Standardization system

The Polish Committee for Standardization (PKN) operates pursuant to the Act on Standardization of 12^th September 2002 (Journal of Laws no. 169, item 1386), which came into force on January 1^st, 2003. It specified basic goals, principles, organization and financing of standards work.

Basic principles of standardization are:

• Openness and public availability,
• Consideration for the public interest,
• Voluntary participation in development of standards and voluntary application of standards,
• Ensuring possibility of participation in development of standards for all stakeholders,
• Consensus as a basis for agreement on content of standards,
• Independence from the public administration bodies and any interest groups,
• Coherence and consistency of provisions of standards,
• Utilization of proven achievements of science and technology,
• Compliance with the principles of European and international standardization.

National standardization activities are performed in order to:

• Streamline production and services by means of application of recognized technical rules or organizational solutions;
• Remove and prevent technical barriers to trade;
• Protect life, health, environment and consumer interest and to ensure occupational safety;
• Improve functionality, compatibility and convertibility of products, processes and services and to regulate their diversity;
• Ensure quality and reliability of products, processes and services;
• Consider national interests in European and international standardization;
• Facilitate communication through determination of terms, definitions, designations and symbols for common use.

Organizational elements of the standardization system in Poland are:

1. Polish Committee for Standardization (PKN)– a State Organizational Unit financed by the State budget recognized as a National Standards Body, the principal tasks of which are:

• Defining of present state and trends of standardization activity,
• Organisingand supervising of publishing and dissemination of Polish Standards and other deliverables,
• Approval a nd withdrawal of Polish Standards and other standardization documents,
• Representing of the Republic of Poland in the international and regional standards organizations, participating in their work and representing of national interest abroad in matters concerning standardization,
• Initiating and organizing work of Technical Committees (KTs),
• Organizing and running of training, publishing, promotional and informational activities with regard to standardization and related areas,
• Issuing opinions on draft executive acts related to standardization,
• Participating in the national notification system for standards and regulations.

PKN carries out the above tasks applying basic rules of standardization.

2. Technical Committees (Polish abbreviation: KTs)–collective working bodies serving national standardization purposes by the development of Polish Standards and other standards deliverables in specific subject areas. The Committees are composed of experts delegated by KT Members - national administration agencies, business, employers’, consumers’, professional, science and technology, high education organizations and associations.

List of Technical Committees

3. Standardization Council– PKN collegiate consultative and advisory body.

Standardization Council members’ term lasts 4 years.

Present composition of the Standardization Council

The Council accepts annual reports on PKN activities submitted by the PKN President. The Council tasks include issuing opinions concerning in particular:

• Current state and trends of development of standardization,
• Applications for setting up and disbanding Technical Committees,
• PKN internal regulations concerning development of standards and related documents,
• Draft standardization documents developed with PKN participation, on principles specified in PKN internal regulations.

In addition, the Standardization Council tasks include submitting a motion to appoint or recall the PKN President.