Sira is a UK-based

notified body A notified body, in the European Union, is an organisation that has been designated by a member state to assess the conformity of certain products, before being placed on the EU market, with the applicable essential technical requirements. These e ...

, specialising in

ATEX The ATEX directives are two EU directives describing the minimum safety requirements for workplaces and equipment used in explosive atmospheres. The name is an initialization of the French term ''Appareils destinés à être utilisés en ATmo ...

, IECEX and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the C ...

n product approvals.

Foundation

Sira began life as the British Scientific Instrument Research Association (BSIRA). It was founded in 1918 by a Committee of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the m ...

for the promotion of scientific and industrial research and supported by the DSIR. The first members of the association were representatives of the optical industry, but these were joined in the same year by the electrical

scientific instrument A scientific instrument is a device or tool used for scientific purposes, including the study of both natural phenomena and theoretical research. History Historically, the definition of a scientific instrument has varied, based on usage, laws, an ...

, electromedical, and

X-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 ...

industries. Its first director of research was Sir Herbert Jackson (1863–1936). BSIRA's London headquarters were destroyed in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

and, in 1947, the association moved to a site in South Hill,

Chislehurst Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies east of Bromley, south-west of Sidcup and north-west of Orpington, south-east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Great ...

, a

Grade II Listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ire ...

former private house called 'Sitka' By the 1960s, the association had become better-known as 'Sira',.Collins, A.H.,
A cell design for radio-frequency titrimetry
', accessed 2014-06-29 It evolved into a group of British

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

companies, based in south London, that designed test equipment and provided calibration services.

Fate

In 2006, Sira Test and Certification Ltd, Sira Defence and Security, and Sira Environmental were owned by Volveré plc. In July 2009, Volvere sold Sira Test and Certification Ltd, Sira Certification Service and Sira Environmental Ltd to CSA International.

Similar organizations

* Baseefa — a similar organization in the UK *

Canadian Standards Association The CSA Group (formerly the Canadian Standards Association; CSA) is a standards organization which develops standards in 57 areas. CSA publishes standards in print and electronic form, and provides training and advisory services. CSA is composed ...

a similar organization in Canada; also serves as a competitive alternative for USA products * ETL SEMKO — a competing testing laboratory, part of Intertek; based in London, UK *

IAPMO R&T IAPMO R&T was started in 1936 as a third-party listing agency specializing in plumbing and mechanical products. IAPMO R&T is accredited to certify products that meet the criteria of the Uniform Plumbing Code, Uniform Mechanical Code, Uniform Sol ...

— certification body based in Ontario, California, USA * MET Laboratories, Inc. — testing laboratory based in Baltimore, Maryland, USA * NTA Inc — certification agency based in Nappanee, Indiana, USA * NCC — a similar Brazilian approvals organisation * TÜV — a similar German approvals organisation *

Underwriters Laboratories The UL enterprise is a global safety science company headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, composed of three organizations, UL Research Institutes, UL Standards & Engagement and UL Solutions. Established in 1894, the UL enterprise was founded as ...

— testing organization, based in Northbrook, Illinois, USA * TRaC Global — a test laboratory and certification body based in the UK

References

External links

Sira Certification

Sira Consulting Ltd

Sira Defence and Security

Sira Defence and Security

CSA International
British research associations Companies based in Cheshire Engineering companies of the United Kingdom 1918 establishments in the United Kingdom Organizations established in 1918 Product-testing organizations Research institutes in Cheshire Runcorn Scientific instruments {{UK-company-stub

Foundation

Fate

Similar organizations

See also

References

External links