NNSL (Oct 13/99) - One of the first tasks of the Northern Manufacturers' Association will be to produce a position paper on standards, the newly-formed organization said Friday.

"The association will be striking a standards committee to further address and direct standards-related issues for Northern manufacturers," the association said in a release.

The decision to draft a position paper follows a meeting of NWT manufacturers in Yellowknife 10 days ago.

The main purpose of the conference was to define a Northern manufacturers and exporters' perspective and determine steps needed to be to ensure the association's views are acknowledged.

Participants agreed that is necessary to establish standards for Northern- manufactured products in order to secure certification and competitiveness of Northern products worldwide.

It was suggested that a circumpolar standard might be developed. There was also discussion on what form, either suitable for the North standard, or a tested North of 60 standard, Northern standards would take.

The Standards Council of Canada is developing a national standards strategy, the association said. The Sept. 30-Oct. 1 meeting here included presentations by Andrew Shepherd, corporate planner for the Standards Council of Canada, and Alan Downe, executive director of regulatory reform for the Government of the NWT.