"This award will help us to immediately establish a firmer standards presence in China," said June Ling, ASME's associate executive director for Codes and Standards. "Over the past several years, we have developed relationships with key Chinese officials, and having an on-the-ground presence in Beijing will help cement those relationships and further efforts to open Chinese markets to US goods and services."

 

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