Workshop on Electrical Safety Systems for the Americas
Mar 22 - 26, 1999 ( Gaithersburg, MD )
NIST's Office of Standards Services and five private sector organizations co-sponsored a one-week workshop on "Electrical Safety Systems for the Americas." This successful partnership among NIST, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Underwriters Laboratories (UL), Intertek Testing Services (ITS), and the International Code Council (ICC), established an international forum on building codes, product certification, installation, and enforcement practices in several countries in the Americas.
Twenty participants from standards organizations, government agencies and industry associations in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Venezuela exchanged ideas with 25 representatives from counterpart U.S. organizations regarding existing systems in the hemisphere. The foreign participants gave presentations in their area of expertise as the workshop explored the different national schemes, seeking to identify future collaborations and the use of common criteria while achieving appropriate levels of protection and facilitating trade in the hemisphere. A visit to a construction site illustrated several key points made during the week by the U.S. representatives.
Participants resolved to facilitate further exchanges and collaborative efforts, including: 1) creating a virtual community for continuing discussions; 2) additional training and reviews of the National Electrical Code (NEC) and the IEC 60364; and 3) advocacy within trade blocks, such as Mercosur, the Andean Pact, NAFTA, and the FTAA, of issues pertaining to the electrical sector.
The sponsors expressed hope that this unique and constructive workshop will mark the beginning of joint programs and ongoing activities among industry associations, government agencies, and standards organizations in the United States and participating countries in the Americas.
+ Objectives
- To familiarize standards officials, technical experts, and industry representatives from Latin America and the U.S. With the electrical codes and safety systems of each country.
- To provide a forum to discuss issues to assess the relevance of different requirements to the needs of the participating countries.
- To promote adoption and use of common criteria at appropriate levels of protection for each country in the Americas.
- To identify areas for future collaboration between the invited countries and the U.S. In the area of electrical codes and safety practices.
- To identify means to disseminate workshop information and the results of collaborative efforts concerning electrical codes and safety practices in the Americas.
+ List of Participating Organizations
Country |
Organization |
Argentina |
Instituto Argentino de Normalizacion (IRAM) |
Argentina | National University |
Argentina | Camara Argentina de Industrias ElectroMecanicas |
Argentina | Secretaria de Industria y Comercio y Mineria |
Brazil | Comite Brasileiro de Electricidade - COBEl/ABNT |
Brazil | Associacao Brasiliera da Industria Eletrica e Eletronica (ABINEE) |
Brazil | ELETROBRAS-Centrais Eletricas |
Chile | Centro de Estudios, Medicion Y Certificacion de Calidad (CESMEC) |
Colombia | Instituto Colombiano de Normas Tecnicas y Certification (ICONTEC) |
Colombia | Corporacion Centro De Investigacion Y Desarrollo Technologico (CIDET) |
Colombia | Superintendencia de Servicios Publicos |
Colombia | Empresas Publicas de Medellin (EEPPM) |
Mexico | Asociacion Nacional de Normalizacion y Certificacion del Sector Electrico |
Mexico | Organismo Nacional de Normalizacion y Certificacion de la Construccion y Edificacion (ONNCCE) |
Venezuela | Comite de Electricidad Codelectra |
Venezuela | FONDONORMA |