SBS shares its views on inclusiveness during the European Parliament public hearing
SBS Director Christel Davidson was invited to present the views of SMEs. She stressed that it was important for SMEs to be better included at all the levels of the standardisation process (national, European and international). While she acknowledged that some progress had been made, she insisted on the fact that there is potential for further improvement. Ms. Davidson therefore called on the National and European Standardisation Organisations to reach out more to SMEs and their representatives.
Furthermore, Ms. Davidson also shared the reservations of SBS as regards standards for services. It is not always necessary to develop European or international standards for services as these are often provided locally and respond to a specific local context.
SBS extends its sectoral approach to lifts
Possible revision of the Construction Product Regulation
As demonstrated in various studies and reported in the July Implementation Report of the European Commission, the simplification measures for SMEs have been taken up to a limited extent only. Thus, on the occasion of the second Technical Platform on the CPR (18 January 2017), the Commission presented potential solutions to be explored when “considering the possible revision” of the CPR. These include the possibility of avoiding a revision of the simplified procedures (Articles 5, 37 & 38) and instead, having more guidance to understand and implement these procedures better.
Furthermore, the European Builders Confederation (EBC) voiced the concerns of construction SMEs about a possible revision of the Construction Products Regulation at the public hearing organised by MEP Catherine Stihler in the Internal Market Committee of the European Parliament at the end of January.
Need for preliminary analyses prior to acceptance of new standardisation requests
SBS has recently published a position paper on the need for preliminary analyses prior to acceptance of new standardisation requests in the field of construction, highlighting five proposals to regulate the normative flow by validating the interest on the basis of a technical and economic justification prior to embarking on standardisation work.
In October 2016, SBS addressed ISO TC 228 on this matter by sending a letter to the TC secretariat. In that letter, SBS highlighted that SMEs, which have already invested a lot in accessibility in the last years, are the most vulnerable players with regard to costs/investments when discussing new requirements and/or standards. SBS warns also that accessibility should be a concern of other sectors as well, such as public transport, public infrastructures and shopping facilities.
SBS remains committed to playing a constructive role in the efforts of “Accessible Tourism for All” and will accordingly take an active part in the newly created WG14.