Reports demonstrate the value and benefits of accredited conformity assessment

Three recent publications set out different key aspect and benefits of the work and benefits of accredited conformity assessment and other aspects of the quality infrastructure.

World Bank’s World Development Report 2025 Standards for Development, the foreward of the overview states, ‘The world runs on silent agreements. You do not notice them when they work: the socket that fits the plug, the kilogram that weighs a kilogram in Nairobi as surely as in Nagpur, the barcode that rings up a carton of milk or registers a container at sea. Standards—the shared rules that underpin consistency, compatibility, and quality—are not mere technicalities. They are part of the invisible infrastructure of modern economies, as vital to prosperity as roads, ports, or power grids. Treat them as a springboard, and they propel development. Make them a straitjacket, and they will stifle it.’

Defining standards as,’ the quiet catalyst’, the report highlights demonstrates the global nature of standards and standardization and the benefits and value they deliver are almost as wide and diverse as the sectors and groups they benefit and assist. It shows standards as one of the bedrocks of development as a means of addressing global challenges, to create better economies, human capital, environment and governance. The overview (52pp) and full report (408pp) can be downloaded here World Development Report 2025: Standards for Development

The economic value of accredited management systems certification, research by Aston, Nottingham and Durham universities for UK national accreditation body UKAS provides, ‘a comprehensive study evaluating the economic value of accredited management system certifications, specifically ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems (QMS) and ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems (EMS), among UK firms.

The concluding implications of the study states, ‘Management systems certification (ISO 9001 and 14001) emerge from this study as valuable components of a firm’s strategic toolkit, particularly for building resilience and satisfying market or regulatory requirements. While certified firms consistently exhibit superior performance, an economy-wide, immediate causal uplift in output or productivity was not detected among recent first-time adopters. Instead, the evidence suggests that sustained adherence to accredited standards fosters long-term performance gains for established adopters. This comprehensive study thus provides robust evidence that accredited certification represents a critical long-term investment in resilience.’

Both the research summary (5pp) and the full research report (44pp) can be downloaded here New research highlights value of accredited certification.

United States Conformity Assessment Principles (USCAP)

US standards development organisation and ISO member ANSI explains how the accredited conformity assessment system delivers benefit, on both a national level in the USA and globally.

In this 4th edition of the United States Conformity Assessment Principles (USCAP), ANSI states, ‘The concise and clear presentation of these principles is intended to promote national and international understanding and recognition of competently conducted conformity assessment processes resulting in increased acceptance of U.S. products and services within national and international markets. Global acceptance is vital to the continued economic health of the United States, as well as to the protection of health, safety, and the environment’.

Whilst these principles are clearly focussed on the US, vitally, these principles, ‘are consistent with the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade’. Fundamentally, this demonstrates the truly global nature of accredited conformity assessment.