PTA was recently invited to host two representatives from Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), Singapore and a representative from the Australian Commonwealth Government Department of Industry, Innovation and Science (DIIS), Canberra.

The meeting was held on Friday 14th July 2017 at our PTA office in Sydney with PTA General Manager Mr P Briggs and Scientific Officer Ms S To. 

PTA presented an overview of our organisation of how we fit in Australia’s overall standards, conformance infrastructure and the benefits of our services and programs provided for our clients within Australia and internationally. 

The subject of this APEC study—developing indicators to assess the strength of standards and conformance (S&C) infrastructure in the region—is a very important one for APEC member economies. In particular with the rise of global value chains (GVCs), standards loom large as the gatekeepers of market access: low tariffs are not enough to provide effective market access, particularly to smaller firms; it is also necessary to comply with mandatory and voluntary standards in order to be fully integrated into production and distribution networks.

S&C has traditionally been part of APEC’s trade facilitation agenda, as it is one way of reducing bilateral trade costs within the region. However, the issue is now increasingly gaining prominence in its own right through the framework of national quality infrastructure. That concept refers to the full range of institutions that combine forces to support the private sector in producing safe, fit-for-purpose, and high quality goods, and increasingly services. 

PTA is pleased to have been invited to take part of this APEC Project: Developing Indicators to Assess the Strength of Standards and Conference Infrastructure in APEC and look forward to the outcome of this research and report. PTA hope to continue to collaborate with APEC and DIIS in the near future.