A Friday Debate

Should older or earlier versions of BSI standards be made freely available on the internet?

Consider for example
BS 7430:2011+A1:2015. Code of practice for protective earthing of electrical installations being the current version


BS 7430:1998. Code of practice for earthing Published:15 Nov 1998 • Withdrawn: 31 Dec  2011


Or maybe

BS 7671:2018+A2:2022. Requirements for Electrical Installations. IET Wiring Regulations being the current version

BS 7671:2008+A3:2015. Requirements for Electrical Installations. IET Wiring Regulations Published: 31 Jan 2015 • Withdrawn: 29 Jun 2018


These could be published in a PDF format with a watermark on every page stating that this is not the current or latest version and for the current version can be found on the BSI web site.  This then allows people to look at the information from older versions and allow them to use it for research or for study purposes.  If you take BS7671 as an example has over 60 Normative References to other BS standards like BS 5839 which in effect is a whole suite of standards.  Sometimes people are unsure if that publication will satisfy their requirements.  

As a scenario BS7671 makes reference to BS7430 and BS7430 makes reference to BS7671

As always please be polite and respectful in this purely academic debate.  The concept of this idea is to help educate future generations of engineers by allowing them to access historical information from past achievements and standards.

Come on everybody lets help inspire the future.

Parents
  • Mike

    Yes a good point on education as I have mentioned the origin of modern standards when teaching.

    It is irrelevant if an installation of a piece of equipment complied at the time, the important issue is does it comply with the current standard.

    Of course if you are an IET member you can go to the IET archives and search the original documents. I had the pleasure of holding the  original 1882 Journal that contained the 1st Edition of the Wiring Regulations which was not published as a separate document.

    JP

Reply
  • Mike

    Yes a good point on education as I have mentioned the origin of modern standards when teaching.

    It is irrelevant if an installation of a piece of equipment complied at the time, the important issue is does it comply with the current standard.

    Of course if you are an IET member you can go to the IET archives and search the original documents. I had the pleasure of holding the  original 1882 Journal that contained the 1st Edition of the Wiring Regulations which was not published as a separate document.

    JP

Children
  • It is irrelevant if an installation of a piece of equipment complied at the time, the important issue is does it comply with the current standard.

    For the wiring regs, and for performing an EICR, perhaps.

    However there are a lot more standards out there than just wiring ones, and plenty of examples where an old standard applies. MOT test for an old car comes to mind immediately, and then several telecommunications   standards, and for BSI you can buy imperial sized steel bars certified  to the 1950s standard if you need to .


    But even in the world of  wiring, things like meeting  the ESCQR for example does not (and sensibly cannot) ) call up the latest version of BS7671 (though I agree there is no effect in practice with that one- an installation meeting a newer standard is still 'legal').

    Mike

    PS
    In any case any substantial copying or reproduction in full of anything newer than about the 8th edition of the regs needs permission from the current copyright holders.