Transparency and consensus are cornerstone principles in the development of voluntary industry standards drafted by ISEA product groups. By participating as a member of the formal consensus body having final authority on whether a candidate standard is submitted to ANSI for acceptance as an American National Standard you can:

• Influence the quality and direction of standards that have direct impact on worker safety and health
• Directly contribute to documents that are codified by regulatory bodies, recognized as industry best practices or incorporated as part of commercial contracts
• Gain competitive knowledge by learning of revisions before they’re published
• Enhance your understanding of relevant standard and trends that can increase efficiency and reduce costs to your businesses
• In addition, you may be able to satisfy requirements tor continuing education or professional development hours
• Consensus bodies represent the views of a cross-section of balanced stakeholder interest categories:
• Producer – A manufacturer of the product covered by the standard or components thereof
• User – An organization that uses, specifies or purchases the product covered by the standard
• Government – An agency or department that has a regulatory or other interest in the product (government agencies that use the product fall under the User category)
• General Interest – An organization that has a special interest in this standard due to safety, technical or other requirements or an individual expert with knowledge in the area(s) covered by the standard, but who neither produces nor uses products covered by the standard.

Individuals agreeing to participate as a member of the consensus body are expected to review the candidate standard with a critical eye based on professional experience and applicability of the document to the stated interest category.  Ballot review periods are generally 45 days and additional review may be necessary based on the input received during the balloting phase.  ISEA manages this process through electronic communication and no travel is required.

If you are interested in serving on a consensus panel for any ISEA-administered standards, contact Cristine Fargo for details at 703-525-1695.