ANSI Electric Vehicles Standards Panel Seeks Participants to Develop Standardization Roadmap for Safe, Mass Deployment of Electric Vehicles in the United States

NEW YORK, May 2, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- With their potential for energy independence, reduced carbon emissions, and economic growth, few emerging areas of technology are as exciting as electric vehicles. Consumers are eager to "go electric" but remain uncertain about the performance and convenience of the new cars and charging infrastructure. Government and industry are stepping up with needed resources and innovations to support this major shift in our national automotive landscape. And the standardization community is ready to take the wheel in driving the technology to greater deployment nationwide.

To facilitate the large scale introduction of electric vehicles into the market while ensuring that the technologies and infrastructure are safe and effective, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has formed a cross-sector Electric Vehicles Standards Panel (EVSP). The EVSP is seeking participants with relevant expertise and interest to begin the critical work of developing a standardization roadmap to enable the safe, mass deployment of electric vehicles and associated infrastructure in the United States.  The goal is to develop version one of the roadmap this year.

All interested stakeholders are invited to take part in a kick-off call on Tuesday, May 17, 2011, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Eastern. Send an email to [email protected] or visit the EVSP web site at www.ansi.org/evsp for an RSVP form and more information.

Participation is open to all interested parties from industry, government agencies, utilities, standards and conformity assessment organizations, code officials, trade associations, academia, and other relevant areas. There are participation fees to cover activity costs.

The decision to form the EVSP was reached at the March 4th meeting of an interim steering committee convened by ANSI in response to suggestions that the U.S. standardization community needs a coordinated approach to keep pace with electric vehicles initiatives moving forward in other parts of the world.

"With our history of bringing diverse stakeholders together to develop consensus-based solutions for emerging priorities and new technologies, ANSI is well positioned to respond to the need for greater standards coordination in this critical technology area," commented ANSI president and CEO S. Joe Bhatia.

ANSI previously has convened standards panels in diverse areas such as homeland security, healthcare information technology, and nanotechnology.

"The EVSP will provide a mechanism to foster coordination and collaboration among public and private sector stakeholders – including industry, government agencies, utilities, standards and conformity assessment organizations, code officials, and others – to enable the safe, mass deployment of electric vehicles and associated infrastructure in the U.S. with international coordination, adaptability, and engagement," noted Mr. Bhatia.

Through ANSI's role as U.S. member of various regional and international standardization bodies, the panel will also provide coherent and coordinated U.S. policy and technical input to relevant regional and international audiences on needed standards and conformity assessment programs related to electric vehicles.  

In addition, the EVSP will liaise and coordinate as appropriate with other domestic and international electric vehicle initiatives. Many such activities are already underway that will inform the panel's work, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Smart Grid Interoperability Panel (SGIP) vehicle-2-grid activity.

About ANSI

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a private non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance U.S. global competitiveness and the American quality of life by promoting, facilitating, and safeguarding the integrity of the voluntary standardization and conformity assessment system. Its membership is comprised of businesses, professional societies and trade associations, standards developers, government agencies, and consumer and labor organizations. The Institute represents the diverse interests of more than 125,000 companies and organizations and 3.5 million professionals worldwide.

The Institute is the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and, via the U.S. National Committee, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), and is a U.S. representative to the International Accreditation Forum (IAF).

SOURCE American National Standards Institute