Join us to one of the 19 SMEST events organised in 2012-2013. Check the events page regularly.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are defined as companies with fewer than 250 employees.
They represent 99% of all businesses in Europe and employ more than 90 million people.
Despite this, SMEs are less likely than larger companies to get actively involved in the development of standards.
Therefore it is necessary to find ways of ensuring that standardisation includes SMEs and takes their needs into account. In this process both standards bodies and associations representing SMEs have important roles to play.
Business and industry associations can convey the needs of SMEs towards standards organisations and help them to make their activities and services more accessible for SMEs. These associations can effectively explain the importance of standards and the reasons to participate in the standards making process.
Standards bodies can adapt their ways of working to make sure that the needs of SMEs are systematically taken into account during the standardisation process and thereby ensure that standards are widely accepted by all stakeholders, including SMEs.
On this web platform you can exchange and also contribute knowledge about how to facilitate SME involvement in standardisation.
Examples of good practice from across Europe are available in three categories: