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Press Release

Release Date: 14/10/02

Bureau Signs MOU with ASTM

The St. Lucia Bureau of Standards is now in a position to use the standards developed by the American Society of Testing & Materials in its standards development work, adopt these standards as national standards and sell copies of standards published by the organization. This following an agreement signed by the two organizations in June 2002.

ASTM provides a global forum for the development and publication of voluntary consensus standards for materials, products, systems, and services. ASTM standards therefore serve as the basis for manufacturing, procurement, and regulatory activities in over 130 varied industry areas. They can therefore be used to aid in the development of St. Lucia ’s national standards for health, safety, and the environment.

The agreement signed allows for the Bureau to identify and link specific St. Lucian industry leaders and technical experts with ASTM technical committees and help promote direct active participation through review of and comment on ASTM draft standards to ensure that the standards meet the needs of St. Lucian industry. In addition the Bureau is now in a position to seek and recruit partners for the delivery and implementation of related ASTM initiatives such as technical and professional training Programs.

Over 30,000 producers, users, consumers, and representatives of government and academia  from 100 nations are the members of ASTM International. The signing of the ASTM agreement comes on the heels of another major agreement signed by the Bureau which allows St. Lucia to participate in the Affiliate Country Programme of the IEC.

The increased networking and strengthening of relationships with key international standards organizations has been one of the key factors of the Bureau of Standards strategy to enhance the image of the organization internationally.

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