2019 ICPHSO Annual Meeting and Training Symposium

Within the international product safety community, across all stakeholder groups, there is universal acceptance of the desirability of international harmonization of product safety standards and regulatory requirements for product safety.   Yet this remains an elusive goal, with examples of high degrees of harmonization being rare in any consumer product sector.  Yet strong examples of success are seen in other sectors, for example the aviation industry.  So why is harmonization so challenging in the consumer products sectors?

This session will start to open up a new discussion on the topic, highlighting some real-world case studies that provide examples of where a good degree of international harmonization has been achieved, and examples of where it has proved to be elusive.

The discussion will be led by experts in the field from around the world with hands-on experience of the practical challenges that arise when seeking international harmonisation, and the difficulties that exist when that goal proves to be difficult to achieve.

Ultimately, the objective of this discussion is to start looking at this issue from a fresh angle, to help us to start to find workable solutions.  

Companies are increasingly looking to expand into less traditional markets such as Asia and the Middle East. Taking a holistic approach, this session looks not just at product safety regulations but also the nuances of individual country approaches to product safety, their enforcement and real-life challenges and solutions to help you grow your business in these areas. Countries to be discussed include Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Russia, Brazil, Taiwan and Vietnam.