Today the new Pressure Equipment Directive came fully into force, requiring manufacturers of pressure equipment and assemblies to update their CE marking.

The Directive was previously in a transitional period, but as of the 19th July 2016 all of the requirements of the new Directive (2014/68/EU) have now come into force. The changes are more administrative rather than technical design changes, however there are some key differences to note.

• The Directive has a new format, using a common set of definitions and conformity modules (Some module names have slightly changed to match the new Directive template).
• There are new obligations for importers and distributors.
• There is now a clear requirement for manufacturers to undertake some form of risk assessment.
• The Directive now uses the new ‘EU Declaration of Conformity’ template (requiring companies to not only update their Declaration to quote the new Directive number, but also use the new template).

To support companies with the changes to the Directive, the CE Marking Association has written an overview of the new Directive, which can be viewed here, but the EU have also published an updated version of their Pressure Equipment Directive Guidance Q&As (which can be downloaded here – PDF 1.16MB).

If you need support with the new Directive or any other CE marking topic, then please get in contact.

At the CE Marking Association we receive a lot questions from manufacturers and importers trying to learn more about the CE mark and one question that regularly crops up is about the Chinese Export mark, so we thought we would share our opinion on the matter.

A client recently told us that they had heard that the China Export mark was a ‘legitimate label’ and was concerned about potential customers becoming confused and wondered whether it had any ‘legitimacy’ in any market; Europe or world-wide?

The CE Marking Association has held the view for a long time that the China Export mark is not valid mark and it is actually just the European CE mark that does not respect the dimensions and proportions given within the Directives. Our view is also supported by the European Parliament, who were asked to respond to questions related to the ‘China Export’ mark. In summary they believe there is a misconception about the CE mark meaning ‘Chinese export’ and they go onto say that the Commission is not aware of the existence of a ‘China export mark’.

So our advise to manufacturers and importers to be wary of the use of the China Export mark and be sure that, where it is required, the product or machine is compliant to the relevant CE Marking Directives.

If you need support with CE Marking, then please contact us on 01564 792349.

See the European Parliament’s answers the questions on the Chinese Export Mark:

The new CE Marking Directive for Radio Equipment has, as of the 13th June 2016, come into force.

The new Radio Equipment Directive (2014/53/EU) applies to ‘radio equipment’ defined as a product, which intentionally emits and/or receives radio waves (electromagnetic waves of frequencies lower than 3 000 GHz) for the purpose of radio communication and/or radio determination (of position, velocity or similar characteristic of an object).

The new Directive will repeal the older R&TTE (Radio & Telecommunications Terminals Equipment Directive) (1999/5/EC), but there is a transitional period extending to the 13^th June 2017, allowing radio equipment to continue to be placed on the market during this transitional period under the R&TTE Directive. After the 13th June 2017, the new Directive will apply for all radio equipment.

If you need help with the Radio Equipment Directive, then please call us on 01564 792349. We also provide (in-house or public) training on the new RE Directive. See our public training calendar to find the latest dates and further details.

When a manufacturer goes through the CE marking process, they will usually apply the relevant European harmonised standards to help them meet the legal requirements set out within the Directives. Where the standards are being used for items in series production, it is important to keep up to date with the latest standard, as they can change over time.

One way to do this is to keep on top of the changes to the list of harmonised standards, and when a list is updated, to check to see if the standard(s) you have been using are still the latest version or not.

Harmonised Standard updates for May 2016

• Recreational Craft Directive
• Medical Devices Directive
• Machinery Directive
• ElectroMagnetic Compatibility (EMC) Directive
• In-Vitro Diagnostic (IVD) Medical Devices Directive
• Active Implantable Medical Devices Directive
• Low Voltage Directive (LVD)

If you need any support with changes to any CE Marking Standards, then please contact us on 01564 792349.

The Construction Products Regulation (CPR) first came into force in the UK back in 2013, however the conformity process has a unique requirement when compared to all other CE marking Directives. Whilst the Regulation sets out a scope (or its subject matter), the requirement to affix a CE mark is down to whether the products are covered by Harmonised European Standard, although a voluntary route is also available for when a standard does not exist.

Therefore having knowledge about standards is crucial to manufacturers of construction products, to enable them to know if CE marking is a requirement or not under the Regulation. When new standards are entered onto the CPR list, it could mean that manufacturers may need to start CE marking their construction products for the first time. However, it should not be something to panic about because standards are often provided with a sufficiently long transitional period giving the manufacturers a opportunity to prepare for when the new standards come into force.

The list of harmonised standards for construction products was last updated this month (April 2016) and below is a summary of the new standards that have entered onto the list:

These new standards are replacing existing versions, and therefore the changes should only affect those already CE marking against these standards. If you are CE marking against one of the above standards, then it is important to put a plan in place to ensure that the changes are reviewed and your products will be ready to comply by the new dates.

The full list of harmonised standards under the Construction Products Regulation can be viewed here.

If you need any guidance on harmonised standards, then please get in contact on 01564 792349.