The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) announced today that Intertek, a leading international provider of quality and safety solutions, has joined RILA and the British Retail Consortium (BRC) as a sponsor in the creation and implementation of a meaningful global manufacturing standard for consumer goods. This retail industry led standard will enhance the safety of products worldwide.
RILA members embrace their role as leaders in the product safety arena. Earlier this year RILA and the BRC forged a partnership to develop a global product safety standard in North America. BRC/RILA standard will help retailers comply with the new regulations by establishing a meaningful, achievable and certifiable worldwide measure by which manufacturing operations are set. The BRC/RILA standard will be a truly global product safety standard.
Intertek will join RILA and the BRC as third party auditor and one of three select non-voting members of the RILA Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). With participation from many of America’s leading retailers, TAC is responsible for guiding the development of these standards.
“Our progress thus far has been tremendous, and we are delighted to welcome Intertek to this important effort,” said Jim Neill, vice president of product safety. “Intertek’s proven success in assessing risk and ensuring the safety of products in a manner that is effective and efficient adds a strong new champion to our efforts and we look forward to working with them to reach our product safety goals.”
Gene Rider, Vice President Global Retail Leader and President of Intertek Consumer Goods North America adds, “Intertek is proud to contribute to global public policy efforts in support of consumer product safety. We are happy to offer our expertise in the areas of testing, inspection, certification and quality assurance to RILA, their membership and the BRC.”
The target date for release of the new standard (North American version) is October 2009, with implementation of the new standards anticipated by Spring 2010.
BRC/RILA Partnership
The BRC has developed global standards that have gained support from European retailers. Standards have been developed for food, packaging, storage and distribution, and consumer products.
RILA in partnership with the BRC, are adopting the consumer products standards in North America, making them truly global to enhance the safety of products worldwide. RILA’s vision is to proactively protect consumers and retail brands by partnering with suppliers to adopt and implement these industry-wide, global safety standards, while advocating effective legislation and regulatory compliance.
RILA and the BRC are working to enhance an already established international network of approved certification bodies and a proven process to deliver third party certification through global supply chains. As a certification body, sponsor and a TAC member, Intertek will provide input into the guidelines and implementation schedule for the role out of the product category guidelines.
About RILA
The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) promotes consumer choice and economic freedom through public policy and industry operational excellence. RILA members include the largest and most successful companies in the retail industry. RILA provides its members with unique educational forums, effective public policy advocacy, and advancement of the retail industry.
About Intertek
Intertek (ITRK.L) is a leading provider of quality and safety solutions serving a wide range of industries around the world. From auditing and inspection, to testing, quality assurance and certification, Intertek people are dedicated to adding value to customers' products and processes, supporting their success in the global marketplace. Intertek has the expertise, resources and global reach to support its customers through its network of more than 1,000 laboratories and offices and over 23,000 people in 110 countries around the world
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Brian Dodge SVP, Communications & State Affairs Phone: 703-600-2017 Email: brian.dodge@rila.org