ABSTRACT

By the late 1800s professional organizations of mechanical, electrical, chemical, and other engineers were founded with this aim in mind. The Institute of Electrical Engineers developed standards between 1890 and 1910 based on the practices of the major electrical manufacturers of the time. Such activities were not within the purview of the OWM, so there was no government involvement during this period. It took the pressures of war production in 1918 to cause the formation of the American Engineering

Standards Committee (AESC) to coordinate the activities of various industry and engineering societies. This group became the American Standards Association (ASA) in 1928.