ASTM International - Standards

Standards

The standards produced by ASTM International fall into six categories:

  • the Standard Specification, that defines the requirements to be satisfied by subject of the standard.
  • the Standard Test Method, that defines the way a test is performed and the precision of the result. The result of the test may be used to assess compliance with a Standard Specification.
  • the Standard Practice, that defines a sequence of operations that, unlike a Standard Test Method, does not produce a result.
  • the Standard Guide, that provides an organized collection of information or series of options that does not recommend a specific course of action.
  • the Standard Classification, that provides an arrangement or division of materials, products, systems, or services into groups based on similar characteristics such as origin, composition, properties, or use.
  • the Terminology Standard, that provides agreed definitions of terms used in the other standards.

The quality of the standards is such that they are frequently used worldwide.

The Annual Book of ASTM Standards covers 15 sections of interest plus a master index:

  1. Iron and Steel Products
  2. Nonferrous Metal Products
  3. Metals Test Methods and Analytical Procedures
  4. Construction
  5. Petroleum Products, Lubricants, and Fossil Fuels
  6. Paints, Related Coatings, and Aromatics
  7. Textiles
  8. Plastics
  9. Rubber
  10. Electrical Insulation and Electronics
  11. Water and Environmental Technology
  12. Nuclear, Solar, and Geothermal Energy
  13. Medical Devices and Services
  14. General Methods and Instrumentation
  15. General Products, Chemical Specialties, and End Use Products
  16. Index to all sections and volumes

ASTM Standards can be purchased as a digital library subscription or individually from ASTM and other qualified standards providers. When maintaining a large standards library, often digital subscriptions are used to simplify staying current on standards and to remain in compliance with all copyright laws. A technical library at a university may also have copies of standards to review.

Read more about this topic:  ASTM International

Famous quotes containing the word standards:

    “Measured by any standard known to science—by horse-power, calories, volts, mass in any shape,—the tension and vibration and volume and so-called progression of society were full a thousand times greater in 1900 than in 1800;Mthe force had doubled ten times over, and the speed, when measured by electrical standards as in telegraphy, approached infinity, and had annihilated both space and time. No law of material movement applied to it.”
    —Henry Brooks Adams (1838–1918)

    “In full view of his television audience, he preached a new religion—or a new form of Christianity—based on faith in financial miracles and in a Heaven here on earth with a water slide and luxury hotels. It was a religion of celebrity and showmanship and fun, which made a mockery of all puritanical standards and all canons of good taste. Its standard was excess, and its doctrines were tolerance and freedom from accountability.”
    —New Yorker (April 23, 1990)

    “Chief among our gains must be reckoned this possibility of choice, the recognition of many possible ways of life, where other civilizations have recognized only one. Where other civilizations give a satisfactory outlet to only one temperamental type, be he mystic or soldier, business man or artist, a civilization in which there are many standards offers a possibility of satisfactory adjustment to individuals of many different temperamental types, of diverse gifts and varying interests.”
    —Margaret Mead (1901–1978)