American National Standards Institute (ANSI)

Definition - What does American National Standards Institute (ANSI) mean?

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a non-profit organization charged with globally developing U.S. business competition by enabling and encouraging conformity assessment systems and voluntary consensus standards.

ANSI represents nearly 1,000 government agencies, organizations and international and institutional members via its Washington, D.C. headquarters and New York branch office.

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Techopedia explains American National Standards Institute (ANSI)

Established in 1918, ANSI is supported by various private and public sector organizations. ANSI also works to harmonize U.S. and international standards to ensure that American products are utilized around the world.

ANSI facilitates the accreditation of standards designed by industry representatives, companies, consumer groups and government agencies, etc. These standards ensure:

Product features and functionality consistency
Term and definition uniformity
Identical product examination
Accreditation of companies that perform personnel or product certification

A standard created under conditions that are accessible, equitable and receptive to the specifications of numerous stakeholders are designated by ANSI as American National Standards (ANS). The fair and open ANS procedure ensures that all interested parties have the opportunity to participate in a standard's development. ANS also assists and covers the public interest, as ANSI-certified standards should meet their requirements for visibility, consensus and balance, etc.