Celebrating the 15th anniversary of its establishment this year, the Hong Kong Chinese Prepared Medicine Traders Association (CPMTA) paid a visit to STC Hong Kong on 18 July 2017. Around 20 members of the Association were shown around the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Chemistry, Microbiology, Molecular and Ceramicware laboratories. Ms. Vivian Lam, Certification Manager of STC's Chemical, Food and Pharmaceutical Division, complimented the Association on its efforts acting as a platform of communication between the government and the industry, at the same time promoting the formalization and internationalization of TCM. "It is our pleasure to be a long-term partner of the Association. We will continue to monitor the quality of medicinal products on the market through the rigorous testing programs and regular market surveillance of our STC-tested Mark Scheme," said Lam.

The Marks & Spencer (M&S) sourcing team visited STC Dongguan on 29 June 2017 and participated in a workshop on the testing of ceramicware, cookware and cutlery. Hosted by Candy Chan, Senior Manager of STC's Chemical, Food and Pharmaceutical Division, the training workshop delivered a detailed introduction to regulatory requirements, performance tests, and recall cases, etc. of the said consumer products. It was the first time the M&S team visited STC Dongguan, and they showed strong interest in the test procedure and equipment during the laboratory tour. STC's technical professionals performed test demonstrations and explained the related international standards and pass/fail criteria. The M&S team expressed gratitude for STC's hospitality and guidance on this rewarding lab tour. "The visit indeed deepened our understanding of testing on ceramicware and kitchenware," said one M&S Senior Product Merchandiser.

Product safety is part of our daily life. To raise public awareness of the importance of product safety, HKCC has organized Product Safety Short Film Competition.The results of the competition were announced at the Product Safety Carnival on May 19. The winners received the awards from Secretary for the Environment, Mr. Wong Kam Sing, and Product Safety Ambassador, Corinna Chamberlain. Cash awards of HKD15,000, $8,000, $4,000 and $1,000 were presented to the winners accordingly. To view the short films, you may go to the websites below: Winner: Our Lady of China Catholic Primary School https://youtu.be/refLKC2UqeE 1st Runner-up: Tse Nok Yiu https://youtu.be/pYMjl0aRyEU 2nd Runner-up: SKH Ho Chak Wan Primary School https://youtu.be/8lsGT9RS2eQ Merit Award: Gina Chan https://youtu.be/VTpcdAJtNK0 Merit Award: Wong Hing Lei https://youtu.be/pblAu1Uf-t8

STC will attend the International Tokyo Toy Show 2017 Welcome to our Booth No.1-51 in Hall 1 Date: June 1-2, 2017 Opening Hours: 10:00 am - 17:30 pm Venue: Tokyo Big Sight East Exhibition Address: 3-10-1, Ariake, Koto-ku, Tokyo, Japan See you there!

STC is joining APLF Leather & Materials+ 2017 Come and visit us: booth#1A A11 Date: 29 - 31 March, 2017 Opening Hours: 9:00 am - 6:00 pm Venue: Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre

Per and Polyfluorinated Chemicals (PFCs) are widely used in products of everyday life such as textiles, clothing and food contact materials for their better water and stain resistance. However, PFCs are very difficult to be decomposed and may impose potential health threats to human. For help protecting the environment, Adidas Group has committed to phase out PFCs in 99% products sold, including Adidas Golf, Reebok, Five Ten, CCM, and licensees, by December 31, 2017. To meet this goal, suppliers of Adidas have to ensure their products’ compliance with the newly established requirement by conducting Fluorine test in qualified laboratories. As an international not-for-profit organization specialized in testing, inspection and certification aiming to support global buyers and suppliers in quality management, STC(Vietnam) – a subsidiary of STC Group (Hong Kong Standards and Testing Centre), was in cooperation with Adidas Vietnam License office to host the seminar “Compliance Requirement: PFCs Policy” exclusive for Adidas suppliers on 10th March, 2017. During the Q&A session, a lot of questions related to PFCs’ definition as well as other requirements following Adidas compliance policy were raised by T1 and T2 suppliers, showing us the great interest this topic has generated to our audience. Should you have any enquiries, please contact Ms. Candy Chan (candychan@stc.group) in Hong Kong or Ms. Tuyen Pham (tuyenpham@stc.group) in Vietnam for further information.

Hong Kong (23rd February, 2017) – STC today announced the acquisition of Benchmark Laboratories LLC, in New Jersey (‘Benchmark’). With over 16 years of experience in the testing and certification industry, Benchmark is accredited to ISO 17025 and accepted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Post acquisition, Benchmark will become a wholly owned subsidiary of STC while continuing to operate as an independent business unit. “The acquisition of the Benchmark Laboratories marks an important milestone in STC’s history. This expansion will further strengthen our service capabilities and commitment to the North American market. With our network spanning the globe, I am sure that STC will continue to develop and excel, better serving customers, especially for the toys, children’s products and textile industries in the US,” commented Richard Fung, Chief Executive of STC. “We see significant potential in the US market. With the acquisition of Benchmark, STC (USA) is now STC’s Regional Headquarters in North America, providing local technical consultancy and customer services. This complements our current service network in Europe, Southeast Asia and Mainland China providing comprehensive support to the global supply chain,” Fung added. “We will also keep expanding our scope of services to meet the growing demand for professional conformity services in the United States as well as other countries around the world. ” About STC STC (Hong Kong Standards and Testing Centre) was found in 1963 as the first not-for-profit testing, certification and inspection organization in the region. STC provides a wide range of professional conformity assessment services, covering toys, children’s products, textile, garment, footwear, furniture, electrical and electronic products, medical devices, food, chemical and pharmaceutical products. STC is headquartered in Hong Kong, with testing laboratories and offices in mainland China, Vietnam, Japan, Germany, Italy and the United States. Media Contact Ms. Cynthia Ho Marketing Communications Manager Tel: +852 2667 2631 Fax: +852 2661 3181 E-Mail: cynthiaho@stc.group

Federation of Hong Kong Industries is holding the seminar “International IoT Seminar- Standards, Requirements and Regulations for IoT and Wireless” on 24 February 2017. One of the speakers will be our Manager, EMD - Mr. Kenneth Cheung. Interested parties are welcome to join the seminar to learn more about the advance testing methods and latest regulatory compliance of IoT and wireless devices. For registration, please go to the link below: https://www.industryhk.org/en/event_offline.php?id=96159024

STC is participating in Australian Toy, Hobby & Licensing Fair on 5-8 March, 2017. Come and visit our booth#E11. See you there!

Date: 23-26 November, 2016 Time: 8:30 am – 5:00 pm Venue: Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center STC will be joining the 16th Vietnam International Textile and Garment Industry Exhibition at Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center from 23-26 November. Come visit us at booth no. L25, Hall A1 for the latest information and testing methods for textile and garment products!