Call for tenders to promote SMEs' participation in standardisation process
The European Commission's Enterprise DG has announced a call for tenders for the promotion of participation by SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises), crafts enterprises and their interests' in the European standardisation process. The initiative involves providing a stable and regular service over time with a view to promoting information, the participation of SMEs and crafts enterprises and their interests within the European standardisation process. The successful contractor will establish close contacts with European SMEs and crafts enterprises as well as their representative organisations at national and European levels, as well as with the three main European standards organisations (CEN, CENELEC, ETSI). The contractor will actively participate in the programme planning (definition of agendas, position papers, etc) of the meetings of the technical committees of these organisations and participate as associated members to such meetings. The successful contractor will support the interests of SMEs and crafts enterprises during the elaboration of European standards by looking for and forwarding solutions which suit these enterprises. In many cases, this implies also working at national (NSO) or international (ISO) level, if SMEs and crafts interests are to be taken into account at an early stage of the standardisation process. The service foresees the systematic ex-ante and ex-post information of SMEs and their representative organisations at national and European level on the standardisation process, as well as the systematic evaluation of the results achieved.For further information, please contact: European Commission Directorate-General Enterprise rue de la Science 27, 4/38 B-1049 Brussels Fax +32-2-295 4590 Tel: +32-2-295 5155