KATS Organizes 'Buy NEP-
Certified Product'Workshop

Some 500 NEP-certified firms and procurement/design staff of purchasing organizations participate in the workshop

About 500 NEP-certified firms and procurement/design staff of purchasing organizations got together at the Vivaldi Park in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province July 27-28 to participate in the NEP (New Excellent Product)-Certified Product & Buyer Workshop organized by the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards to encourage the substantial purchase of new NEP-certified products.
At the workshop, presentations and discussions were made about sales support system, purchasing status of public organizations, credit sales system for NEP-certified products, Kibo technology fund utilization strategy, etc. These discussions also included the introduction of the NEP certification system and its improvement direction, said Kim Se-jin, director of KATS'Advanced Technology Certification Assistance Dept.
In a lecture entitled ''Status of the Korean Economy and the Role of Public Organizations,'' Prof.
Oh Yeon-Cheon of Seoul National University emphasized the need for the active participation of public organizations in order to revive SMEs engaged in new technology development.
KATS said the workshop would serve as momentum to encourage not only public organizations but also large companies to buy NEP-certified products.
The agency said it plans to continue to develop support systems for marketing NEP-certified products so that new technology products can secure a stable market share to help SMEs raise their competitive edge and encourage SMEs development of new technology products.
The NEP certification system was inaugurated as a result of a merger of certificates in January of last year. New technologies, developed in Korea for the first time, and products made with substitutes equivalent to the new technologies are certified with the NEP mark. However, idea items that can be duplicated within less than three years after commercialization and goods made with key imported arts are excluded from certification.
The system implements a thorough six-stage certification process - an examination by the working-level screening committee, an on-site inspection, product examination and a screening by the Internet Advance Notice Committee. During 2006, 576 applications were submitted, but only 31.9 percent or 184 items were certified with NEP mark.
The stern certification process assures that NEP-certified products continue to be top-quality.
The government also offers assistance in such areas as marketing activities for exploring markets. Public organizations are required to fill 20 percent of the target item with NEP-certified goods if there is a NEP-certified one each public organization wants to buy.
Environmental Management System Certification on Rise
The number of certification of environmental management system complying with the international standards in Korea in 2006 reached 5,893, 2.4 times the number (2,447) in 2004, according to statistics published by Korean Agency for Technology & Standards (KATS). Small and medium enterprises accounted for 95% of the certifications in many areas ranging from manufacturing and construction to services, public administration and education.
The sharp increase in environmental management system certifications results from the recognition that environmental management is the very important factor to improve an enterprise's image and raise its competitiveness through producing environment friendly products.
Following growing environmental restrictions in the U.S., Japan, China and other countries, Korea's industries prompted the active adoption of environmental management. In addition, local consumers'increased preference for environment friendly products in recent trends can be beneficial to the enterprise that obtains the certification of environmental management system.
Globally the number of certifications of environmental management system reached 111,162 in 2005 with Japan leading numbered 23,466, followed by China (12,683), Spain (8,206), Italy (7,080) and the UK (6,055). Korea's international rank in this area rose from tenth in 2004 to seventh in 2005.
Cho Duk-Ho, director of Biotechnology and Environment Standards Division at KATS, said, 'Korean enterprises'adoption of environmental management system certifications has enhanced their global competitiveness, while increasing confidence among customers and stakeholders and demonstrating their commitment to social responsibility (SR).' nw

About 500 NEP-certified company officials and procurement/design staff of purchasing organizations participate in the workshop, organized by the Korean Agency for Technology Standards on July 27-28.