SME Working Group (SME-WG)

Throughout 2010 and 2011 the CEN-CENELEC SME-WG will follow-up the 58 SME related recommendations as defined by the study on the SME access to European standardization.

Champions from the national members of CEN and CENELEC are leading these recommendations, ensuring they are addressed and implemented properly at the national and European level.

Below you can find a list of all the priority recommendations and the responsible Champions. Additional recommendations will be added in due course. If you would like to have more detailed information on any of the recommendations please do not hesitate to contact the Secretary of the SME-WG, Andreea Gulacsi at the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre (CCMC).

Please check these webpages regularly for updated information on SMEs and standardization.

Increasing Awareness/Education

Recommendations	NSB/NC
1. NSBs should stimulate and support their national government to develop a national strategy on education for standardization	IPQ
2. NSBs should invest in standardization education by making staff available to support it	AENOR

Increasing Awareness/Communication

Recommendations	NSB/NC
3. NSBs should develop a communication plan specifically for SMEs	NBN
4. NSBs should use trade associations as their main communication channel to increase SME awareness of standards	CCMC
5. CEN/CLC and NSBs should develop or collect sucessful case studies and make these available on their website	AFNOR
6. NSBs should use trade association as their main communication channel to increase SME awareness of their business importance of standards	CCMC
7. NSBs should actively seek additional channels to get in touch with targeted (groups of) SMEs	CCMC
30. NSBs should communicate the main reasons for being actively involved in standardization (eg to influence the content of the standard, to receive information, to establish contact with interested parties)	CCMC
31. NSBs should develop case studies of SMEs that have successfully participated in standardization	CCMC

Improving Access to standards/Search Facilities

Recommendations	NSB/NC
8. CEN/CLC should ensure that searching for standards via their website is more user-friendly and should add links to NSB websites	CCMC
9. NSB websites should provide the opportunity to search for European and international standards in their national languages in a user-friendly way	CEI
12. A generic method for tracing standards by product or service has been developed. CEN/CENELEC should make this method available on their websites	CCMC NEN
13. NSBs should make this methods available on their websites in their national language	CCMC NEN

Easier use of standards/Feedback

Recommendations	NSB/NC
28. NSBs should systematically evaluate standards by sending a questionnaire to buyers of standards	BSI CCMC
29. NSBs should include a short text in each standard explaining how to give feedback on standards and how to participate in standardization work	DIN

Easier use of standards/Implementation

Recommendations	NSB/NC
10. NSBs should create sets of relevant standards for specific sectors, disciplines and types of organization	BSI CEI ORGALIME NORMAPME IFAN
25. NSBs should provide education and training to SMEs to support their implementation of standards	AENOR
26. Trade associations should provide education, training and advice to SMEs to support their implementations of standards	NORMAPME JWG EaS
27. NSBs should create an online user panel for each standard to enable discussion and interpretation as to how standards can be implemented, how SMEs can make use of standards, etc.	BSI CCMC

Improving Access to standards/Advice

Recommendations	NSB/NC
15. NSBs should provide advice to trade associations and on request to individual SMEs on the relevant standards that are available to them	CCMC

Improving Access to standards/Information

Recommendations	NSB/NC
11. CEN/CLC should require TCs to prepare and send a generic press release for new standards to NSBs and trade associations, which can then translate them and inform targeted market segments in their native language	CCMC
14. Trade associations should inform their members about a set of standards relevant for their sector or discipline	ORGALIME
17. NSBs should provide clear information for each standards on their website including a summary, the scope of the standards and a table of contents	CEI

Improving Access to standards/Price

Recommendations	NSB/NC
16. NSBs should seek to make (sets of) standards available for SMEs at low cost	BSI

Easier use of standards/Understanding

Recommendations	NSB/NC
18. TCs should use the Guide to write standards taking into account the needs of micro, small and medium enterprises and specificities in standardization which are being developed by CEN/CLC BT/WG 208	NORMAPME NEN
19. CEN/CLC should assess standards for their user friendliness for SMEs, in terms of understanding and implementation, using the Guide	NORMAPME NEN
20. NSBs should encourage the early availability of the national translation of standards	AENOR
21. TCs should create a meta document for each set of interrelated standards in which the structure of cross referenced standards is presented. This provides SMEs and other stakeholders with a clear picture of the available standards in a certain area. CEN/CLC should make this document available for free on their website	NEN
22. It is impossible to understand the technical content of a standards without using another standard, CEN/CLC should include the reference to this standard in the free information pack relating to the standard	NEN
23. CEN/CLC should require TCs to provide a short 'why-document' with background information about the standard	CCMC
24. Trade associations should provide information on the content of standards relevant to their members	ORGALIME

Increased Participation/Information on new projects

Recommendations	NSB/NC
32. CEN/CLC should improve the user friendliness of their websites and provide a better overview of all current standardization activities including the responsible TCs, SCs and WGs and their business plans	CCMC
33. NSBs should provide a clear and transparent overview of all TCs, SCs and WGs and their relation to CEN/CENELEC/ISO/IEC and define a clear and single point of contact	TBD
34. CEN/CLC should require TCs to prepare a generic press release for new standardization projects and should sent it to NSBs and trade associations, which can then translate and inform targeted market segments in their native language	CCMC
35. Trade associations should inform their members of standardization projects relevant for their sector or discipline	DIN NORMAPME ORGALIME
36. NSBs should advise trade associations on standardization projects relevant for their (SMEs) members	NORMAPME
37. NSBs should provide on request advisory services to individual SMEs on relevant standardization projects	CCMC

Increased Participation/Involvement

Recommendations	NSB/NC
38. CEN/CLC should require an accompanying feasibility study, to include relevant stakeholders and their interests, of those who propose new projects	BSI
39. NSBs should use the method for stakeholders analysis to perform a check on stakeholders at national TC/SC/WG level and invite missing stakeholders to participate	CCMC BSI UNI
40. NSBs should seek mechanisms to ensure that cost is not a barrier to SME participation in standardization	NEN SIS
41. NSBs should provide the opportunity to submit comments on draft standards on a website for each of these standards and also allow for discussions for each of these standards on the web	BSI
42. CEN/CENELEC should support the use of ICT tools to optimize the use of resources (time, money) in committees	CCMC
43. NSBs should stimulate representation of groups of SMEs via their trade associations	UNI
44. NBSs should provide training in and support for effective participation in standards development	AENOR JWG EaS
49. NSBs should have a contact point to provide assistance to SMEs (and other stakeholders) to initiate new activities	CCMC

Increased Participation/Evaluation

Recommendations	NSB/NC
45. A method is being developed to evaluate the rate of return on resources committed to participation in standardization. CEN/CENELEC should make this method available to enable SMEs and other stakeholders to evaluate their involvement	BSI CCMC
46. CEN/CLC should require TCs to perform ex-ante impact assessments as already used for all EU Directives, which should be partly replicated for standards	BSI
47. CEN/CLC should develop a sound methodology to evaluate standardization projects including the involvement of stakeholders	BSI CCMC
48. CEN/CLC should require TCs to evaluate their standardization projects using the methodology	BSI

Enablers/TCs and Officers

Recommendations	NSB/NC
52. CEN/CLC should ensure that each TC has a business plan which includes an inventory of stakeholders (including SMEs) and their needs and indicates how the TC intends to address these needs	BSI
53. NSBs should ensure that each national TC has a business plan which includes an inventory of stakeholders (including SMEs) and their needs and indicates how the TC intends to address these needs. These business plans should be available on NSB websites	BSI
54. CEN/CLC should ensure the professionalism of their staff via (obligatory) training	ASI
55. CEN/CLC should ensure the professionalism of technical officers that are members of secretariats of European TCs, SCs and WGs via (obligatory) training	ASI
56. NSBs should ensure the professionalism of their technical offices via (obligatory) training	ASI

Enablers/Quality management

Recommendations	NSB/NC
50. CEN and CENELEC should implement ISO 9001	CCMC
51. Each NSB should implement ISO 9001	CCMC

Enablers/Contact with TA

Recommendations	NSB/NC
57. NSBs should maintain contact with relevant trade associations	CCMC
58. NSBs should provide these trade associations with standardization information in order to enable them to support their members	CCMC