International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic ...

Introduction 29
however, business units that sell goods and supply services exclusively through the
Internet are coming into existence. Such units should also be classified to the industry
of their principal activity. Production units engaged in e-commerce will therefore be
found in any industry of ISIC. There is one notable exception to this rule: in retail
trade, units that undertake their sales exclusively or predominantly through the Internet
are classified within ISIC, Rev.4 class 4791 (Retail sale via mail order houses or via
Internet).
4. Repair and maintenance
135. ISIC, Rev.4 now provides separate categories for the repair of all kinds of
goods. However, no single high-level category exists that would cover all repair activities.
Based on the type of good repaired, the activities are classified as follows:
• Repair of motor vehicles and of motorcycles are classified in classes 4520 and
4540, respectively.
• Repair of computers and communication equipment is classified in group
951.
• Repair of personal and household goods is classified in group 952.
• Repair of other machinery and equipment is classified in group 331.
• Repair of buildings and other structures is classified in division 43.
5. Outsourcing / activities on a fee or contract basis
136. In some cases, units sell goods or services under their own name but the
actual production, such as the physical transformation process in the case of manufacturing,
is carried out fully or in part by others through specific contractual arrangements.
This section describes how units involved in such arrangements should be
classified in ISIC.
137. In this section, the following terminology is applied:
(a) The principal 16 is a unit that enters in a contractual relationship with
another unit (here called contractor) to carry out some part (or all) of the production
process;
(b) The contractor 17 is a unit that carries out a specific production process
based on a contractual relationship with a principal. The activities performed by the
contractor are denominated “on a fee or contract basis”.
(c) Outsourcing is a contractual agreement according to which the principal
requires the contractor to carry out a specific production process. The term “subcontracting”
is sometimes used as well. 18 In this context, the production process also
includes supporting activities.
138. The principal and the contractor may be located in the same economic
territory or in different economic territories. The actual location does not affect the
classification of either one of these units.
(a)
Classification of the contractor
139. Contractors, i.e., units carrying out an activity on a fee or contract basis,
are usually classified in the same ISIC category as units producing the same goods or
services for their own account. Exceptions to this rule exist for trade activities, for
which separate categories for such outsourced activities exist.
16 Elsewhere sometimes known as
“contractor” or “converter”.
17 Elsewhere sometimes known as
the “subcontractor”.
18 Elsewhere, the terminology of
“insourcing” and “outsourcing”
(referring to relationships
between units involved) or
“offshoring” (referring to
transactions between economic
territories) may be used; those
distinctions have no bearing on
the guidelines in this section
and are not used here.