In 1982, British Approvals Board for Telecommunications (BABT) was created to approve telecoms equipment against the recently privatized British Telecom (BT) technical guides and specifications for use on the UK telecoms network provided by BT alone. In May 1992, BABT issued the very first GSM approval to Orbitel. Today, BABT has grown and developed to become a globally recognised and respected assessment body offering a complete range of Certification and Regulatory services for the Radio, Telecoms and IT sectors.
BABT is committed to add certainty and value globally to equipment manufacturers and network operators through its comprehensive knowledge of laws and standards and its unrivalled portfolio of accreditations, appointments and services. BABT has obtained numerous accreditations and appointments in its 25 year history including: Notified Body status under the EU Radio & Telecoms Terminal Equipment Directive; Telecommunications Certification Body offering access to the US market; Conformity Assessment Body under the EU-Australia, EU-New Zealand, and EU-Japan Mutual Recognition Agreements; IMEI Allocation Body; Approval Body under Ofcom's Metering and Billing Scheme. The most recent addition to the list of appointments is as a Foreign Certification Body (FCB) through the EU-Canada MRA. BABT is one of a very few organisations worldwide to be able to accept applications for Canada and process them through to approval.
Jean-Louis Evans, BABT Managing Director states, "We have worked with key industry players consistently throughout our 25 year history to ensure that we have always been in touch with fast-developing technologies and ready to meet the needs of the industries we serve. With our staff being our key asset, we have a unique wealth of knowledge within the organisation and are members of many working groups and sit on many influential committees. I should like to take this opportunity to thank our customers and partners for their trust and loyalty, and most importantly our staff, past and present, for all their hard work and support throughout BABT's 25-year history. I look forward to BABT's continued success in the future."
BABT is now part of the TÜV SÜD organisation which employs 12,000 staff in approx. 600 locations.