On December 19, 2023, Mr. Arun Iamsuri, Chairman of the Supply Chain Security Working Group and Executive Committee Member of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), participated in a discussion on guidelines for addressing the issue of substandard products with Mr. Wanchai Phanomchai, Secretary-General of the Thai Industrial Standards Institute (TISI), at Meeting Room 230, Thai Industrial Standards Institute.
The meeting was also attended by representatives from various industrial groups, including Mr. Suradet Boonyawat, Chairman of the Electrical and Electronics Industry Group; Dr. Jiraporn Wiriyapongakul, Chairman of the Textile Industry Group; Mr. Supoj Chaiwilai, Committee Member of the Textile Industry Group; Mr. Pongthep Thepbangchak, Vice Chairman of the Iron and Steel Industry Group; and Mr. Nawapong Sornchote, Committee Member of the Rubber Industry Group.
Mr. Wanchai Phanomchai stated that TISI has introduced eight proactive measures under the “Quick Win” mission to tackle substandard products, as follows:
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The “3 Accelerations” Measure (Accelerate Inspection, Accelerate Supervision, Accelerate Suppression): Increasing the frequency of inspections on products sold via online platforms and using the collected data to trace warehouse locations, online advertising sources, and the origins of substandard products, including manufacturing factories and import channels, in order to take the strictest legal action against offenders.
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Strict Enforcement Measure: If products are found without the TISI certification mark, TISI will issue an official notice requiring operators to provide shop and product information. If violations are confirmed, offenders shall be subject to imprisonment for up to six months, or a fine of up to 500,000 baht, or both.
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Data Integration Measure: Informing all platforms of legal actions against products advertised without the TISI mark and requiring platforms to implement systems that mandate sellers of controlled products to display license information via QR Code and show the TISI mark in product images.
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Awareness and Education Measure: TISI will invite online shops and platforms to jointly discuss preventive measures against advertising, selling, and illegally distributing substandard products, and to clarify legal liabilities as providers of advertising space and beneficiaries of such sales.
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Sustainable Expansion Measure: Expanding investigations to identify the sources of substandard products in order to control the problem more effectively and taking legal action against operators or related parties who provide false information regarding product origins.
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Public Awareness Measure: Requesting platforms to display warning infographics to educate consumers on how to identify certified products whenever keywords such as “power strips,” “power banks,” or “light bulbs” are searched.
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Public Engagement Measure: Producing online content to educate the public on how to select standard-compliant products.
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Enforcement Capability Enhancement Measure: Establishing a special task force to study legal issues, limitations, and solutions for penalizing online shops and beneficiaries involved in selling substandard products. This initiative is part of the “Quick Win” mission aimed at eliminating substandard products within six months.
Mr. Arun Iamsuri proposed three approaches for cooperation between FTI and TISI:
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Establishing a joint War Room to inspect substandard products.
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Reviewing standardization policies to protect against substandard products, such as promoting mandatory standards.
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Facilitating industrial groups under FTI to utilize the SDO mechanism in drafting industrial product standards.
Mr. Wanchai Phanomchai expressed support for this cooperation framework and stated that TISI also has a policy to increase the number of industrial product standards in line with the volume of products in the market. In particular, industrial groups can benefit from the SDO mechanism in developing standards to enhance and strengthen the competitiveness of the industrial sector in the future.
