Overview of the Brazil-U.S. Standards and Conformance Cooperation Project (SCCP)

February 2009

Reeve WolfordLatin America Consultant

American National Standards InstituteTel: 703-657-9168

E-mail: rwolford@ansi.org

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Introduction

• ANSI proposes the establishment of a Brazil-U.S. Standards and Conformance Cooperation Program (SCCP) to support Brazil-U.S. trade and development, particularly among small businesses (SMEs).

• Implementation to be coordinated by ANSI, in partnership with its Brazilian counterparts ABNT and INMETRO, the Brazilian and U.S. governments and private sectors.

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Introduction

The SCCP would initially consist of the following two initiatives, to be carried out over a 3-year period, with preliminary deliverables produced within 3-6 months:

Brazil-U.S. StandardsPortal

An online resource for information on the standards, conformity assessment and technical regulations applicable to the U.S. and Brazilian markets, in English and Portuguese.

Brazil-U.S. Training and Capacity Building Initiative

A program of events, seminars and workshops aimed at helping companies:

• meet the standards, conformity assessment and technical regulations in effect in the U.S. and Brazil.

• engage in standardization activities so that their perspectives are considered as future requirements are developed.

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Introduction

The SCCP is designed to:

• Reduce barriers to bilateral trade and investment

• Increase transparency

• Create incentives for technical requirements in both countries to conform to international practices

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Introduction: Participating Organizations

The SCCP would be led by ANSI, in cooperation with a broad group of collaborating organizations including the following:

Brazil U.S.

ABNT, INMETRO ANSI

Companies, associations Companies, associations

Ministry of Development Industry and Trade, APEX

Dept. of Commerce, USTDA

Regulators Regulators

Conformity assessment bodies (CABs) Conformity assessment bodies (CABs)

Standards developers (SDO’s) Standards developers (SDO’s)

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StandardsPortal

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StandardsPortal

The Brazil-U.S. StandardsPortal will be built upon the existing StandardsPortal (www.standardsportal.org) infrastructure, which includes the following information:

• Standards and conformance information for the U.S. and China in English and Mandarin Chinese (2006)

• Information on India developed as part of an U.S.-India SCCP (2008)

• Information on Korea in English and Korean under development (2009 launch)

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StandardsPortal

The StandardsPortal aims to answer key questions for companies looking to engage in international trade:

• What technical requirements must my product meet to enter and compete in the U.S. or Brazilian market?

• How can I get an “early warning” about changes to these requirements?

• How can I ensure that my company’s perspectives are heard and considered in the development of standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment policies?

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StandardsPortal

Existing U.S. information on StandardsPortal would be expanded and translated into Portuguese. Similar

information on Brazil (English and Portuguese) would be developed.

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Search by Name, ICS Code, or Industry

Sector

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StandardsPortal: Market Access Directory

• A searchable, bilingual product-by-product database of U.S. and Brazilian standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment requirements for five priority industry sectors.

• Information on public and private developers of standards and regulations in both countries, including contact information.

• Links to the organizations that carry out conformity assessment for specific scopes in the U.S. and Brazil.

• An online discussion forum for companies to ask questions and provide practical suggestions related to the specific standards, conformity assessment procedures and regulations referenced by the Directory.

A new Market Requirements Directory would be added to StandardsPortal and would provide:

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Brazil-U.S. Standards Cooperation Workshop and

Event Series

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Brazil-U.S. Standards Cooperation Workshop and Event Series

• A series of workshops focused on finding solutions to mutually-relevant issues in standards and conformance.

• Larger events aimed at drawing public attention to the importance of standards & conformity assessment for business, public health, safety, etc.

The Brazil-U.S. Standards Cooperation Workshop and Event Series will complement the online resources by organizing:

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For more information

American National Standards Institute

Headquarters Operations

1819 L Street, NW 25 West 43rd Street

Sixth Floor Fourth Floor

Washington, DC 20036 New York, NY 10036

T: 202.293.8020 T: 212.642.4900

F: 202.293.9287 F: 212.398.0023

www.ansi.org | webstore.ansi.org | www.nssn.org

www.standardsportal.org

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For more information:

•Gary Kushnier, Vice President of International Policy

202-331-3604 / gkushnie@ansi.org

• Steven Bipes, Director – Regional & Bilateral Programs202-331-3607 / sbipes@ansi.org

• Elise Owen, ANSI Representative for China & India Affairs202-331-3624 / eowen@ansi.org

ANSI International Policy Department Contacts