Free Access to Harmonised Standards — and the Price the Standardisation System May Pay

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If a company wishes to sell a CE-marked product in the Single market, it must demonstrate compliance with the applicable European Union (EU) harmonisation legislation — and for most product categories, that means working with harmonised technical standards. As the legislator does not wish to specify all the technical details itself, it also refers to harmonised technical standards, which companies previously had to purchase.

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The Underutilisation Problem: When Good Laboratories Fall Short of Their Potential

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Well-equipped, well-trained but underused

When visiting public quality infrastructure facilities around the world, a striking paradox emerges time and again: laboratories equipped with sophisticated instruments, staff trained through international development cooperation programmes, and test benches that sit largely quiet.

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Certified Reference Materials: What They Are and Why They Matter

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Many newcomers to quality infrastructure (QI) struggle to understand the role of metrology, a key domain within the discipline. It can be challenging to grasp how metrology forms the backbone of a QI system, not only in terms of physical metrology, such as measuring weights, length, time, or temperature, but even more so when it comes to chemical metrology.

Reference materials of the Designated Institute of the Philippines
Photo by Christian Schoen
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When Data Creates Trust: The Quality Infrastructure Behind Codes and Digital Product Passports

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The Challenge and Promise of QI Interoperability

Digital transformation is affecting all aspects of quality infrastructure (QI), introducing data-driven approaches that increase the visibility and reach of standardization, metrology, accreditation, and conformity assessment processes.

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Building Safe and Fair Workplaces: The Critical Role of Quality Infrastructure

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Introduction

Quality infrastructure (QI) institutions, which initially focused primarily on technical and industrial sectors, now impact nearly every aspect of our lives. They influence how goods and services are produced and significantly affect the world of work, where safety, fairness, and dignity are essential. On a global scale, the International Labour Organization (ILO) sets the gold standard for workplace rights, creating norms that ensure decent working conditions for all.

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