The Annual General Meeting of the Spanish Association for Standardization, UNE, took place this morning, which this year was held online, adapting to the circumstances arising from COVID-19.
At the online event, UNE underlined the fundamental role of standards in promoting sustainability and digital transformation in Spain, two of the major challenges facing organisations and society today.
In the sustainability field, an example of this is Technical Standardization Committee 323 on the circular economy, which has the objective of channelling Spanish influence in the drafting of global standards and the development of national regulations in this area.
For its part, Standard UNE 149002 establishes the criteria and requirements that make it possible to identify which products are or are not biodegradable and degradable and, as a result, whether or not they can be flushed down the toilet, providing an effective response to the problem of obstructions in the sanitation network, by allowing quality disposable products.
Furthermore, UNE standards help organizations achieve the 17 SDGs of the United Nations 2030 Agenda, reflecting the consensus, collaboration and good practices required for this global challenge. There are more than 4,000 UNE standards that enable organisations to obtain the SDGs.
In the field of digitisation, standards are strategic allies of organisations, establishing a common language and providing security and confidence. Examples include Specifications UNE 0060 and UNE 0061, which define a management system to guide the digitalization process of industrial companies of any size. They have been strongly promoted by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism.
Other pioneering standards are those for smart tourist destinations, such as UNE 178503 Smart tourist destinations. Semantics applied tourism and UNE 178504 on digital, smart and connected hotels (HDIC).
Also illustrative are the standards that drive the BIM (Building Information Modelling) methodology in construction (UNE-EN ISO 19650).
The technical standard documents reflect market consensus on best practices for dealing with key issues for the competitiveness of organisations and the development of society, generating confidence. Standards bring economic benefits: for companies, they can account for up to 5% of their annual sales revenue, while for the Spanish economy as a whole, the standards already account for 1% of GDP.
At the AGM, the incorporation of 36 new UNE associate members was approved, bringing total membership to more than 500, representing almost all of Spain's productive and economic fabric.
Among the new developments at this year's AGM, the modification of the Internal Regulations were approved to permit the use of telematic tools and to enable the Association's activity to be developed online, including the voting processes, with all guarantees and thus adapting to the opportunities offered by technology, especially during the current time of COVID-19.
UNE members have approved both the 2019 balance sheet and the 2020 management plan and its budget.
Member advantages
Being a member of the UNE means being committed to the product and service quality of their respective sectors and belonging to a multi-sectoral and international contact network.
UNE's membership distinguishes organisations with a superior strategic view of their value contribution to their sector and the Spanish economy as a whole.
All companies that wish to do so can join UNE: corporate (sector associations), members (companies and institutions) and individuals.
UNE is a model case of public-private collaboration between its members and Public Administrations.
