EN   EN 
 
 
 EUROPEAN  
COMMISSION   
Brussels, XXX   
[…](2018) XXX  draft  
 
COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) …/…  
of XXX  
laying down ecodesign requirements for welding equipment pursuant to Directive 
2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council  
(Text with EEA relevance)    
EN 1  EN COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) …/…  
of XXX  
laying down ecodesign requirements for welding equipment pursuant to Directive 
2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council  
(Text with EEA relevance)  
THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,  
Having regard to  Article 114 of  the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,  
Having regard to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
21 October  2009 establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for 
energy -related products1, and in particular Article 15(1)  thereof,  
Whereas:  
(1) Pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC the Commission should set ecodesign 
requirements for energy -related products which account for  significant volumes of 
sales and trade  in the Union and which have  a significant environmental impact and 
presenting significant potential for improvement through design in terms of their 
environmental impact, without entailing excessive costs.  
(2) The Communication from the Commission COM(2016)773 final2 (ecodesign working 
plan) established by the Commission in application of Article 16(1) of Directive 
2009/125/EC sets out the working priorities under the ecodesign and energy labelling 
framework for the period 2016 -2019. The ecodesign working plan identifies the 
energy -related product groups to be considered as priorities for the undertaking of 
preparatory studies and eventual adoption of implementing measures, as well as the 
review of the current Regulations.  
(3) Measures from the ecodesign w orking plan have an estimated potent ial to deliver a 
total in excess of 260 TWh of annual final energy savings in 2030, which is equivalent 
to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 100 million tonnes per year in 
2030.  
(4) The Commission has carried out a preparatory study to analys e the technical, 
environmental and economic aspects of welding equipment and machine tool products  
for industrial purposes3.  Welding equipment subject to the study  comprise s arc and 
                                                 
1 OJ L 285, 31.10.2009, p. 10.  
2 Communication from the Commission. Ecodesign working plan 2016 -2019 (COM(2016)773 final, 
Brussels, 30.11.2016).  
3 Machine tools were initially covered in the preparatory work, but they have been excluded from the scope of 
this Regulation due to the difficulty of determining minimum efficiency require ments on the basis of the 
currently available information. Additional data collection, especially on the technical options for reducing 
energy consumption in non -processing states such as standby and other low -power modes, could result in 
ecodesign measure s being proposed for machine tools in the future.   
EN 2  EN plasma welding equipment for metals , designed and typically used for indu strial and 
professional use4.  
(5) The preparatory study was conducted  in close cooperation with stakeholders and 
interested parties in the EU and elsewhere . The results were made public and 
presented to the Consultation Forum established under  Article  18 of 
Directive  2009/125/EC.  
(6) The environmental aspects of welding equipment that were  identified as significant for 
the purposes of this Regulation are : 
(a) energy consumption in the use phase, including when the products are in 
‘idle’ mode ;  
(b) resource efficiency iss ues concerning the equipment per se ; and  
(c) the consumables  used in welding processes.  
(7) Annual  final energy consumption directly related to welding equipment is expected to 
be in excess of 6 TWh in 2030, corresponding to 2.4 million tonnes of CO 2 equivalent, 
excluding the energy used in making the associated consumables ( such as shielding 
gases, welding wire .). The preparatory study show ed that energy consumption in the 
use phase  and various idle or standby  modes  can be reduced  significantly . 
(8) By 2030 , it is estimated  that t he ecodesign requirements in this Regulation will result 
in annual energy savings of 1.09 TWh, corresponding to total  annual  savings of about  
0.27 Mt CO2 equivalent . 
(9) The Communication  from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Coun cil, 
the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions 
COM(2015) 0614 final5 (circular economy action plan) and the ecodesign working 
plan underline the importance of using the ecodesign framework to support the move 
towards a more  resource efficient and circular economy. Directive 2012/19/EU  of the 
European Parliament and of the Council6 refers to Directive 2009/125/EC which 
indicates that  ecodesign requirements should facilitate the re -use, dismantling and 
recovery of waste electr ical and electronic equipment ( WEEE ) by tackling the issues 
upstream. Accordingly  this Regulation lays down requirements on non -energy -related 
aspects, including : 
(a) disassembly ; 
(b) reparability ; 
(c) the extraction of key components and critical raw materials ; and  
(d)  the availability of built -in software -based data -deletion tools.  
                                                 
4 As defined in IEC  60 974-1: Arc welding equipment — Part 1: Welding power sources. Specifically 
excluded from the scope of this Regulation are arc welding and cutting equipment designed for limited -duty 
operation by the layperson in accordance with IEC  60 974-6: Arc welding equipment — Part 6: Limited duty 
equipment.  
5 Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European 
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. Closing The Loop - An EU action 
plan for the circular economy (COM(2015)0614 final, Brussels, 02.12.2015).  
6 Directive 2012/19/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4  July 2012 on waste electrical 
and electronic equipment (WEEE) (OJ L 197, 24.7.2012, p. 38).   
EN 3  EN (10) In addition, it require s that  welding equipment be accompanied by information  on  the 
use of shielding gases during welding and the quantities of welding wire or filler 
material used.  
(11) The energy and resource consumption of welding equipment could be reduced by 
applying existing non -proprietary techniques without an increase in the combined 
costs of purchasing and operation . 
(12) The preparatory  study has concluded that the proposed ecodesign requirements do not 
affect the functionality or affordability of welding equipment from the end -user’s 
perspective and do not negatively affect health, safety or the environment.  
(13) The timing for the introduction of ecodesign requirements allows  manufacturers to 
redesign the products  covered by this Regulation.  It takes account of the impact on 
costs  for manufacturers , in particular the large proportion of small and medium -sized 
enterprises  in the welding equipment manufacturing sector  in the EU , while ensuring 
the timely achievement of the objectives of  the  Regulation.  
(14) Product parameters should be measured and calculated using reliable, accurate and 
reproducible methods that take into account recognised state -of-the-art measurement 
and calculatio n  techniques , including, where available, harmonised standards adopted 
by the European standardisation organisations following a request from  the 
Commission, in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1025/20127. 
(15) In accordance with Article 8 of Directive 2009/ 125/EC, this Regulation should specify  
which conformity assessment procedures apply.  
(16) To facilitate compliance checks, manufacturers should provide the information 
contained in the technical documentation referred to in Annexes IV and V to 
Directive  2009/125/EC where  that information relates to the requirements laid down in 
this Regulation.  
(17) In addition to the legally binding requirements laid down in this Regulation, indicative 
benchmarks for best available techn iques  should be identified to make info rmation on 
the lifecycle environmental performance of products subject to this Regulation widely 
available and easily accessible, in accordance with part 3(2) of Annex I of 1 to 
Directive  2009/125/EC . 
(18) In order  to improve the effectiveness and credibility o f this Regulation and to protect 
consumers, products that automatically alter their performance in test conditions to 
improve the declared parameters should be prohibited.  
(19) A review of this Regulation should assess the appropriateness and effectiveness of i ts 
provisions in achieving its goals. The timing of the review should allow for all 
provisions to be implemented and show an effect on the market . 
(20) In order to improve the operation of  the internal market and the environmental 
performance of  welding equipme nt throughout the Union , ecodesign requirements 
should harmonise the relevant energy consumption and resource efficiency 
requirements. The requirements should be revised not later than 2024 in the light of 
technological evolution , in order to take  advantag e of  further possibilities of 
improving the equipment's  performance and the operation of the internal market.  
                                                 
7 Regulation (EU) 1025/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council  of 25 October 2012 on 
European standardisation  (OJ L 316, 14.11.2012, p. 12 ).  
EN 4  EN (21) The measures provided for in this Regulation were discussed by the Consultation 
Forum referred to in Article 18 of Directive 2009/125/EC.  
(22) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the 
Committee established under Article 19(1) of Directive 2009/125/EC ,, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:  
Article 1  
Subject matter and scope  
1. This Regulation establishes ecodesign re quirements for the placing on the market and 
putting into service of electric al mains -operated welding equipment.  
2. This Regulation shall apply to the following types  of welding equipment  techn iques  : 
(a) manual   metal arc welding;  
(b) shielded   metal arc welding;  
(c) cored wire welding;  
(d) flux  cored arc welding;  
(e) metal active gas  and  metal inert gas welding;  
(f) tungsten inert gas welding;  
(g) plasma  arc cutting;  
(h) multi-functional equipment capable of performing two or more of the above 
techn iques . 
3. This Regulation shall not apply to the following types of welding equipment  
techn iques : 
(a) submerged arc welding equipment;  
(b) limited -duty arc welding equipment;  
(c) resistance welding equipment;  
(d) stud welding equipment.  
Article 2  
Definitions  
For the purpose s of this Regulation , the following definitions shall apply:  
1. ‘welding  equipment’ means product s that are used for  manual, automated or semi -
automated welding, brazing, soldering or cutting (or all of the above)  via arc welding 
and allied processes , and that  is stationary or tra nsportable, and consists of linked 
parts or components, at least one of which moves and which are joined together to 
produce coalescence of arbitrary metal s by heating them to the welding temperature  
(with or without the application of pressure ) or by the application of pressure alone, 
with or without the use of filler metal, and with or without the use of shielding 
gas(es), using appropriate tools and techniques , resulting in a product of defined 
geometry ;  
EN 5  EN 2. 'manual  metal arc welding ’ means an arc -welding process with a coated electrode 
where the operator’s hand controls the travel speed of the welding operation and the 
rate at which the electrode is fed into the electric arc ; 
3. 'shielded  metal arc welding ’ means an arc -welding process w hereby coalescence is 
produced by heating with an electric arc between a covered metal electrode and the 
work -piece and work area . Shielding is obtained from decomposition of the electrode 
covering. Pressure is not used and filler metal is obtained from th e electrode . 
4. 'self-shielded flux -cored welding ’ means  a wire welding process in which a 
continuous hollow -wire electrode is fed through the welding gun into the weld joint 
without the need to use an external shielding gas to protect the weld pool from 
contamination. Instead of an external shielding gas, a flux compound within the 
hollow wire reacts with the welding arc to form a gas that protects the weld pool . 
5. 'flux cored arc welding ’ means welding that uses  composite tubular filler metal 
electrodes consis ting of a metal sheath and a core of various powdered materials, 
producing an extensive slag cover on the face of a weld bead. The use of external 
shield gas(es) may or may not be required ; 
6. 'metal inert gas (MIG)  welding ’ means  gas metal arc welding whereb y coalescence is 
produced by heating with an arc between a continuous filler metal (consumable) 
electrode and the workpiece area . Shielding is obtained entirely from an externally 
supplied gas,  or gas mixture, that is inert ; 
7. 'metal active gas (MAG) welding ’ means gas metal arc welding whereby coalescence 
is produced by heating with an arc between a continuous filler metal (consumable) 
electrode and the workpiece area. Shielding is obtained entirely from an externally 
supplied gas, or gas mixture, that is active; 
8. 'tungsten  inert gas welding ’ means an arc welding process whereby coalescence is 
produced by heating with an arc between a single tungsten (non -consumable) 
electrode and the workpiece area. Shielding is obtained from a gas or gas mixture. 
Pressure ma y or may not be used and filler metal may or may not be used ; 
9. 'plasma  arc cutting ’ means an arc cutting process that uses a constricted arc and 
removes the molten metal in a high velocity jet of ioni sed gas (plasma gas) issuing 
from the constricting orific e. Plasma arc cutting is a direct -current electrode -negative 
process ; 
10. 'plasma  gas’ (sometimes referred to as ‘orifice gas ’ or ‘cutting gas ’) means a gas 
directed into the torch to surround the electrode, which becomes ioni sed by the arc to 
form a plasma and issues from the torch nozzle as the plasma jet ; 
11. 'laser-arc welding ’ means a process in which  welding is carried out by a pulsed or 
constant wave laser. The use of external shield gas(es) may or may not be required ; 
12. 'laser-arc hybrid welding ’ means a pr ocess in which  welding is carried out by a 
pulsed or constant wave laser , together with the use of an electric arc. Coalescence 
between the workpiece area and the filler metal (consumable) electrode is produced 
by heat from both the arc and the laser energ y sources. The use of external shield 
gas(es) may or may not be required ; 
13. 'shielding  gas’ (also referred to as ‘secondary gas ’) means a gas that does not pass 
through the orifice of the nozzle, but instead passes around the nozzle and forms a 
shield around the electric arc ;  
EN 6  EN 14. 'submerged  arc welding ’ means an arc welding process that uses an arc or arcs 
exceeding 600  amperes between a bare metal electrode or electrodes and the weld 
pool. The arc and molten metal are shielded by a blanket of granular flux on the 
workpieces. No pressure  is applied and t he process uses filler metal from the 
electrode and sometimes from a supplementa ry source such as a welding rod, flux or 
metal granules ; 
15. 'limited -duty arc welding equipment ’ means products for arc welding and allied 
processes that : 
(a) use single -phase public low -voltage input ; 
(b) if engine driven, do not exceed an output power of 7.5  kVA ; 
(c) do not  require arc -striking and stabili sing devices, liquid cooling systems, gas 
consoles or three -phase input power supply  for operation , i.e. are not 
designed for industrial and professional use ; 
16. 'resistance  welding equipment ’ means a thermo -electric al process in which heat is 
generated at the interface of the parts to be joined by passing an electrical current 
through the parts for a precisely controlled time and under a controlled pressure . No 
consumables such as welding rods or shielding gases are re quired ; 
17. 'stud welding equipment ’ means a form of arc welding where capacitive discharge 
occurs across the consumable calibrated tip of a welding rod [When the negatively  
charged tip of the rod is in contact with the positively  charged object, the tip 
explod es and the atmosphere between the rod and object ioni ses, causing the material 
of the rod and object to melt ; 
18. 'Equivalent model’ means a model with the same relevant technical and performance 
characteristics , but placed on the market under a different mode l identifier.  
Article  3 
Ecodesign requirements  
Welding equipment  shall comply with the ecodesign requirements set out in Annex  II from 
the dates indicated therein . 
Compliance with the ecodesign requirements shall be assessed, measured and calculated in 
accordance with the methods set out in Annex III.  
Article 4  
Conformity assessment  
1. The conformity assessment procedure referred to in Article  8 of 
Directive  2009/125/EC shall be the internal design control system set out in 
Annex  IV, or the management system set out in Annex  V, to that Directive.  
2. For the purposes of conformity assessment pursuant to Article  8 of Directive 
2009/125/EC, the technical documentation file shall contain a copy of the product 
information provided in accordan ce with Annex  II, point 2, and the results of the 
calculations set out in Annex  III to this Regulation.  
3. Where the information in the technical documentation for a particular model has 
been obtained by calculation on the basis of design, or extrapolation fr om another 
model , or both, the documentation shall include details of such calculations and/or 
extrapolations and of tests carried out by manufacturers to verify the ir accuracy .  
EN 7  EN Article 5  
Verification procedure for market surveillance purposes  
When performing the market surveillance checks referred to in Article 3(2) of Directive 
2009/125/EC , the Member States ' authorities  shall apply the verification procedure set out  in 
Annex  IV. 
Article 6  
Circumvention  
Manufacturer s and  importer s shall not place on the market products that have been designed 
in such a way that their performance is automatically altered in test conditions  in order to  
reach  a more favourable level for any of the parameters declared by the manufacturer in the 
techni cal documentation or included in any documentation provided with the product.  
Article 7 
Indicative benchmarks  
The indicative benchmarks for the best -performing products and techniques available  on the 
market at the time this Regulation  is adopt ed are set out in Annex V.  
Article 8 
Review  
The Commission  shall review this Regulation in the light of technological progress and shall 
present the results of this assessment , including , if appropriate, a draft revision proposal to the 
Consultation Forum  [OP please insert date – 5 years after its entry into force] . 
The review shall  assess,  in particular , whether it is appropriate to set specific ecodesign 
requirements with regard to  the following : 
(a) the limits to power -source efficiency and idle -state standby;  
(b) upper limits for emissions to air associated with the use of welding equipment;  
(c) the amount of shielding gas, welding wire and filler material consumed.  
It shall also assess  the following parameters of welding equipment within  the scope of th is 
Regulation:  
(a) the r elative market share s of transformer -controlled and inverter -controlled 
welding equipment;  
(b) the price and average lifetime of welding equipment ; 
(c) the balance of welding equipment  the EU’s  trade  in. 
Additionally, it shall also assess whether it is appro priate to expand the scope of the 
regulation to professional machine tools, and in particular set specific ecodesign requirements 
for machine tools with regard to minimum efficiency values in non -processing, standby and 
other low power modes.  
Article 9  
Entry into force  and application  
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth  day following that of its publication in 
the Official Journal of the European Union.   
EN 8  EN This Regulation shall apply from 1 January 2021 .  
This Regulation shall be binding in  its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.  
Done at Brussels,  
For the Commission  
Jean-Claude JUNCKER  
The President