Today, it is impossible to imagine a social and social structure without systems and means of regulating activities in almost all spheres of the national economy. The established rules make it possible to streamline the rules for the provision of services, production processes, product circulation schemes, work performance technologies, etc. The source of these rules is the national standardization system (NSS), the format for which is also determined by state standards.
Basic concepts
From the point of view of Federal law, the key concepts of the NSS are formulated as follows:
- Standardization is a type of activity aimed at the creation, approval, editing, cancellation, publication and direct application of documents that allow for systematization in the target control area.
- The object of standardization is a material subject, process or phenomenon to which standardization tools are applied. In particular, this may be a product, service, control procedure, classification system, etc.
- National standardization system - a set of rules and procedures by which participants in standardization work activities interact with each other, implementing regulatory regulation in this area.
- Standardization rules - a document or a set of documents that contains the central methodological and organizational provisions of national standards indicating the order and methods of carrying out work actions.
Several aspects of the development and application of standardization should be shared. Firstly, these are the standards according to which the direct approval of the rules and recommendations for the creation of codes with standardization rules is made. Secondly, the system of standards in the national standardization system is also designed and drawn up according to previously approved procedural and technological standards, which are enshrined in law. Thirdly, the direct application of standards approved by the authorities is carried out separately by special commissions, supervision services, committees, etc.
Participants in the standardization system
Regulation in the field of standardization is carried out in accordance with the current goals and objectives of the policy. Technical committees are formed at the level of supreme authorities, which also include representatives of large corporations, constituent entities of the Russian Federation, scientific organizations and municipalities. These committees can participate in the preparation of proposals regarding the formulation of tasks in the field of standard development. With regard to the establishment of technical committees, this task is solved in accordance with several principles:
- Balanced representation of different parties.
- Participation on a voluntary basis.
- Compliance with the goals of standardization enshrined in law.
- Accessibility and openness of information about the formed technical committee.
- An application for the creation of a committee within the framework of the Russian national standardization system is considered for 15 days, after which a conclusion is issued on the possibility of forming this structure.
- The decision to close the activities of the technical committee is also taken by the federal authorities.
Goals and objectives of the NSS
A standardization system exists for legal, technical and social regulation of economic activity at different levels. Another thing is that the impact on such activities can manifest itself in different ways and often indirectly. If we talk about the specific goals of the national standardization system, the following are among the main ones:
- Stimulation of the country's integration into the infrastructure of international standardization and into the global economy as a whole as an equal partner.
- Technological modernization of industry.
- Improving the competitiveness of Russian manufacturers.
- Support for overall socio-economic development.
- Ensuring the country's security by improving the quality of its defense potential.
- Improving the standard of living.
- Improving the quality of domestic products and services.
The above goals are achieved by solving the following tasks:
- Mastering new technological solutions, achieving the position of a technological leader in innovative sectors of economic activity.
- Environmental protection, improving the safety of human health and, in general, improving the economic, legal and environmental situation.
- Improvement of technologies, methods of operation and disposal of products.
- Unification and optimization of the product range, ensuring its interchangeability and compatibility, reducing the time for production development and creation of new products.
- The use of standardization documents in the provision of services, work and supply of goods.
- Prevention of actions by manufacturers of products that mislead the consumer.
- Achieving the uniformity of measurements and the possibility of comparing their results.
- Achieving a high degree of rationality in the use of natural resources.
- Creation of conditions for the effective targeted application of international quality standards and standards of individual foreign states.
Organizational structure of the NSS
Direct implementation of these tasks is impossible without an effective organizational and functional structure. Its elements represent the following organs:
- Technical committees that have already been mentioned above.
- Agency for the provision of metrology functions and technical regulation of the Russian Federation.
- Research institutions working in the field of standardization.
- Developers of regulations in various fields of industry and management.
- Standardization services for specific organizations, corporations, and enterprises.
The work is organized by a special control body of the national standardization system, which performs the following functions:
- Monitoring the compliance of the current standardization system with the interests of the state economy and scientific progress.
- Production of technological expertise of projects in the framework of which standards are developed.
- Adopting standards design programs.
- Setting national standards.
- Consideration of standards, standards of standardization, as well as recommendations with the possibility of ensuring access to them by interested parties.
Features and principles of the national standardization system of the Russian Federation
The Russian standardization system is based on constitutional provisions, in the context of which the standards relate exclusively to the conduct of federal authorities and are not subject to the change and influence of third-party structures. In addition, the regulatory and legislative framework for the development of standards at the national level is formed by the code of administrative offenses, the criminal and civil codes of the Russian Federation.
Regardless of the level and focus of the application of the national standardization system of the Russian Federation, its methods should be based on the principles of the following type:
- The guarantee of compliance with the rules, properties, characteristics and principles that are recorded in the documents of national standardization, the current level of scientific and technological development of the country, as well as the practical experience of countries abroad.
- The obligatory use of documentation in relation to objects within the framework of legal regulation by Article 6 of the Federal Law.
- Providing conditions for maintaining continuity in the field of standardization.
- The establishment of rules is carried out with the expectation of ensuring consistency and complexity.
- Openness of the processes of creating documents used in the national system of standardization, ensuring participation in the development of stakeholders. The focus is on the possibility of reaching a consensus of different parties in the formation of a system of national standards.
- Providing the ability to monitor the implementation of requirements for standard development processes.
- The principle of voluntary application of documentation.
- The desire to unify the design, development, coordination, editing, publication and further use of NSS solutions.
Documents of the national standardization system
The materials of the main documentation for standardization include:
- Basic documents of the NSS.
- Actual classifiers.
- Specific enterprise standards as well as regulatory requirements and conditions.
- Code of practice.
- Documents that state the mandatory requirements for standardization objects.
The basic list of documents of the national standardization system deserves special attention:
- Materials that record fundamental standards and rules. They are used as the main provisions, except in cases where there are conflicts with international standards and the application of the domestic NSS is recognized as inappropriate because of non-compliance with certain technical rules.
- Documents approving provisional national standards. As a rule, they are used to promote the application of new technological solutions in the field of science and technology in various fields of knowledge and economic activity.
- Source materials, on the basis of which a list of tasks of the regulatory function in a particular area is formulated.
- Standardization Recommendations. Prepared for verification of individual provisions of a standard within the framework of preliminary application. Based on the test results, recommendations are given on the possible editing of the main document of a methodological property.
- Information and technical reference books. A composite document of the NSS, which contains a systematic set of data in a specific area of application of standardization. For example, technologies, processes, methods, methods, equipment, and other objects of standardization may be described.
Development of documentation for the NSS
The organizational process of developing a document begins with sending an appropriate application to the federal government for the creation of a draft national standard. Such an application must necessarily contain information about the positions that are planned to be disclosed in a future document. From the first stages of creating a document of the national standardization system, developers should provide access to the project materials for interested persons in a familiarization format. In particular, a hard copy of the document is provided on paper or in electronic form.
Further, during the development process, the authors can hold public discussions of the project, record incoming comments and modify the project in accordance with criticism. At the request of the federal authorities or interested parties, the authors of the document must also provide copies of the edited materials at specified times. After the development is completed, a public discussion is also held and, in the absence of comments, the document is sent for examination to the technical committee. In the case of a positive assessment, the new document is marked with a special sign of the national standardization system in the form of a combination of the letters "P" and "T" inscribed in the letter "C". This symbolism indicates the shape of the measuring bracket enclosed in an oval. The presence of such a marking means that its carrier is used in the national standardization of the Russian Federation.
NSS programs
The authorities in the field of standardization application develop, approve and make adjustments to the existing documents of the NSS, acting within the framework of the general program. The latter is developed on the basis of development principles and in accordance with the priority areas of standardization, which are also formulated taking into account the complex of goals and objectives facing employees in this field.
Of key importance in the process of creating an NSS program is the planning of standardization work, which can be carried out at different time periods. The planning of the national standardization system program for the long term, in particular, should be consistent with the basic provisions of the country's socio-economic development. The provisions of state programs laid down in the development strategies of various industries are taken into account, where in principle the elements of standardization are applied. The basis of the program can be composed of several design decisions, each of which is also subject to examination and, if necessary, editing by the relevant control authorities.
The concept of a national standardization system
To date, the concept of the NSS, designed for the period up to 2027, is relevant. In accordance with its provisions, the views, values and principles of the development of the current system of standards were formed. Among the priorities of this concept, we can single out the removal of technical barriers in trade and market relations, increase the competitiveness of domestic products, protect the lives of citizens and increase energy efficiency with resource saving. If we talk about specific industries, then the nuclear industry, high-tech chemistry, the production of non-metallic and composite materials and new technologies for processing radioactive waste come to the fore in the concept of developing a national standardization system until 2027. Increased attention on the part of developers of new standards to these areas is due to economic, technological and environmental factors. The high pace of development of technologies by which innovative materials are produced, in principle, force standardization bodies to either improve old regulatory documents, or draw up new acts and regulations.
Progress towards improving the rules as part of the creation of new standards does not stop. For example, the current development of the national standardization system is impossible without the use of digital information support, which requires updating the requirements for the procedures for official publication, application and editing of documents with all-Russian classifiers and reference books.
Conclusion
The work of standardization bodies is almost imperceptible, but its results manifest themselves at almost every step. Technical standards, procedural regulations and codes of practice that apply to production, construction and in various areas of the provision of services create a kind of format within which the activities of modern society are carried out. In this sense, the national standardization system of the Russian Federation is not much different from similar regulators that are used abroad. The difference lies only in the technical and organizational nuances and tasks that standardization experts face today. So, at the moment, the current NSS program should facilitate the technological re-equipment of production, including using foreign experience and innovative technologies that are used by advanced countries in the framework of standardization.