1901- current (2016), producer of standards, UK Founded as the Engineering Standards Committee in London in 1901. It extended its standardization work and became the British Engineering Standards Association in 1918. A Royal Charter was received in 1929 and it was renamed the British Standards Institution in 1931. In 1998 a revision of the Charter enabled the organization to acquire other businesses, and the name changed to BSI Group. They now operate internationally in 172 countries.