Internationalization and scaling-up may go hand in hand with standardization. For example, converting Dutch standards into a European or international standard product will give your innovation an even further boost. NEN has the resources and contacts to support this process and offers market parties a gateway to the international world of standardization. NEN thus helps to promote your export power!
Agreements are made everywhere. While many agreements were previously made and applied exclusively at national level, nowadays more and more European and global standards are in force. Europe strives for the free movement of goods and services. Trade barriers are being removed, among other things, through the development of harmonized European standards. The European standardization network (CEN CENELEC) plays a central role in this process. European standards form an important basis for the regulations of the European Commission. ISO / IEC fulfills the same role on a global level.
NEN is the national standardization institute and a member of all European and global standardization networks on behalf of the Netherlands. NEN plays a leading role:
- At an international level, NEN represents the interests of the Dutch market and you can benefit from it. NEN supervises various international committees in which standards are developed by interested parties.
- For (inter)national standards committees, NEN is the point of contact in the Netherlands and facilitates the Dutch input. We inform the Dutch market at an early stage about new standard development projects and encourage active Dutch participation. This allows Dutch market parties to achieve their (international) objectives.
Different types of international agreements
NEN not only develops and manages national standards, but is also the gateway to European and global standards. The most common international types of agreements are:
European standard (EN)
A European EN standard is valid for all European member states. National standardization bodies are obliged to adopt the European standards nationally (implementation obligation). For the Dutch market, European standards then, for example, bear the NEN-EN code. In Germany this is DIN-EN.
International standard (ISO or IEC)
International standards in an international context are developed at ISO or IEC. There is no obligation to implement the global standards in other countries. The documents that have been accepted by the Netherlands are coded NEN-ISO or NEN-IEC.
Some international standards have also been accepted at European level. These can be recognized by the coding: NEN-EN-ISO.
Technical specification (CEN / TS or ISO / TS)
The Technical Specification (TS) is drawn up for provisional application. The technical progress or the consensus is still insufficient to issue a standard. The Technical Specification can also be used for rapid interim publication of the results of a standard development process.
Technical report (CEN / TR or ISO / TR)
A Technical Report (TR) has an informative character. It is issued when it appears desirable to make certain information available, such as technical data or an inventory of legal rules and standards per country.
Workshop agreement (CWA of IWA)
A CWA or an IWA is developed in a CEN (European) or ISO (international) workshop. These workshops are open to anyone interested in participating. CWAs and IWAs are often drawn up as a precursor to an EN or ISO standard.
During a review in the boosting phase or later on in the growth phase, NEN will also discuss possible steps for internationalization with you. You can request a review here.
If you would like to know more about the international activities of NEN, please ask a question.