The globalisation of the market place means that many companies now rely on suppliers in different countries and sell to customers all over the world.

Standards are essential tools for this market to operate efficiently.

For many years now the European standards bodies CEN and CENELEC have been working with the international standardisation organisations, ISO and IEC, to promote the alignment and harmonisation of standards.

At the ISO General Assembly in St. Petersburg in September 2013, CEN and CENELEC signed a Cooperation Agreement with Rosstandart, the national standardization body of the Russian Federation.

The two bodies are also keen for closer liaison with the American National Standards Institute, now that negotiations have restarted on the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

They have also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with ENTSO-E (European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity) which will include working together on the technical issues of the ‘Smart Grids’ of the future.