SME web-portal

The standards in support of small and medium enterprises

The created SME portal will provide standardization related information and will answer SMEs questions. Through it SMEs in Bulgaria will be informed about current information on standardization, new initiatives in the field of standardization, participation in the development of new standards, etc.

What is SMEs benefit by implementing standards?

• improving the quality of products and services
• attracting new customers
• increasing consumers’ confidence in the respective business
• increasing the competitiveness
• reducing the provisional mistakes
• reduced costs
• ensuring compliance of products with certain requirements
• facilitating exports

Why standards should be used?

• The standards open doors to new markets
• The standards make you equivalent to the "big players" on the market
• The standards help you to discover the best business practices
• The standards increase the efficiency of your activity
• The standards increase the trust of your customers
• The standards give a competitive advantage
• The standards make your brand internationally recognized
• The standards contribute to your growth
• The standards help for using a common language in a given industrial sector

Useful links:

CEN-CENELEC SME Helpdesk

SMEs represent more than 99% of all European business and they constitute the genuine backbone of Europe’s economy. Standardization contributes to enhance SMEs key role on the market, but most of the time the standards’ added value is not well-known by small businesses. Therefore, in the last years, CEN and CENELEC decided to tackle this problem and increased their efforts targeting SMEs and their participation in the standardization work. To address this, the new CEN-CENELEC SME webportal will better guide and respond to SMEs questions on standardization. The SME web portal will provide European SMEs with business tools required to access the European Standardization System of CEN and CENELEC through:

• Information on new standardization initiatives
• Information on standardization work in the pipeline
• First-line advice through consultation of appropriate experts via e-mail
• Сompetent answers to questions in the field of standardization
• Updated brochures and material relevant to SMEs
• Training for SMEs which wish to understand more and contribute to European standardization
• Conferences and events of interest to SMEs

For more information - https://www.cencenelec.eu/get-involved/small-and-medium-enterprises-smes/smes-and-standards/

Web-site of the European standardization organizations CEN/CENELEC intended to support the interaction of the national standardization bodies and SMEs

Join the SME and standardisation Group on LinkedIn

Frequently asked questions

What is SMALL BUSINESS STANDARDS (SBS)?

Small Business Standards (SBS) is as an international non-profit organization. The SBS team is made up of the European Association of Craft, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (UEAPME) and the European Builders Confederation (EBC) staff members, and an SBS project manager, who coordinates the association’s work. SBS members are national and European sectoral and inter-professional associations representing SMEs all over Europe. The membership is thus open to all associations matching these criteria.
The SBS mission is to represent and defend SME interests in the standardisation process at European and international level. Moreover, it aims at raising SME awareness about the benefits of standards and at encouraging them to get involved in the standardisation process. To reach these goals, SBS has appointed 17 experts so far to take part in the work of CEN-CENELEC and ISO (the International Organisation for Standardisation) Technical Committees so as to directly contribute to the creation of standards.
The experts will monitor that standards are SME-friendly and will therefore promote a better adaptation of standards to fit SME needs. SBS will also, through its members, put forward SME point of views in all relevant Fora, Working Groups and platforms shaping the standardisation system. Moreover, SBS will consult and keep its members informed about Internal Market policies related to standardisation issues affecting SMEs.
The due application of standards in business models will give entrepreneurs several advantages, such as enlarging the potential market for products, lowering transaction costs, reducing external effects (e.g. environmental impact), improving management systems, and more.  

More information about SBS: https://www.sbs-sme.eu/

Why participate in standardization – find the answer in this video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sH2zOg_NFsE&t=9s&ab_channel=SmallBusinessStandardsSBS

Publications:

• CEN-CENELEC Guide 17 “Guidance for writing standards taking into account micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) needs”
  in Bulgarian and in other languages
• 10 good things for SMEs to benefit by ISO standards
  https://www.iso.org/publication/PUB100283.html
• ISO 9001:2015 for small enterprises – What to do Buy
• ISO 14001:2015 - Environmental management systems - A practical guide for SMEs
  The publication is available on CD in pdf format. Buy
• "BDS Compass" Magazine – issue 1/2014 It's topic is: "Standardization and SME"
• "BDS Compass" Magazine – issue 2/2011 It's topic is: "The use of standards"
• ISO edition - ISO/IEC 27001 for Small Businesses - Practical advice More information - here

Your inquiries can be sent to the following contact address:

Desislava Todorova
Information centre in the field of standardization
Bulgarian Institute for Standardization
13 Lachezar Stanchev Str.
Izgrev Complex, 1797 Sofia
tel.: (+3592) 81 74 561
fax: (+3592) 87 35 597
notify@bds-bg.org