From 14 to 21 November 2023, SBS (Small Business Standards) organized the first edition of Meeting Standards. Coinciding with the European SME week, this initiative has significantly contributed to enhancing SME awareness of the crucial role of standards in Europe.
Launched in spring 2023, Meeting Standards is a campaign designed to rally SME representatives and standardization stakeholders across Europe around SME standardization topics and activities. By visiting meetingstandards.eu, any individual or organization could submit a proposal for an activity aimed at raising awareness of SMEs in Europe within the duration of the campaign, which this year took place between 14 and 21 November 2023.
Early estimates indicate that the campaign surpassed its initial target, recording more than 350 participants, and engaging with an impressive 5000 SME and standardization stakeholders across Europe through different platforms and channels.
Different research projects (STAND4EU, HSBooster, StandICT, Blockstand), organizations (COSMED, EBC, SMEunited) and experts participated in the campaign by organizing activities on a variety of standards-related topics, such as blockchain technologies, smart manufacturing, cosmetics, AI, construction and the new Construction Products Regulation or innovation management.
The campaign kicked off with a workshop organized in the context of the SME Assembly in Bilbao dedicated to standards and their role in the 30 years of the EU Single Market. In this context, SBS also launched a brochure on the same topic. The campaign also saw the launch of the “Meeting Her Standards” podcast, highlighting the work of women in standardization in various key sectors.
The journey ended on 21 November with SBS’s flagship conference, a prime annual forum for discussing standardization and related policies. This year’s theme, “SMEs and smart manufacturing – Standards as accelerators of industry change”, was especially relevant, reflecting the significant presence and importance of SMEs in Europe’s manufacturing sector.
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