Calling All End Users, Builders, Suppliers, 3rd Party Agencies, etc.........
Calling all the stakeholders of the tiny house industry. All are welcome. Who is a stakeholder? Anyone that has a vested interest or involvement in our industry. Every voice matters.
My name is Janet Thome and I am the founder and President of Tiny House Alliance USA and I am leading an exploratory initiative with ASTM International to develop Global Tiny House Standards specific to tiny houses. We are gathering end users, DIYers, builders, the 3rd party agencies that inspect tiny houses, lenders, insurance agencies, material suppliers, associations, tiny house developers, engineers, architects, affordable housing advocates, regulatory bodies, and more.
Nov. 8th, 2021 2PM to 4PM EST Time
The international call will take place on Nov. 8th, 2021 at 2PM EST. Please let me know if you would like to be on the call and I will make sure you get an invitation. Join us to discuss this amazing opportunity for tiny houses.
The Future Of The Tiny House Industry Is In Our Own Hands
Have you ever looked around at something in society and kicked yourself, because you let others make the rules, or you did not vote, or you did not want to make waves so you let others take the lead? We are in a unique position to take charge of our own destiny and weave the future for our own industry and if we do not do this, it will be done for us as it already is. We have the ear and the interest of ASTM International, one of the largest ANSI Accredited Standards Developers in the world. With 120 years of expertise, ASTM provides a platform for stakeholders to develop global voluntary consensus standards in the form of documents. See update for more information on how the tiny house standards could become mandated.
ASTM provides a platform that is open, everyone that has a vested interest in the industry is invited and every voice is important. The consumer or the DIYer is just as important as the million-dollar company.
What Are Standards?
In the simplest of terms, a standard is an agreed-upon way that an industry determines is the best way to do something, including, testing, construction, best practices, guidance, terminology, specifics, etc……..All with the goal to bring about uniformity, to integrate information and to promote consumer confidence.
The Scope
The focus of this committee is the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus
standards for tiny houses, with attention to safety, quality, uniformity, reliability, consumer
confidence, and ethical business practices, including, but not limited to, best building practices,
test methods, certification, a global quality assurance program, requirements and auditing of 3rd
parties that provide plan review and inspect tiny houses, tiny house community developments,
micro-grid utilities, and minimum construction requirements.
The work of this committee will be coordinated with other ASTM technical committees and other
national and international organizations having mutual or related interests.
Why ASTM International?
Through The Guidance Of ASTM, Our Committee Must Follow The ANSI Essential Requirements for Due Process That Include Openness, Lack Of Dominance, Balance, Coordination, Harmonization, Considerations And Views, Consensus Vote, Appeals, Compliance, And Written Procedures
1) Tiny Houses Will Be Granted A New ASTM Committee To Develop And Maintain The Standards For Our Own Industry
2) The Committee Will Go On Indefinitely
3) We Elect Our Own Officers
4) We Write Our Own Bylaws
5) We Select The Subcommittees Which Divide The Standards Development
6) We Elect The Officers For The Subcommittees
7) We Select The Task Groups- They Are The Ones That Have The Expertise To Write The Standards
8) We Select The Standards That Need To Be Developed
9) One Subcommittee Does Not Hold Up Another Committee For Publication Of A Standard
10) An ASTM Standard Can Be Adopted By An Authority Having Jurisdiction Immediately After Publication -No Waiting For An I-Code Cycle Change Or For A State To Adopt A Certain Year Of The IRC building Code.
11) ASTM Standards Can Be Amended Immediately After Publication
12) 150 Countries Can Participate
13) Through The Guidance Of ASTM, Our Committee Must Follow The ANSI Essential Requirements for Due Process That Include Openness, Lack Of Dominance, Balance, Coordination, Harmonization, Considerations And Views, Consensus Vote, Appeals, Compliance, And Written Procedures
14) There Are No Costs That We Incur To Develop The Standards For Publication. Except To Join As A Member Of ASTM At A Cost Of $75.00 A Year.
15) Together We Will Create Conformity, Without Borders, Uniting For Our Common Goals, Developing A Common Language That Will Integrate The Authority Having Jurisdiction, The Consumer. And The Manufacturers And Builders, Addressing All Life, Health, Fire, And Road Safety, And To Forge The Path That Tiny Houses Are A Viable Housing Solution That Is The Answer To Affordable And Attainable Housing
16) All Our Welcome! No One Can Be Left Out
17) Through The ASTM Process, Standards Will Be Cleansed Of Personal Interests, No One Individual, Company, Organization, Country, Sector Of An Industry, Or Trade Association Can Be The ” Loudest Voice” In The Room Or Dominant The Standards Development. Everyone Matters And Has A Voice And A Vote
18) We Will Change The Face Of Affordable Housing And Will Broaden Homeownership Globally
Photo Courtesy Sunshine Tiny Homes
Tiny House Proposal
Latest Update On Our Potential Commmittee
This proposal was developed by the stakeholders that have been participating so far to be presented to the governing board of ASTM International that grants new technical committees. COTCO, ( Committees On Technical Committees Operations).
This is the latest update of where we are in negotiations with ASTM International, what ASTM is about, what are standards, etc……
Please contact Janet Thome to be added to the stakeholders list. I am also happy to get on a call and get you caught up to speed as well. We got to cover a lot of ground on Ethan Waldman’s podcast, I hope you will take the to be on the listen to the Podcast.
509 345 2013
janet@tinyhouseallianceusa.org
Please contact Lissy Velez with ASTM International if you have any questions regarding our initiative and want to be added to the call at lvelez@astm.org
Dear all,
By request from industry, ASTM International will host a virtual organizational meeting on November 8th, 2021 to discuss the formation of a new technical committee to develop voluntary consensus standards for tiny houses.
The no-fee meeting will be held on November 8th from 2PM-4PM EST. Industry stakeholders and others interested in charting a path towards voluntary consensus standards related to tiny homes are welcome to attend. This is an invitation for you, as a manufacturer, distributor, industry association, or an individual interested in the quality and safety of these products, to become an active participant in this process. Please find meeting details below. An agenda for the call will be distributed to the participants prior to the meeting.
The meeting will:
- Bring an array of industry experts together
- Review proposed scope and structure
- Discuss objection(s) to the formation of a new committee (see attached)
- Formal motion to act
If you have any questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.
Regards,
Lissy Vélez
Program Manager, Business Development
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ASTM INTERNATIONAL
Helping our world work better
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West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, USA
Office + 610-832-9518
ASTM International is a globally recognized leader devoted to the development of international standards. For more than 100 years, ASTM has served society as a leading venue for consumers, industry, and regulators to work collaboratively under a balanced and consensus-based process to craft voluntary standards. ASTM International meets the World Trade Organization (WTO) principles for developing international standards and maintains the attributes outlined in the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA) for a voluntary consensus standards development organization. ASTM standards are used globally in research and development, product testing, quality systems, commercial transactions, and more.
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I would love to be on the call, even if it was to just listen in!
Please include me in future meeting invitations.
As a Home Designer the Tiny Home movement has created a few very interesting challenges and results.
Thank you and I look forward to hearing more about the next steps.
Sincerely
Mike