You might think you're sheltered from global trade and international standards because you have a small shop that welds only for local trade, but nothing has become more obvious in the last 10 years as the fact that competitors from around the world can make a local impact.

Here's an example:

Europe's International Organization for Standardization — the Switzerland-based organization that sets and keeps standards for a wide number of industries — has a committee that has been reviewing welding and allied processes for several years. That committee covers standards for the filler materials, for safety and equipment, for testing welds, and for tests that can be applied both to welding procedures and personnel. While some standards have been settled, the committee has additional work to do.

Ordinarily, industry standards are developed on a national basis, and go a long way to promote consistency and professionalism for an industry. Standards provide a basis to measure performance and a foundation that the industry lives with.

Setting industry standards on an international basis can become a sticky issue.

There are plenty of profitable reasons for the Europeans to want their standards to be taken worldwide. First and foremost is that nothing would have to change in Europe if what they are doing becomes the "standard."

It would be up to everyone else in the world to invest whatever is necessary to conform to the training, metal filler compositions, tools and safety standards they use. In some cases, the current European practices may be better than U.S. or North American practices; in other cases they may be worse; and in several places they just may be different. In an economy that is growing more global by the minute, whoever gets to set the standards has an immediate advantage.

At a recent meeting, the Welding Equipment Manufacturers Committee (WEMCO) heard a report from its international standards committee, which is monitoring the deliberations on international standards for the welding industry. That group has already made an impact on the standards that already have been set — emphasizing the need for critical analysis on issues that could affect shops of all sizes, even if their business only comes from down the street. But be warned; you can no longer hide from a global marketplace.