The National Retail Association would like to congratulate our Technical Standards Committee Chairperson, Barbara Kerlen. Barbara has been awarded the most prestigious award from Standards Australia, the W.R. Hebblewhite Medal. Standards Awards are presented to those who have made significant contributions to standardisation and demonstrated outstanding service in enabling Standards Australia to attain its objectives.
Barbara dedication to protecting consumers is at the forefront of her work in standards development. An interest and passion for product safety inspired Barbara to become a ‘voice’ for industry in developing practical solutions to enable better safety outcomes from consumer products.
Involved in standards development since 2015, Barbara has made a mark as a dedicated and motivated committee member. Barbara is a participating member on a range of committees, including being chairperson of the National Retail Technical Standards Committee, the industry working group on button battery safety and sitting on the ISO COPOLCO (Consumer Policy Committee) mirror committee, which focuses on the most effective areas for consumer participation in standards.
Working as a Product Safety Manager, Barbara has been audience to the various cases of damage caused from ingestion of button batteries. Barbara worked closely with Standards Australia to facilitate a forum to highlight the problem and to gain consensus on the development of the first ever national standard for button batteries. Barbara believes well-developed standards are a great tool for a wide range of industry stakeholders. Barbara’s dedication to protecting consumers across Australia and the world is an incredible asset to standards development at both a national and international level.
We thank Barbara for her commitment to product safety, and her passion and dedication to the National Retail Technical Standards Committee.
Get involved
The National Retail Association Technical Standards Committee brings together product quality and compliance specialists from key retailers to proactively engage on issues of product safety and technical standards in an ever-changing regulatory environment. Members who are interested in being involved, please contact David Stout at policy@nra.net.au.