ABSTRACT
Standards are developed in a variety of ways that tend to converge around the methods of the so-called Standards Developing Organizations (SDOs) and the methods of Consortia, some of which were identified in Chapter 10. Codes are developed by organizations like the BOCA (Building Officials Code Administrators) that produce the international building codes (IBCs) described in Chapter 3. Also important (to engineers) are the fire codes of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). The National Electrical Code (NEC), produced by the NFPA, is one of the more important codes for electrical engineers, along with the IEEE National Electrical Safety Code, which relates to electrical transmission lines and related power engineering equipment. These codes are frequently reviewed and revised on a 3-year cycle to keep them current. Regulations are developed in various ways at all government levels but only the development of federal regulations is treated here.
