BSI plans nanotechnology standards

BSI British Standards has announced it is soon to launch a series of standards and guides to underpin the rapidly expanding fields of nanotechnologies and nanosciences.

The worldwide market for nanotechnology-enabled products is expected to exceed $1 trillion a year by 2015, and nanotechnologies are already used in medicine, ‘green technology’, and in over 500 consumer products as varied as laptops, sunscreen, tennis rackets and socks.

BSI said in a release: ‘To support the rapid progress of this broad enabling technology it is important that standards are implemented at an early stage in order to facilitate precision in knowledge transfer, public awareness and consumer confidence.’

In January 2008 BSI will launch six standards dealing with nanotechnologies terminology and three guides which, it said, will support:

• Safety testing, legislation and regulation

• Worker, public and environmental safety

• Commercialisation and procurement

• Patenting and Intellectual property rights

• Communication about the benefits, opportunities and potential problems associated with nanotechnologies

Mike Low, director of BSI British Standards, said: “It is crucial that the UK plays a leading role in the development of nanotechnologies, which is predicted to have a huge impact on the global economy. Standardization lies at the heart of this development and BSI is proud to be working in this important area and ensuring up-to-date information for business at large.”

Dr Peter Hatto, chair of the UK national committee on nanotechnologies, said: “These nine new documents continue the UK’s innovative work to develop standards for this important new field, which started with the publication of PAS 71 – Vocabulary for nanoparticles. The publications mark the beginning of an exciting work programme for 2008 and beyond.”