OMG Specifications Go Through ISO Fast-Track
Many of the specifications that have been approved, finalized, released and maintained have also been ratified as ISO standards. As a reputable standards development organization with a disciplined and mature process for its specifications, OMG can submit its specifications to ISO for approval through JTC1’s Fast-Track or normal development process to produce an approved International Standard. A typical standard developed from scratch by the national bodies who participate in ISO can take seven years to reach approval. OMG specifications enter the ISO/IEC JTC1’s approval process as a Draft International Standard (DIS), which is stage four out of six, and typically become ISO standards within two years. Permanent and observing members of ISO have the same commenting and voting rights as they would on any other standard submitted to ISO, but given the maturity of the process already undertaken by OMG, the development work has already been completed by subject-matter experts within OMG, which is open for membership to any organization around the world. Once approved through the OMG process, the specifications are made freely available for download at OMG.org. OMG maintains a complete list of OMG specifications that are ISO standards.
Fast Facts
- OMG became an ISO Fast-Track/PAS submitter in 1998.
- OMG was the first non-country approved to participate in the ISO Fast-Track Process.
- OMG has been submitting into the ISO Fast-Track since 2003.
- The first OMG specification to become an ISO standard was UML® in 2005.
- ISO standards developed from scratch often take seven years to become standards.
- It typically takes two years for OMG specifications to become ISO standards.
- OMG specifications are available for free.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is no difference in the technical specifications. OMG follows the guidelines prescribed by ISO and modifies the cover page and formatting, but the technical specifications are the same. The specifications you can download for free at OMG.org are the same that you can purchase through ISO.org.
OMG specifications are created by subject-matter experts who are members of OMG, which is an international, open membership, not-for-profit technology standards consortium with representation from government, industry and academia. OMG members develop enterprise integration standards for a wide range of technologies and an even wider range of industries.
JTC1 is a joint technical committee of ISO (International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission). JTC1 membership is open to any national body, as is the case for membership in either of the two parent organizations.
PAS (publicly available specification) refers to an ISO/IEC JTC1 transposition procedure whereby PAS Submitters send their specifications developed outside ISO to become ISO/IEC standards. Members can use either the normal development process or the Fast-Track process. ISO/IEC JTC 1 uses the Fast Track process frequently.
The Fast-Track Process was created to allow standards organizations to submit one of their existing standards for approval as an International Standard. If there is a document with a certain degree of maturity at the start of a standardization project, it benefits everyone to start with mature specifications that have been vetted by subject-matter experts. The Fast-Track process can only happen when a standard has already been reviewed and approved by the standards development organization.
OMG specifications enter the ISO/IEC JTC1 approval process at Stage 4 – DIS (draft international standard) - the last step before a Fast-Track document is approved as an International Standard.
OMG submits the majority of its formally adopted specifications to ISO to become ISO standards and therefore writes its specifications in a format closely approximating the ISO format. To prepare a submittal, OMG makes the following changes to its documents:
- Replaces references to “specification” with the term International Standard.
- Adds a Foreword and Introduction based on ISO requirements.
- Changes the headers and footers to ISO standard format.
- Adds a new cover page and new first page of the specification itself.
- Prepares an Explanatory Report to accompany the specification.
Both processes are collaborative and rely on the technical expertise of industry experts. OMG members determine what standards are needed and then work together within the OMG process to bring the specification to finalization. OMG typically creates a specification in 18-24 months. Any organization may join OMG and participate in the standardization process. ISO is a voluntary organization whose members are recognized authorities on standards, each one representing one country. ISO currently has more than 150 member countries with voting rights and therefore standard development can take 5 years or more.
No. Not every OMG specification is submitted to ISO. OMG maintains a complete list of its ISO-adopted specifications.