MUNICH - A delegation from the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property (SAIP) met with quality management experts at the European Patent Office (EPO) in Munich. The discussions enabled the two offices to share insights into their quality management systems, according to the official website of EPO.

The EPO presented the five pillars of its Patent Quality Charter, as well as its feedback channels, including the Office’s user satisfaction surveys, extensive meetings with a wide array of stakeholders, customer enquiry services and the Ombuds Office. EPO quality initiatives and operational mechanisms for quality control and quality assurance were also discussed, providing insights into how quality audits are run and reported on, including in the EPO’s newly launched Quality dashboard.

The meetings with SAIP also follow on from the inaugural publication of the EPO Quality Action Plan 2024. While the dashboard provides regular updates on progress made in terms of quality KPIs and user satisfaction, the Quality Action Plan defines all targeted actions to improve further the quality of our products and services at every stage of the patent granting process and strengthen user dialogue.

Partnerships and quality pave the way to greater sustainability

Overall, the exchanges provided a platform for the offices to better understand one another’s processes.

Partnerships, along with high-quality, timely products and services, are among the five drivers of the EPO’s recently adopted Strategic Plan 2028, guiding the way to a more sustainable Office, patent system and society.

These are the latest meetings in a series of co-operation initiatives, following the signing of a Reinforced Partnership agreement between the EPO and SAIP on 18 November 2021. The agreement promotes joint initiatives such as the reuse of EPO work products in SAIP’s patent examination process. SAIP's strategic development is also driven by sustainability, which is integrated into all its activities and quality management systems.