Appointment of Director General
Open ↗(1) The Minister shall, from time to time, by notification in the Gazette, appoint a public officer to be the Director General of the Department of Standards for the purpose of carrying out the duties and functions assigned to him under this Act.
(2) The Director General shall hold office for such term and subject to such conditions as the Minister may, after consultation with the Public Services Commission, determine.
(3) The Director General shall have an official seal to be published in the Gazette for the authentication of documents required for the purposes of his duties and functions under this Act.
Duties and functions of the Director General
Open ↗(1) The duties and functions of the Director General shall be to foster and promote standards and standardization of specifications as a means of advancing the national economy, benefiting the health, safety and welfare of the public, assisting and protecting consumers, promoting industrial efficiency and development, facilitating domestic and international trade and furthering international co-operation in relation to standards.
(2) In discharging his duties and functions under subsection (1), the Director General may—
(a) appoint a sole national agency to co-ordinate standards development activities in Malaysia with a view to developing common standards and codes and to represent Malaysia in international standardization activities;
(b) promote co-operation between organizations concerned with voluntary standardization in Malaysia and Government departments and agencies for the purpose of achieving compatibility and maximum common usage of standards and codes;
(c) implement criteria and procedures relating to the preparation, approval, acceptance and designation of standards in Malaysia as approved by the Minister;
(d) recommend standards submitted by the sole national agency appointed under paragraph (a) as national standards where appropriate and maintain an index of approved standards;
(e) collect, translate and distribute information on standards and standardization activities in and outside Malaysia;
(f) promote the use of standards approved by the Minister;
(g) recommend to the Minister the adoption of any international or foreign specification, with or without modifications, as are suitable for use in Malaysia;
(h) accredit, in accordance with criteria and procedures approved by the Minister, organizations in Malaysia that
are engaged in conformity assessment and maintain a register of accredited organizations and of their marks of conformity;
(i) appoint organizations as agents to provide assessment services for accreditation and registration provided under this Act;
(j) accredit testing laboratories, calibration laboratories and training organizations engaged in training personnel in conformity assessment;
(k) register, in accordance with criteria and procedures approved by the Minister, persons engaged in conformity assessment services, such as consultancy and auditing, and maintain a register of qualified persons;
(l) establish and register under the Trade Marks Act 1976 the Department of Standards’ own accreditation marks;
(m) authorize and regulate the use of any accreditation mark referred to under paragraph (l);
(n) co-operate with the State Governments, local authorities, the industrial, commercial and trading sectors and such other organizations as he may determine with a view to securing the adoption of standards;
(o) promote, in co-operation with Malaysian organizations engaged in voluntary standards formulation, testing, certification and accreditation, co-operative arrangements with organizations similarly engaged in other countries for the exchange of information;
(p) advise the Minister on the requirement, sources and allocation of financial resources to Malaysian organizations concerned with voluntary standardization to assist them in meeting national and international requirements;
(q) seek and maintain liaison with local and foreign organizations concerned with standardization and other related matters in the public and private sectors, and to maintain contact with industrial needs in standardization; and
(r) perform any other function as the Minister may require.
Power to delegate
Open ↗(1) The Director General may, in writing, delegate to any public officer, subject to such conditions, limitations or restrictions as he thinks fit to impose, any of his duties or functions under this Act.
(2) Any delegation made under this section shall not prevent the Director General himself from performing the duty or exercising the function so delegated.
Power of the Minister to give directions
Open ↗The Minister may, from time to time, give to the Director General directions not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act and the Director General shall give effect to all such directions.
