Today, the Spanish Association for Standardization, UNE, has presented the new European Standardization Strategy. The event, which was held at the UNE headquarters and which was also live-streamed, featured experts who underscored the key role that standardization plays in promoting the single market and Europe's leadership in global markets.
This Strategy, launched by the European Commission early this year, reinforces the essential role of technical standards for a resilient, green and digital European single market, and it provides greater support for European strategic autonomy. It also reaffirms the important role of the European standardization organizations CEN, CENELEC and ETSI, of which the UNE is a part as the Spanish member, in developing the standards that promote the internal market and the green and digital transitions.
In the words of Javier García, UNE's CEO, "this strategy recognizes that standards form the basis of the EU's single market and that the harmonized standards published in the last 30 years have enabled companies to demonstrate compliance with EU legislation, yielding great benefits to both companies and consumers. Standards create equal conditions in the domestic market and reinforce the strategic autonomy of a stronger Europe in the world, as well as the safety of European citizens, providing an effective response to the main challenges of society and companies".
Galo Gutiérrez, the managing director of Industry and SMEs at the Ministry of Justice, Commerce and Tourism, noted that "European standardization is a key factor in industry's competitiveness. European standardization bodies must play a significant role on an international level, and our national standardization body (UNE) has to be the party that channels and promotes the standardization needs of our industrial fabric".
Elena Santiago, CEO of CEN and CENELEC, stated that "the New European Standardization Strategy is the culmination of a broad collective reflection and close collaboration with the European Commission on how to future-proof the European Standardization System. As such, it recognizes the strategic value of standards and provides a clear framework for renewed collaboration with European institutions. The CEN and CENELEC community is ready to commit, to ensure Europe's long-term sustained recovery and resilience and to help Europe keep its promises".
During the event, a panel was held on "Standardization in support of public policies", moderated by Paloma García, Director of Standardization Programmes and Stakeholder Engagement at the UNE. Also taking part in the panel were José Manuel Prieto, Deputy Director General of Industrial Quality and Safety at MINCOTUR; Miguel Ángel Bermúdez, Deputy Director General of Standards and Technical Studies at the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda; and Pedro Martín Jurado, international adviser on Technical Standards at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation's Office for Digital Telecommunications and Infrastructure. The event was closed out by Carlos Esteban, UNE's president.
