NEWS

GS1 CANADA LAUNCHES GS1 KNOWLEDGE CENTRE

March 10, 2008 - Toronto, Ontario

The GS1 Knowledge Centre celebrated its opening in February 2008 when GS1 Canada hosted the session Connecting With Retail Customers, a unique networking opportunity where over 60 vendors were able to discuss supply chain issues with market leading retailers including Loblaw Companies Limited (Loblaw) and Sobeys Inc.

To continually enhance the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), GS1 Canada, Canada’s expert in collaborative commerce and global standards, with the financial support of the Government of Ontario, has established the GS1 Knowledge Centre, a source of supply chain and business education.

“Ontario’s dynamic SME marketplace generates thousands of new businesses each year, as Ontario entrepreneurs respond to market opportunities in Canada and around the globe,” said N. Arthur Smith, president & CEO, GS1 Canada. “The GS1 Knowledge Centre will provide a unique opportunity to learn about best practices in the supply chain to support and enhance the competitiveness of Canadian SMEs.”

The creation of the academic courseware for instruction was an important undertaking for GS1 Canada that could not have been accomplished without the support of the Government of Ontario and the collaboration of members of GS1 Canada's Strategic Advisory Council, leading industry experts and Academia RFID, who lead the development of the course curriculum. This collaboration has allowed GS1 Canada to create 12 leading edge offerings – as both online and classroom workshops – to educate Canadian industry on topics ranging from Electronic Product Code™/Radio Frequency Identification (EPC/RFID) technology to Standards to Human Resources Management.

“Academia RFID is proud to have collaborated with GS1 Canada to present GS1 Knowledge Centre offerings in the field of EPC/RFID,” said Anthony Palermo, director, business development, Academia RFID. “Academia RFID will provide courseware for instruction in the fields of operations and supply chain management, offering practical, results-driven content.” Through their participation in GS1 Canada’s Strategic Advisory Council, Academia plays an important role in moving industry forward by ensuring that Canadian businesses of all sizes have access to leading EPC/RFID education.

Ontario is home to approximately 350,000 SMEs; together, they employ approximately 2.8 million Ontarians and account for over $120 billion in economic activity. They operate across all sectors of the economy and all regions of the province. With this in mind, the GS1 Knowledge Centre will provide business owners with the practical information they need to launch their venture, compete effectively and continue to adapt to complex, constantly changing market demands.

Each of the 12 courses offered by the GS1 Knowledge Centre is available as both a classroom workshop and an on-demand module. For a list of course descriptions, or to register, please visit gs1ca.org.

About GS1 Canada :
GS1 Canada is a neutral, not-for-profit organization that promotes and maintains global standards for the identification of goods, locations and related e-commerce communication, and provides education and awareness of these global standards. As a member organization of GS1, the leading supply chain standards organization in the world, GS1 Canada is the only authorized source for globally unique Company Prefix Licences in Canada, a standard term and condition of trade globally that enable organizations to create reliable, industry-compliant bar codes. GS1 Canada represents Canadian businesses of all sizes – including small and medium enterprises (SMEs), multinational organizations, retailers, manufacturers, and solution providers – in over 20 industry sectors across all regions of Canada – in the global standards development process. For more information, visit www.gs1ca.org.