CEDIA has announced a major achievement in its global strategy implementation in elevating industry professionalism.

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has approved CEDIA as an Accredited Standards Developer (ASD). The designation, which is over 18 months in the making, exemplifies CEDIA’s organisational commitment to take a key role as thought leaders in the development of industry standards.

“Quite simply, this milestone puts us in a higher, more globally-recognised echelon when it comes to developing industry standards,” CEDIA senior director of technology and standards Walt Zerbe says.

“Carrying the ASD designation demonstrates to stakeholders everywhere that CEDIA is dedicated to creating standards that are not only of the highest calibre, but are also driven by the market and developed openly and through rigorous buy-in.

“When CEDIA sets standards, you can be assured that all parties — from integrators to manufacturers to end-users and all points in-between — are represented. Being recognised as an ASD by ANSI is a weighty affirmation of quality.”

Meeting the ANSI requirements shows that CEDIA’s processes meet high levels in openness, balance, lack of dominance (relating to voices from stakeholders), due process and consensus.

As ANSI states: “accreditation by ANSI as a standards developer represents a public statement of the value placed on an open and equitable consensus development process.”

This news tells integrators that standards, training and initiatives they rely on from CEDIA have been developed through peer-reviewed and rigorously-vetted methods. One of the key areas of focus of CEDIA’s long-term strategic plan centers on industry professionalism and by delivering standards at the highest levels, integrators, manufacturers and designers can create better outcomes for customers.

Following the achievement as an ANSI-recognised ASD, CEDIA’s next stage involves taking responsibility for the administration of the joint CEDIA/Consumer Technology Association (CTA) R10 standards group.