Internationalization of Oil Industry Standards
Authors: Wilson D.E. 
Published: October 2008

For many years, American Petroleum Institute (API) standards have been accepted worldwide as de facto international standards. As worldwide economic activity increased in recent years, however, national governments have sought a greater say in standards development, either through modification of existing standards or formulation of new ones. In 1989, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) re-activated its long dormant Technical Committee 67--'Materials & Equipment for Petroleum & Natural Gas Industries". This committee, with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as Secretariat, is now organizing to address adoption and subsequent internationalization of certain API documents. The focus for the future is development of consensus standards that have worldwide application and that do not serve as barriers to free trade. The API documents are a logical place to start in order to avoid a proliferation of parallel standards and to conserve international manpower resources.

INTRODUCTION

This paper does not deliver results, observations or conclusions, as such, but rather outlines events leading up to, and activities now in progress, to internationalize API documents.

To begin, it is appropriate to explain some of the organizations and their associated acronyms and interrelationships with which API is involved in the international standardization effort:Let's start with the American National Standards Institute, better known as ANSI. ANSI was founded 74 years ago by several professional and technical societies, together with three U.S. government agencies, to coordinate development of voluntary standards in the United States and to approve domestic requirements as consensus standards. It continues in that role today. Internationally, ANSI is also very much involved. As a matter of fact, almost a quarter of ANSTs budget is spent each year in international standardization, principally through its involvement with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) l.The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is an organization which was founded in 1946 by national standards associations from twenty-five countries. ANSI was one of the founding members. Today, 1S0 develops and coordinates international standards work for purposes of trade, safety and environmental consistency. ANSI also plays a prominent role in governing 1S02.ANSI is involved in many 1S0 technical committees and subcommittees, but the one of most interest to API is 1S0 Technical Committee 67 ('TC67) - "Materials and Equipment for Petroleum and Natural Gas Industries'. Until very recently, this technical committee had been dormant. In early 1989, ANSI accepted the Secretariat of this committee and designated API as Technical Advisory Group Administrator to ANSI for involvement in TC67.One other standards organization is worthy of mention here: The European committee for Standardization - CEN (CENELEC for electrical standards). In some ways, this organization plays a role in the European Community similar to that of ANSI within the United States. However, in the oil and natural gas area, it appears to have pretty much deferred to 1S0.