Standards and SMEs

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and crafts are a key part of the European economy and have a significant influence on growth and employment. They account for 99,8 % of all businesses, 67,5 % of all jobs and 58,4 % of value added. Nevertheless, the use of standards by SMEs and their involvement with standardisation is low.
 
The European Commission has been promoting the importance of standards and standardization in supporting innovation, growth and competitiveness throughout Europe by various communications and guidelines for many years now, including the 2008 Small Business Act which promotes the ‘think small first’ principle.

Small  Business Act for Europe
European Commission, Enterprise and Industry

Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European standardisation applied since 1 January 2013 (since 1 July 2013 in the Republic of Croatia), stresses the importance of encouraging and engaging SMEs in the national and European standardisation processes.

More information on standardization levels and standards on our web pages at:

Standardization/Concepts, terms and definitions and Frequently asked questions