The Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA), under the Ministry of Science and Technology, reports that several ASTM International standards were adopted as Pakistan national standards this year. PSQCA signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with ASTM International in 2008.

Established to advise the Pakistan government on standardization policies, programs and activities to promote industrial efficiency and development as well as for consumer protection, the Standards Development Center of PSQCA currently oversees approximately 15,000 standards for various sectors, including agriculture, food safety, chemicals, electronics, mechanical testing, textile, weights and measures and more.  Their mission is to provide sustainable industrial quality infrastructure for global compatibility and the marketplace through standards and conformity assessment.

Each year, PSQCA provides an annual report to ASTM International as part of the MOU agreement. In the most recent report, PSQCA reports that more than 100 ASTM standards were adopted as Pakistan national standards over the past year.  Many of the adopted standards were concrete standards from ASTM Committee C09 on Concrete ad Concrete Aggregates.   
 
Initiated in 2001, ASTM International's MOU program promotes communication between ASTM International and national standards bodies worldwide, fostering awareness of the standardization systems of all parties involved. The purpose of the program is to increase greater worldwide participation in the ASTM standards development process and facilitate the development of national standards that will aid health, safety, and environmental and economic conditions. More information on the MOU program can be found on the ASTM International Web site (www.astm.org/GLOBAL).

ASTM Staff Contact: Teresa Cendrowska, Phone: 610-832-9718; tcendrow@astm.org

Release #8737