Research guides: Standards and Codes: Finding Standards

Online Standards

This is an alphabetical list of online standard, code guideline collections available through our University of Toronto Library subscriptions. More help with using these collections can be found in the Help with online standards tab.

If the standard you want is not below view a list of all standard collections at U of T

In the IEEE Standard Collection, select "Standards" under the "Browse" option:

If you know the number of the standard you need, search using the number in the search box.
The search box allows you to search by keyword.
You can further refine your search using the filters on the left.

Finding standards online using TechStreet

TechStreet is a platform you can use to search a variety of different standard collections subscribed to by University of Toronto Libraries. Standards can be searched for by collection and then downloaded as PDF files.

How do you use TechStreet?

Type in the document identifier, document title, or a keyword of the standard you would like to find in to the search bar.

Some useful search tips can be found on TechStreet Help Guide.

In some cases you may be able to filter your search results further using refinements to the left.

Alternately you can browse on TechStreet through the collections to which University of Toronto Libraries subscribes.

What standard collections are available through TechStreet?

All standard collections of U of T

This is an alphabetical list of all print and online standards collections available through our University of Toronto Library subscriptions. Click on the links to get online access or to see a library catalouge search (where applicable).

What are Standards?

"A standard can be defined as a set of technical definitions and guidelines that function as instructions for designers, manufacturers, operators, or users of equipment." - ASME

"A redline version of a standard indicates the changes made, during the standards revision process, between the active standard and its previous version." - IEEE

Why use standards?

"Because it’s a catastrophe when a screw doesn’t fit." - ASME

Standards help to ensure quality of products, safety of consumers and interchangabilty of parts. Use of standards can help companies improve their profit margins and customer satisfaction. There may also be important ethical reasons to use standards when creating a design.

Does a standard exist for a particular engineering issue?

Sometimes you may need to check whether a standard exists for a particular product, process, material or design issue. Use the following databases to discover what standards exist.

Techstreet This link opens in a new window
Search TechStreet by keyword or standard number. UofT users can access to full text ASHRAE, ASME, CGSB, CSA, IEC, ISO, NFPA (Fire) and UL standards.

ANSI Webstore
Use keywords in this search engine to find standards about your topic. Once you find a standard that you want search the UofT catalouge or one of our online standard collections to find the full text. Please note, we do not have full text of all items found in the ANSI Webstore.

How to find standards

Finding standards
Finding standards in the U of T catalogue

University of Toronto Libraries has access to many different collections of standards. Some of these are available online and others are available as hard copies in the library. Many online collections are now available through the convenience of a one stop platform called TechStreet. University of Toronto Libraries has quite comprehensive collections of ASME, CGSB, CSA, IEC, and ISO standards, as well as ASTM, IEEE, and many other smaller collections.

Many standard collections have different search features. This guide will provide you with some tips for searching some of these collections. If you you need additional help, please visit us at the Engineering & Computer Science Library Reference Desk.

Some, but not all standards are listed individually in the U of T Catalogue. It can all be very confusing so if you have questions, please ask us! Here are a few tips:

For standards not listed individually in the catalogue, you will need to search in the particular standard collection to find the standard

For example, you won't find every CSA standard listed individually in the library catalogue. To get a CSA standard to you will need to go to the online collection.

Search for a standard in the catalogue, go to the Advanced Search function:

Click on the + sign add another search bar
In the first search bar type the association name and word standard (e.g. American Society of Mechanical Engineers standard)
In the second search bar type the acronym for the assocation and the word standard (e.g. ASME standard)
Click the magnifying glass to search
You can further refine your search by clicking the "search within" box and typing an additional search term

Here is an example ASME standard library catalouge search

Citing Standards

Standards, like other sources of information, must be cited when you use them in your work. The following is a guide on how to cite standards according to the IEEE Style Manual.

Basic format:

[1] Title of Standard, standard number, date.

Examples:

[1] IEEE Criteria for Class IE Electric Systems, IEEE Standard 308, 1969.

[2] Letter Symbols for Quantities, ANSI Standard Y10.5-1968.

For more information on citing according to the IEEE Style Manual, please see the IEEE Editorial Style Manual, come to the Engineering & Computer Science Library Reference Desk, email us or call 416-978-6578.