In October 1997, two seminars entitled "The Standardization of Companies in the Market Economy" were held. The first one took place in Hanoi on 14 October on the occasion of the World Standards Day, the second one in Ho Chi Minh City on 16 October 1997. The one-day seminars were organized by the Vietnam Centre for standards and Quality (VSC) in co-operation with the Vietnam Article Numbering and Barcoding Organization (EAN-VN).

Vietnamese experts and the EU expert Johannes Weber gave lectures and discussed the role of standards in improving the national economy and the important influence to the standardization process of businesses. Problems of quality management and how to improve access to international and European markets have also been discussed. Representatives from companies informed about their experiences on installing and improving company standardization in their enterprises.

More than 150 experts from various enterprises were attending the seminars in both cities. The participants were highly interested in the lectures, and they contributed much to the plenary discussions. It shows that there is a great demand for more detailed information as well as for assistance in all the fields relating to implementation of standards in companies.