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Meeting Standards Week: Increasing Awareness and Engagement
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SBS celebrates a successful Meeting Standards Week
SBS is pleased to share the highlights of the successful Meeting Standards week, held from 17 to 21 November 2025. This European initiative is an annual campaign that helps SMEs connect with the world of standardisation.
Its main goals are to:
🔹Raise Awareness: Educate SMEs on the value of standardisation and its positive impact on their businesses. 🔹Foster Participation: Encourage active SME involvement in shaping industry standards. 🔹Disseminate Knowledge: Keep SMEs updated on the latest standardisation developments relevant to their sectors. 🔹Build Community: Connect SMEs and standardisation organisations across Europe.
A Week of Engagement and Learning
The week featured a dynamic series of events and activities organised across Europe by standardisation bodies and SME organisations:
🔹 European Builders Confederation EBC WEBINAR - Guide for SMEs on the revised Construction Products Regulation
🔹 XUKRA” WEBINAR - Positive Workplaces XUKRA” Impact Investment Standards
🔹 SBS ANNUAL CONFERENCE - Small Business, Big Energy: Empowering SMEs in Renewables
🔹 Association COSMED Webinar - New ISO standards for sunscreens
🔹 Workshop | How SMEs Can Lead Standardisation Activities
In parallel with the scheduled activities, several impactful social media campaigns were deployed throughout the week to widely raise awareness regarding the critical role of standards and promote Meeting Standards initiative.
🔹SUCCESS STORIES - Success stories from experts and SMEs using standards every day.
🔹Standards for SME Success: A video series created by the national standards body of Romania, ASRO.
SBS offers a sincere thank you to everyone whose contributions made Meeting Standards Week a resounding success! Your efforts ensured that numerous SMEs gained valuable insights into the benefits of standardisation and learned how they can actively participate in shaping European standards.
We invite you all to join us again for the 2026 Meeting Standards campaign!
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SBS Annual Conference | Small Business, Big Energy: Empowering SMEs in Renewables
This year's SBS Annual Conference centered on the crucial subject of Empowering SMEs in Europe's Renewable Energy Transition, emphasising how standards drive innovation, growth, and competitive advantage for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Panel 1 explored the indispensable role of standards in enabling SMEs to innovate, achieve growth, and effectively shape Europe's Green Transition.
The discussion was launched by a presentation of key findings from an SBS study which analysed and established the fundamental role of SMEs within the Renewable Energy Sector. The research, drawing on academic publications and insights from CEN, CENELEC, and ISO, confirmed that SMEs are key players but often face barriers in accessing and influencing the standardisation processes that shape their markets. Speakers shared practical insights on how better standards and smarter regulation can enable SMEs to scale across technologies, especially in areas like solar and hydropower, echoing the challenges and opportunities identified in the study.
Panel 2 shifted focus to the crucial contribution of construction sector micro-companies in meeting Europe’s climate goals through building renovation.
This panel was framed by the findings of a study conducted by EBC (European Builders Confederation), which investigated how micro-companies are adapting to Europe’s Renovation Wave. The study highlights how deeper renovations, the phase-out of fossil fuels, and digitalisation are reshaping the construction landscape. Speakers explored the necessity of skilled SMEs, coordinated standards, and practical national frameworks to successfully deliver the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) and the broader Green Deal. The conversation stressed that since 99% of construction companies are micro-enterprises, their involvement is central to successful EPBD implementation and enabling high-quality renovations and renewable integration.
We extend our deep gratitude to all participants for contributing to such a successful and impactful event, driving highly insightful conversations regarding the empowerment of SMEs.
You are invited to re-live the discussions and gain valuable insights by watching the full conference recordings:
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Gunilla Almgren Completes Presidential Mandate after 13 years
The conclusion of Gunilla Almgren’s 13-year term as President of Small Business Standards (SBS) marks the end of a truly remarkable era of service. This December, she concluded her term as President, handing over leadership to her successor at the final Board and General Assembly of the year. Her commitment has been nothing short of extraordinary, having guided SBS from its very inception to its current standing as the voice for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in European standardisation.
In recognition of her profound contributions, the Board took the decision to name her Honorary President of SBS.
Gunilla Almgren is fundamentally a dedicated entrepreneur. It was this deep, personal understanding of the daily challenges and opportunities facing small business owners that formed the bedrock of her presidency.
The SBS team and Board extend their deepest gratitude for her outstanding mandate and her decisive role as a driving force for the organisation's mission.
Read more
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SBS elects Philip van Nieuwenhuizen as new President
Following the voting held this Decembre 3rd 2025 by our General Assembly, we are delighted to introduce Philip van Nieuwenhuizen as our new President for 2026 – 2029.
In his acceptance speech, President-elect van Nieuwenhuizen commenced the address by expressing profound gratitude and offering a distinguished tribute to the former President Gunilla Almgren. The President acknowledged her incredible presence and unwavering commitment to SBS since its very inception, noting that her visionary leadership and tireless efforts have been instrumental in establishing SBS as the leading voice for SMEs in standardisation. This dedication, the President stated, has created a solid foundation upon which the new mandate will build. Following this acknowledgment, the President thanked the member organisations, partners, experts, and staff for their confidence and dedication, underscoring that SBS carries the “hopes and ambitions of some 22.5 million SMEs across Europe.”
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New SBS Secretary General
Jon Echanove has joined SBS starting 3 November 2025 as Secretary General. Jon is an experienced manager with a solid background in standardisation, SME support, and trade and industrial policy. With extensive expertise in the EU Single Market, trade facilitation, and quality infrastructure, he has guided companies and organisations across key sectors, from healthcare to ICT and construction, helping SMEs strengthen their market access. He is committed to further developing SBS as the leading partner for SMEs in standardisation.
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New SME Guide: Implementation of ISO/IEC 27001:2022 on Information Security Management | |
The Guide’s main goal is to help SMEs understand and effectively apply ISO/IEC 27001 for their information security management systems. The publication was recently updated to incorporate the 2022 revision of the standard and to align the content with the evolving European cybersecurity landscape, ensuring it remains a practical and accessible resource for SMEs to strengthen their security management according to international standards.
Discover the guide here
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New Personal Protective Equipment Compendium for the Construction Sector
Small Business Standards has released a new Personal Protective Equipment Compendium for the Construction Sector, developed together with European Builders Confederation (EBC), the German Textile Cleaning Association Deutscher Textilreinigungs-Verband e.V. and the European association of SMEs that manufacture safety products SME-Safety.
This tool provides construction SMEs with practical guidance on selecting and managing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in line with EU regulatory requirements and harmonised standards.
The document simplifies complex PPE legislation and certification for smaller construction firms. Structured around the PPE lifecycle, it offers:
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![null]() Clear explanations of the regulatory framework, CE marking, and employer responsibilities.![null]() An extensive overview of harmonised standards for clothing, gloves, footwear, eye/ear protection, respiratory equipment, and guidance on fall protection and the SUCAM approach (Selection, Use, Care, Maintenance).![null]() Guidance on digitalisation and the use of multinorm garments.![null]() A focus on sustainability, highlighting repairability, recycling, and eco-design principles.
Discover the compendium here | | | | | |
New SBS position paper on the future of the European Standardisation System
Small Business Standards, jointly with EBC (European Builders’ Confederation) and SMEunited published a new position paper with its proposals and recommendations for the future of the European Standardisation System (ESS). The paper was published in response to the ongoing public consultation on the revision of Regulation 1025/2012 on European standardisation.
In the paper, SBS reaffirmed again its full support for the overall structure of the ESS, centred on Regulation 1025. While overall Regulation 1025/2012 overall has been an undeniable success since its inception, achieving tangible progress, particularly with regards to the inclusiveness of the system, there is certainly space for improvements in terms of speed and market responsiveness.
In the paper, SBS sets out three main goals that should be at the centre of the revision process: - Increase the development speed and market responsiveness of European standards, helping SMEs to mitigate the risk of legal and technical uncertainty and allows them to access new markets, invest and grow, without sacrificing inclusiveness and genuine consensus.
- Further improve the inclusiveness of the system at national and European level. Standards that do not consider the needs and specificities of SMEs will lead to increased burdens, much lower uptake of standards and loss of business opportunities for the European economy as a whole.
- Strengthen Europe’s role as a global standards-setter, helping SMEs internationalise, access new markets and grow. The ESS is the most inclusive standardisation system in the world, and Europe must be a leader in international standardisation to ensure inclusiveness at a global level.
For each of these three goals, the paper analyses the current setup of the ESS and puts forward concrete and feasible proposals to be readily implemented and that would drastically increase the benefits that SMEs can derive from standardisation.
Beyond these, SBS also proposes expresses a clear stance and puts forward recommendations in other areas vital to the future of the standardisation system, like the necessity for its robust and consistent financing and the need to create together a new generation of standardisers by boosting education to standardisation
Discover the Position Paper here
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The Online Standards Development (OSD)
The Online Standards Development (OSD) is a tool that enables standardisation technical bodies to draft project deliverables from the preliminary stage through to publication. It provides technical committees with an integrated online system specifically designed for standards drafting, supporting the development of higher-quality deliverables. The OSD enables: - Standardisation Working Group members to collaboratively create and develop the content of the standard;
- Members to submit comments directly within the document at key stages in the development of a deliverable;
- Committee Managers to efficiently manage and resolve comments in context; and
- In-house editors to review the document in accordance with standardisation drafting rules.
Two OSD platforms have recently been developed and deployed, one by ISO and IEC at the international level, and another by CEN and CENELEC at the European level. As of January 2025, OSD will be used by ISO/IEC as the default system for the development of standardisation deliverables; for more information, see here. At the European level, while the tool will become the default solution for drafting standards for newly supported deliverables from 1 July 2026 onward, it can already be used for most CEN deliverables, i.e. for non-harmonised ENs, Technical Reports and Technical Specifications, whether homegrown or under the Vienna Agreement with an ISO lead. Those wishing to obtain further information and/or to have their European deliverable developed using the OSD are invited to consult OSD at the Heart of CEN and CENELEC’s Digital Transformation - CEN-CENELEC.
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🔹Comments open on CEN Workshop on Guideline for harmonised training on Standardisation for higher Education within the European Union
On 16 December, the kickoff meeting for a new CEN Workshop Agreement (CWA) on harmonised training for standardisation was held. The Workshop Agreement will complement and align with the activity of EDU4Standards, a project designing education modules and pilots for education to standardisation in which SBS is one of the partners. The goal of this CWA is to formalise teaching methods and content, providing a framework for embedding standardisation education into academic programs. Comments on the CWA can be submitted to the Workshop Secretariat Mr. Bora Bülbül using the relevant commenting form.
🔹 Proposal for creation of new CEN-CENELEC Joint Technical Committee (JTC) on Brain-Computer interfaces In December the German National Standardisation Body for Electrotechnics (DKE) has proposed the creation of a new CEN TC on Brain-Computer interfaces. The proposed JTC would be responsible for standardization in the area of Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs), including: foundational definitions, reference architectures, interoperability protocols, safety requirements, ethical design principles, technical specifications to ensure conformity. ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 43 already addresses international standardisation on the same subject, which covers technologies with applications in healthcare, assistive devices, human computer interaction, education, and security. The deadline to provide feedback, via SBS or your NSB, on the creation of this new TC is 24 February 2026.
🔹 Reply to the European Commission European Standardisation Panel Survey
In December the European Commission launched the 2nd edition of the European Standardisation Panel Survey. The survey aims at gathering input from the industry and other stakeholders on their standardisation needs, with a specific focus on the interplay with Research and Innovation. The results of the survey will lead to recommendations aimed at the European Commission and at Standards Development Organisations, aligning standardisation policy objectives with industry and research community needs. The deadline for replying to the survey is 30 January 2026
🔹 Proposal for creation of new CEN Technical Committee (TC) on Entrepreneurship
In November the Portuguese National Standardisation Body (IPQ) has proposed the creation of a new CEN TC on Entrepreneurship. If created, the proposed TC will be responsible for standardisation in the field of entrepreneurship, including terminology, frameworks, principles, and management systems that support the creation, development, and scaling of startups and scaleups, as well as the organisations enabling these ecosystems. The proposed TC foresees collaboration with existing CEN TCs including CEN/389 "Innovation Management" CEN-CLC/JTC25 "Data Management, Data Spaces, Cloud and Edge" and CEN-CLC/JTC21 "Artificial Intelligence". The deadline to provide feedback, via SBS or your NSB, on the creation of this new TC is 27 January 2026
🔹 AFNOR launches a free online course on introduction to standardisation
In November AFNOR, the French National Standards Body, launched a new free online course (in French only) providing an introduction to standardisation and to the economic benefits of the use of standards. The course is articulated over different modules touching on the main characteristics of the standards development process and on how to use and integrate standards to improve products and processes and comply with legislation.
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New IFC compatibility policy adopted by ISO, with SBS leadership ensuring SME benefits
Small Business Standards (SBS) welcomes the publication of the new Compatibility Policy for ISO 16739-1 (IFC), adopted within ISO/TC 59/SC 13. This represents a major advance in ensuring that IFC remains stable, predictable and usable throughout the entire lifecycle of construction projects.
The document establishes, for the first time, a clear and structured framework describing how future IFC revisions must be assessed for compatibility. It defines what constitutes a minor or major revision, sets rules for acceptable changes, and introduces practical tools such as compatibility checklists and decision tables. These help standardisers evaluate whether proposed updates could break interoperability and ensure that IFC evolves without disrupting existing data or software.
For many years, SMEs have faced practical difficulties when IFC revisions introduced incompatibilities, forcing costly software updates or manual rework of digital models. The new policy directly addresses this challenge by making compatibility a formal requirement, significantly reducing risk and uncertainty for smaller companies.
This achievement builds on the SBS position paper on IFC compatibility and the work of SBS Expert Pierre-François Jullien, who led the editorial committee drafting the deliverable. His leadership ensured that SME needs were fully reflected in the final text and that the resulting framework is both rigorous and workable for industry. By giving SMEs confidence that IFC data will remain usable over time and across software tools, the new policy removes a major barrier to adopting BIM and openBIM workflows. It supports fair competition, lowers digitalisation costs and strengthens interoperability across the construction ecosystem.
Find more information on ISO/TC 59/SC 13 and the published documents here.
| | | | SBS team is wishing you a wonderful end to the year and a bright start to 2026! | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
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