The Standards Council has the mandate to coordinate and oversee the efforts of the National Standards System, which includes organizations and individuals involved in voluntary standards development, promotion and implementation in Canada.

Graphic representation of the National Standards System
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Standards affect nearly every product or service we encounter in our daily lives. In Canada alone there are several thousand national standards, for everything from AC meters to zirconium.

Developing, maintaining and implementing that many standards is too big a job for any one organization. It requires a whole system - the National Standards System. For more than 25 years, the National Standards System has helped to ensure the safety and performance of products and services, helped to open the global marketplace to Canadians, and made Canada a leader in international standardization.

More than 15,000 Canadian members contribute to committees that develop national or international standards.

As well, more than 400 organizations have been accredited by the Standards Council. Some of these develop standards, others are conformity assessment bodies which determine the compliance of products or services to a standard's requirements. Types of accredited organizations include:

• standards development organizations
• certification organizations
• testing and calibration laboratories
• quality and environmental management systems registration organizations