The Foundation and Early Years of IGU
London was enjoying a warm early June in
lighting, this body evolved into the
Syndicale’s President Robert Ellissen that the
1931, the pleasant weather in stark contrast to a
International Commission on Illumination in
possibility of founding an International Gas
grim economic situation. The global recession
1913, but international collaboration on other
Union should be floated with their colleagues in
was deepening and most companies were
uses of gas continued. The European and North
other national gas associations. The idea was to
focused on day-to-day survival. But the gas
American national gas associations regularly
provide a centre for the acquisition, collation
industry was looking ahead and saw the need
invited foreign representatives to attend key
and distribution of technical and other
to enhance international cooperation. On
meetings as observers, and also to conferences
information concerning the gas industry and
June 2, representatives of the national gas
and exhibitions.
the promotion of its wellbeing generally. Baril
associations of Belgium, France, Germany, The
started sounding out his foreign colleagues and
thought as to how relations should develop,
the responses were encouraging enough to
met in London for the inaugural Council
either by maintaining the existing informal
persuade the Union Syndicale’s Council to
meeting of the International Gas Union. This
liaisons – an approach favoured by the UK’s
approve the start of formal negotiations. The
was the culmination of cooperative efforts
Institution of Gas Engineers (IGE) – or by
next step was the convening of a meeting at the
dating back to the beginning of the century,
setting up a formal international union, an
Maison du Gaz in Paris on November 25, 1930.
when the primary use of gas was for lighting.
approach promoted by the Union Syndicale de
In September 1900, the Société Technique
l’Industrie du Gaz en France, an umbrella body
French initiative, the IGE, in line with its
for the various French gas organisations.
approach of developing international
de l’Industrie du Gaz en France organised an 1
International Gas Congress in connection with
2
The French initiative took shape in
While keeping a watching brief on the
cooperation within the framework of existing
the Paris Exposition. At the congress it was
September 1929 when Auguste Baril, President
national bodies, decided to devote one day of
decided to set up an International Commission
of the Association Technique de l’Industrie du
its 1931 Annual General Meeting (AGM) to
on Photometry to coordinate lighting
Gaz en France (ATG) suggested to the Union
international business and to invite overseas
standards. With the development of electric 1 In 1927, the Société Technique de l’Industrie du Gaz en France became the Association Technique de l’Industrie du Gaz en France, which changed its name to the Association Française du Gaz with effect from 2001.
20
By the late 1920s, there were two schools of
Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK
T h e F o u n d a t i o n a n d E a r l y Ye a r s o f I G U
2 The British Association of Gas Managers had changed its name to the Gas Institute in 1881. Meanwhile, a separate organisation called the Institution of Gas Engineers had been set up in 1880. These bodies merged in 1903 as a newly constituted Institution of Gas Engineers, which changed its name to the Institution of Gas Engineers and Managers (IGEM) in 2001.
representatives. By coincidence, the IGE and Union Syndicale invitations went out to national gas associations within 24 hours of each other at the end of October 1930.
