The Seychelles Bureau of Standards, which is a parastatal body is national standard body in Seychelles. The Seychelles Bureau of Standards (SBS) was established in August 1987 under the Seychelles Bureau of Standard Act to provide standardization in relation to commodities, processes and practices.
Old SBS Building, Pointe Larue
SBS was managed by the National Standard Council from 1987-1995 which was appointed by the Minister of Industry to advised him on all matters pertaining to the Seychelles Bureau of Standard Act.
The bureau was made up of 2 divisions:
- Standard Development and Promotion Division: This division was responsible for the organisation and coordination of the bureau’s technical committees and for the promotion and promulgation of standards.
- Inspectorate and Certification Services Division This division was responsible for the enforcement of the Weights & Measures Act of 1980 and the National Standard Depository Unit, implementation of standards.
The staff of the Bureau consisted of an Executive Director and 10 officers at that time.
The Technological Support Services Division (TSSD) of the Department of Industry was responsible for the functions of SBS as per the SBS Act of 1987. The director of TSSD was also the director of SBS.
TSSD was responsible for the provision of technological and scientific expertise, facilities and support in several areas to Seychelles.
In 1992, all the assets of TSSD including human resource were transferred to SBS and in 1995 the SBS Act was amended. The National Standard Council was dissolved and the administration of the bureau was vested in a board.
In December 1994, the Laboratory Testing Centre was officially opened and this represented an important step in the achievement of SBS’s strategy to establish a national testing facilities designed to meet the needs of the industrial and agro-industrial sectors.
In December 2006 SBS attained certification status to ISO 9002 QMS, which helped to place the organisation on the forefront of quality in Seychelles. The assessment was conducted by Mr. Graham Jones from BM TRADA Certification (UK).
SBS Standard House, Providence
A definite structure for SBS was adopted consisting of 3 divisions:
-The corporate services division
-The standardization division
-The centre for science and technology.
In October 2002, SBS made the transition to the new standard ISO 9001. The SBS now operates under a certified ISO 9001:2000 quality management system.
In May 2006, SBS moved to its new building at Providence. To coincide with the move to the new building a new structure for SBS was approved in order to be in line with the Strategic plan for SBS for 2005 to 2009.