UL Announces Maria Iafano as Director, UL Standards- Canada

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., Oct. 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- UL (Underwriters Laboratories Inc.), a world leader in advancing safety science, is pleased to announce the appointment of Maria Iafano to Director, UL Standards – Canada. In this capacity, Ms. Iafano will represent UL in Canada where she will work with Canadian stakeholders, including Provincial Regulators, Federal Governments, trade associations and consumers to provide information on UL's capabilities and standards services to benefit the Canadian market and represent UL on various Canadian committees.

Ms. Iafano brings a great deal of regulatory experience and knowledge to UL.  Prior to joining UL, she served as Director, Legislative Policy & Government Affairs for the Ontario Electrical Safety Authority (ESA), the provincial authority responsible for regulating electrical safety in Ontario, Canada. Ms. Iafano also served as Chair of the National Public Safety Advisory Committee (NPSAC), a federal-provincial-territorial committee of public safety regulators whose aim is to increase policy collaboration, to address emerging public safety issues of common concern and to provide advice on standardization to the SCC.  

Ms. Iafano has a Master's Degree in International Affairs, trade policy and economics, a Masters Certificate in Marketing Communications Leadership, and Executive training in Regulatory Impact Analysis and Regulatory Compliance.

The appointment of Ms. Iafano is part of UL establishing itself as a separate standards development organization (SDO) for Canada following its accreditation by the SCC to develop National Standards of Canada (NSCs).

In January 2013, UL was accredited by the SCC as one of only two SDOs based outside of Canada. This enables UL to create standards for Canada along with fully harmonized bi-national standards for the U.S.-Canada marketplace, enabling more efficient manufacturer access to the North American market. The two countries conduct the world's largest bilateral trade relationship, with total merchandise trade exceeding $500 billion annually.

"UL is committed to becoming an active member of the Canadian standards system.  We understand the economic value harmonized standards will provide to both Canada and the United States," said Bob Williams, Vice President-Standards. "We are pleased Maria has joined our team as a dedicated resource for UL standards development in Canada."

Underwriters Laboratories Inc., which is organizationally a separate entity from ULC Standards, Inc., is a not-for-profit member of the UL family of companies. 

About UL
UL is a premier global independent safety science company that has championed progress for 120 years. Its more than 10,000 professionals are guided by the UL mission to promote safe working and living environments for all people. UL uses research and standards to continually advance and meet ever-evolving safety needs. We partner with businesses, manufacturers, trade associations and international regulatory authorities to bring solutions to a more complex global supply chain. For more information about our certification, testing, inspection, advisory and education services, visit http://www.UL.com.

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SOURCE UL LLC