The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a private, non-profit organization that administers and coordinates the U.S. voluntary standardization and conformity assessment system. The Institute's mission is to enhance both the global competitiveness of U.S. business and the U.S. quality of life by promoting and facilitating voluntary consensus standards and conformity assessment systems, and safeguarding their integrity.

ANSI is the official U.S. representative to the International Accreditation Forum (IAF), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and, via the U.S. National Committee, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).

The following is a list of many of the ANSI standards which often apply to general industrial machinery:

• ANSI B20.1 (2000) Safety Standard for Conveyors and Related Equipment
• ANSI/NFPA 79 (2005) Electrical Standards for Industrial Machinery
• NEC 2008  The National Electric Code (also known as ANSI/NFPA 70)
• ANSI/NFPA 70E (2000) Standard for Electrical Safety Requirements for Employee Workplaces
• ANSI B15.1 (2000) Safety Standards for Mechanical Power Transmission Apparatus
• ANSI Z535.4 (2002)  Product Safety Signs and Labels
• ANSI Z535.6 (2007) Product Safety Information in Product Manuals and Instructions
• ANSI/RIA R15.06 (1999) Safety Requirements for Industrial Robots and Robotic Systems
• ANSI 11.20 Machine Tools - Safety Requirements for Integrated Manufacturing Systems
• ANSI B11.19 Performance Standard for Safeguarding
• ANSI B55.1 - Packaging Machinery and Packaging-Related Converting Machinery

OSHA encourages employers to abide by the more current industry consensus standards since those standards are more likely to be abreast of the state of the art than an applicable OSHA standard may be. Furthermore, the industry consensus standards will usually discuss a variety of techniques for averting exposure to the identified hazards of the machine or process.

The machines which are not covered by specific OSHA standards are required under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) and Section 29 CFR 1910.303(b)(1) to be free of recognized hazards which may cause death or serious injuries. These machines must be designed and maintained to meet or exceed the requirements of the applicable industry consensus standards. In such situations OSHA may apply standards published by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) ... to cover the electrical hazards that are not covered specific OSHA standards.

All ANSI standards must be purchased. Two of the best sources for on-line purchasing of the various ANSI standards include Techstreet and IHS