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CE Certification (Conformity
to Europeon Standard) |
The European Commission
refers to the CE Marking of products as a "passport" which can allow a manufacturer
to freely circulate their products within the European marketplace. The marking
applies only to products regulated by European health, safety and environmental
protection legislation (product directives) but this is estimated to include more than 50% of the goods currently exported from the
-
U.S.
to
Europe
.
The actual CE Marking is the letters "CE" which a manufacturer affixes to certain products for access to the European market (consisting of 18 countries and also referred to as the European Economic Area or EEA). The letters "CE' are an abbreviation of a French phrase "Conformite Europeene". The marking indicates that the manufacturer has conformed with all the obligations required by the legislation. Initially, the phrase was "CE Mark": however, "CE Marking" was legislated as its replacement in 1993.
"Manufacturers are responsible for ensuring that the products they place on the market meet all relevant regulations. Where these regulations do not require mandatory certification, manufacturers often seek voluntary certification to assure themselves that their products do meet the requirements set by law."
Please note:
• The CE Marking is not a quality-mark. First, it refers to the safety rather than to the quality of a product. Second, CE marking is mandatory for the product it applies to whereas most quality marking are voluntary.
• Many people use the term “CE Mark”. Initially, this was the phrase used to indicate this conformity marking. However, “CE mark” was officially replaced by the term “CE Marking” in 1993. Thus, it is better to speak of “CE Marking”.
The main goals of the CE Marking are to:
Indicate a product's
conformity with the "essential requirements" of the directives
- Allow products to be "placed on the market"
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Ensure the "free movement of goods"
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Allow the "withdrawal of non-conforming products" by customs and enforcement authorities
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The CE Marking:
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- is not a mark or certification or approval issued
by a third party,
- is not simply a marketing or promotional tool
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is not a quality mark
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is not for components*
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Directives |
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a) Appliances burning gaseous fuels-90/396/EEC.
b) Cableway Installations designed to carry persons-00/9/EC.
c) Construction products-89/106/EEC.
d) Electromagnetic compatibility-89/336EEC.
e) Equipment and protective
systems in potentially explosive
environment-94/9/EC.
f) Explosives for civil use-93/15/EC.
g) Lifts-95/16/EC.
h) Low voltage equipment-73/23/EEC.
i) Machinery safety-98/37/EC.
j) Medical devices: Active implantable-90/385/EEC.
k) Medical devices: General-93/42/EEC.
l) Medical devices: In-vitro diagnostic-98/79/EC.
m) New hot water boilers fired with liquid or gaseous fluids
(efficiency requirements)-92/42/EC.
n) Non-automatic weighing instruments-90/384/EEC.
o) Packaging and packaging waste-94/62/EC.
p) Personnel protective equipment-89/686/EEC.
q) Pressure equipment-97/23/EC.
r) Radio and telecommunications terminal equipment-99/5/EC.
s) Recreational craft-94/25/EC.
t) Simple pressure vessels-87/404/EEC.
u) Toys Safety-88/378/EEC.
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