Spc International Creative Album Vol 13 20

ISO sets standards for a whole range of purposes - standards for many of which you have no need to worry about. They set standards for software, for the manufacture of automobiles, for medicine, for everything from welding to oil to computers, for kitchen appliances, for construction, for agricultural equipment, for climate, for international air travel, for landing craft, etc. But they also set standards for international trade in many things. If you are a buyer of steel, or a buyer of cotton, or a buyer of anything, you will know how important it is to get your suppliers to meet a particular specification - it's the uniformity of the product which enables it to be sold on a worldwide basis, and to be processed, stored and transported easily. Strictly speaking, ISO does not set standards for the products it doesn't deal with - but when it does set standards, it tries to be as broad as possible. A typical ISO standard might cover anything from electrical wiring to the placement of a wine-cooler on a shelf. But it tends to be very practical, and written in plain English. The standards are revised at regular intervals, usually every 10 years. The latest (revision 3) came out in 1996.

The organization was set up in 1947 when the United Nations, then planning to develop into a 'United Nations Organization', asked some of its members to help set up a standards organization. The US refused. It's probably a good thing they did, since what it does is help establish standards to promote international trade - in other words, it's a kind of'smoke screen'. The organization has its headquarters in Geneva. It has about 1200 member countries, and about 200 associates (mostly in other parts of the UN). It has about 30 committees, many focusing on particular types of standard - eg., there are about 40 'Technical Committees' which have about 300 sub-committees. Generally, the work in those committees has to be completed within four years. The work is not as great a burden as you might expect - any of its committees can be set up with only one member. The organization is run by an executive committee, made up of about 15 members, one of whom is the Secretary-General.

International Society of Typographic Designers. The official trade association of professional graphic designers worldwide, ISD (ISD). Not the same as the Industrial Society of the Dark Arts, which is the name of one of the Harry Potter books. ISD is the acronym for International Society of Designers, and the abbreviation is used worldwide.

ISD is a great organization, and provides excellent news on graphic design, text and layout, typography and information design. I am personally very proud to be a member of ISD. You can find out more on http://www.isd.org/ . At the time of writing (May 2008) there are nearly 5,000 members worldwide, with an international membership of 250. In the UK, the Head Office is in London, and there is an international membership of 50 UK members (most of whom are working in or with graphic design companies), plus a number of non-UK national members. 827ec27edc