Thread Content
From Following to Leading: 189 Chinese Standards Have Become World Standards Lu Zehua September 17, 2016, 06:47 Source: People’s Daily Online – Overseas Edition Original title: 189 Chinese Standards Have Become World Standards China Post recently issued commemorative stamps for the 39th International Organization for Standardization Conference. Photo by Wang Jiankang (People’s Vision) Recently, the 39th International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Conference held in Beijing once again brought China’s standard-setting efforts to the center of the world stage. With the economic development of Chinese society, China is also undergoing a shift in its role within the global trade landscape, from \"Made in China\" to \"Chinese standards\". Standard assessment affects 80% of world trade. The term “standard” may seem somewhat irrelevant to the average person. But when it comes to the “ISO9000 quality management system” and “3C certification”, most people find them familiar. In a sense, these certification standards serve as a guarantee for people to assess the quality and safety of products, guiding their economic decisions. “Third-rate companies focus on producing products, second-rate companies work on building brands, while first-rate companies set standards. ”Establishing standards is an unwavering principle for companies to grow and strengthen. In fact, it is precisely because Intel set the standards for central processing units (CPUs), Microsoft dominated the standards for operating systems, and Apple led the standards for mobile applications that these giants were able to hold firm control over the dynamics of competition and value distribution in the international market. As a \"passport\" for international trade, standard certification is the main means of removing trade barriers. According to studies by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the U.S. Department of Commerce, standards and conformity assessment affect 80% of world trade. As a standardization organization that covers 98% of the world’s gross national income and 97% of the global population, ISO is known as the \"Technical United Nations\". As the highest governing body of ISO, the ISO General Assembly is one of the most important conferences in the field of world standards. “China hopes to host the ISO conference in order to share international standardization practices and achievements with countries and regions around the world. ”Tian Shihong, director of the China **Standardization Administration Committee, said. I’ve set high-speed rail standards that have become world standards. “He who has the standards owns the world.” ”This sentence reveals the pivotal influence of standards. In the process of Chinese companies going global, establishing \"Chinese standards\" has always been regarded as the ultimate goal. “The distances between high-speed rail stations abroad are generally around 1,000 kilometers, while in China they are usually over 2,000 kilometers. Naturally, the standards for high-speed trains that take into account China’s specific national and railway conditions are distinct. ”When talking about the “Chinese standards” for high-speed rail manufacturing, He Huawu, the chief engineer of China State Railway Group, said as much. Since 2012, China Railway Corporation has been working on the development of EMUs based on \"Chinese standards\" in China. China has a vast territory, complex terrain, and variable climate. The \"Chinese standards\" that have been shaped by extreme cold, fog, willow fluff, and sandstorms are gradually surpassing the former \"European standards\" and \"Japanese standards\", and are being adopted by an increasing number of entities. Similarly, in the field of digital television, once China’s digital television standards were adopted as international standards by the International Telecommunication Union, they were adopted by 14 countries around the world, covering nearly 2 billion people. This has helped several Chinese digital television brands to expand their operations overseas. Today, China’s influence and voice in the development of international standards are growing steadily, with the number of international standards proposed and led by China increasing year by year. As of May this year, 189 standard proposals from China have been adopted as ISO international standards. Particularly in areas such as high-speed rail, nuclear power, communications, and automobiles, China has made a transition from following international standards to setting them. As more and more “Chinese standards” become “world standards,” South Korean media has reported that China’s high-end manufacturing industries, including those in the field of high-speed railways and nuclear energy, are rapidly expanding into global markets, resulting in “Chinese industry standards becoming world standards.” Accelerating the spread of Chinese standards As the world’s second-largest economy and the largest country in terms of goods trade, China is currently making significant efforts to reform and develop its standardization system. There are over 100,000 national standards, industry standards, and local standards, as well as more than a million corporate standards; a standard system that covers all sectors of the primary, secondary, and tertiary industries as well as various social fields has been essentially established. An increasing influence also means greater global responsibilities. As a permanent member of the ISO, China plays an increasingly important role in the development of international standards and in promoting economic cooperation and connectivity worldwide. In accordance with the Standard Connectivity ‘Belt and Road’ Action Plan (2015–2017), China will accelerate the formulation and implementation of specific plans to promote the adoption of Chinese standards abroad, thereby fostering international cooperation in equipment and manufacturing capabilities. Promote the joint development of international standards in areas such as infrastructure like electricity and railways, emerging industries such as high-end equipment manufacturing, biology, and new energy, as well as traditional industries such as traditional Chinese medicine, fireworks, and tea ； At the same time, in areas such as infrastructure connectivity and cooperation in energy and resources, 500 foreign-language versions of urgently needed Chinese ** and industry standards were translated to promote the dissemination of \"Chinese standards\" abroad. “China is deepening reforms in its standardization efforts, encouraging all relevant stakeholders to actively participate in international standardization activities. By fostering standardization cooperation, it aims to promote economic and trade ties among countries around the world, and to fully leverage the role of standardization as a foundation and support for advancing the Belt and Road Initiative. ”Tian Shihong said.