European Communities (Construction Plant and Equipment) (Permissible Noise Levels) Regulations, 1988.
Statutory Instruments
Source: Statutory Instruments

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paragraphs: (1) These Regulations may be cited as the European
Communities (Construction Plant and Equipment) (Permissible Noise Levels) Regulations, 1988.
(2) These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1st day of January, 1989.
2 Interpretation
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paragraphs: (1) In these Regulations:
the "Minister" means the Minister for Industry and Commerce;
"Member State" means a Member State of the European Communities;
"EOLAS" means EOLAS — The Irish Science and Technology Agency;
"appropriate fee" means the fee referred to in Regulation 8;
"authorised officer" means—
(a) an officer of the Minister, or
(b) a person designated by EOLAS to be an authorised officer,
and who is appointed under Regulation 13 to be an authorised officer for the purpose of these Regulations;
the "Framework Directive" means Council Directive 84/532/EEC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to common provisions for construction plant and equipment;
the "Separate Directives" mean Council Directives 84/533/EEC, (as amended by Commission Directive 85/406/EEC), 84/534/EEC, (as amended by Council Directive 87/405/EEC), 84/535/EEC (as amended by Commission Directive 85/407/EEC), 84/536/EEC (as amended by Commission Directive 85/408/EEC, AND 84/537/EEC (as amended by Commission Directive 85/409/EEC) on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the permissible sound power level of compressors, tower cranes, welding generators, power generators, powered handheld concrete-breakers and picks, and Council Directive 86/662/EEC on the limitation of noise emitted by hydraulic excavators, rope-operated excavators, dozers, loaders and excavator-loaders;
"EEC type-examination certificate" means a certificate that a type of construction plant or equipment conforms with the EEC type-examination requirements and includes a certificate whose period of validity has been extended;
"EEC type-examination requirements" mean the requirements contained in the Framework Directive and the Separate Directives being requirements with respect to the sound power level or sound power level and sound pressure level, as appropriate, of airborne noise of construction plant and equipment;
"certificate of conformity" means a certificate that an item of construction plant or equipment conforms with the type of construction plant or equipment in respect of which an EEC type examination certificate has been issued;
"EEC mark" means a mark in the form set out in the Annexes of each of the Separate Directives;
"market" includes:
(a) supply, sell, offer for sale, expose for sale or have in possession for sale,
(b) place on the market under a rental agreement, lease agreement, hire purchase agreement or any other type of agreement;
"construction plant and equipment" has the meaning assigned to it by Regulation 3;
"compressor" means any motor-driven device for circulating and compressing air other than the following two categories of device:
fans, that is to say devices producing air circulation at a positive pressure of not more than 1, 1, bar,
vacuum pumps, that is to say devices or appliances for extraction of air from an enclosed space at a pressure not exceeding atmospheric pressure;
"tower crane" means a power-driven lifting appliance which:
(a) when in use, consists of a vertical tower with a jib fitted to the upper part,
(b) is equipped with means for raising and lowering suspended loads and for horizontal movement of such loads by variation of load-lifting radius, by slewing or by travelling of the complete appliance (or by any combination of such methods) and
(c) is designed to be able to be removed when the work for which it was erected has been completed;
"welding generator" means any rotary device which produces a welding current;
"power generator" means any device comprising a motor unit driving a rotary generator producing continuous electrical power;
"powered hand-held concrete-breakers and picks" means any hand-held percussive devices powered by means of electrical, hydraulic or pneumatic power or an internal combustion engine suitable for breaking concrete;
"hydraulic or rope-operated excavators" means machines combining a self propelled undercarriage with an upper structure which can swivel through more than 360° and which excavate, lift, carry and dump material by moving either a boom, an arm and bucket (as is the case with a face shovel or a backhoe) or a bucket controlled by the winding-gear (as is the case with a drag-line or clamshell);
"dozers" means self-propelled wheeled or crawler machines fitted in front with a blade which serves primarily to displace or spread materials;
"loader" means self-propelled wheeled or crawler machines fitted in front with a bucket, which load, raise, transport and dump material by combining their own movements and those of the bucket;
"excavator-loaders" means self-propelled wheeled or crawler machines, designed to be fitted with a loading bucket at the front and an excavating arm at the rear as original equipment and
(a) the loading bucket of which loads, raises, transports and dumps material by combining its own movements with those of the machine to which it is fitted, and
(b) the excavating arm of which excavates, raises and dumps material by movements of the boom, arm and bucket.
(2) A word or expression that is used in these Regulations and is also used in the Framework Directive or in any of the Separate Directives has, unless the contrary intention appears, the same meaning in these Regulations as it has in the respective Directives.
(3) A reference in these Regulations to a Regulation is to a Regulation appearing in these Regulations.
(4) A reference in these Regulations to a paragraph or subparagraph is to the paragraph or subparagraph of the Regulation in which the reference occurs.
3 Scope
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paragraphs: These Regulations apply to construction plant and equipment, that is to say, compressors, tower cranes, welding generators, power generators, powered hand-held concrete-breakers and picks, hydraulic excavators, rope-operated excavators, dozers, loaders and excavator-loaders, all of which are designed for use in or about civil engineering or building sites and not primarily for the transport of goods or persons but do not apply to agricultural and forestry tractors and lifting appliances.
4 General
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paragraphs: A person shall not on or after the 1st day of January 1989, manufacture, import, or market any item of construction plant or equipment to which these Regulations apply for use in any Member State unless the construction plant or equipment bears the relevant EEC mark and unless an EEC type-examination certificate and a certificate of conformity in accordance with these Regulations or under the law of another Member State has been issued in respect thereof.
5 Application for EEC Type — Examination Certificate
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paragraphs: (1) A manufacturer or his authorised agent established in the European Communities may apply to EOLAS for an EEC type-examination certificate in respect of a type of construction plant and equipment.
(2) An application under paragraph (1) shall be made in writing and shall contain such information and be supported by such documents as the Framework Directive and the relevant Separate Directive require, and such further information and supporting documents as EOLAS may reasonably require, including a statement as required under Regulations 6(3).
6 Grant of EEC Type-Examination Certificate
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paragraphs: (1) On receipt of an application for an EEC type-examination certificate, EOLAS shall, on receipt of the appropriate fee, carry out such examinations as are required for an EEC type-examination certificate under the Framework Directive and the relevant Separate Directive.
(2) Where EOLAS is satisfied that the construction plant or equipment which is the subject of the application under Regulation 5 conforms to the EEC type-examination requirements, it shall issue an EEC type-examination certificate to the applicant. The period of validity of an EEC type-examination certificate shall be subject to any limitation laid down in the relevant Separate Directive.
(3) Where an application has been made to EOLAS in respect of a type of construction plant or equipment, then no other application in any Member State for an EEC type-examination certificate in respect of construction plant or equipment of that type shall be made by or on behalf of the same manufacturer. Every such application shall be accompanied by a written declaration by a manufacturer or his authorised agent established in the Communities certifying that an application in respect of the same type of equipment has not been lodged with any other authority in any Member State.
(4) EOLAS shall be empowered, after payment of the appropriate fee, to extend the period of validity of an EEC type-examination certificate issued under these Regulations by such period as is laid down in the relevant Separate Directive, provided that an application is made in the period of twelve months immediately before the expiry of the first period for which it was granted and provided that the type of construction plant or equipment in respect of which the application is made complies with the requirements laid down in the Separate Directive relating to such construction plant or equipment.
7 Certificate of Conformity and EEC Mark
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paragraphs: (1) A certificate of conformity referred to in Regulation 4 shall be issued in respect of each item of construction plant or equipment by the manufacturer, or his authorised agent established in the European Communities, of the construction plant or equipment of a type in respect of which an EEC type-examination certificate issued under these Regulations or under the law of another Member State is in force and shall be in the form set out in Annex IV of the Framework Directive.
(2) An EEC mark shall be placed on each item of construction plant or equipment by the manufacturer of the construction plant or equipment of a type in respect of which an EEC type-examination certificate issued under these Regulations or under the law of another Member State is in force.
(3) The EEC mark to be placed on each such item of construction plant or equipment shall indicate either the sound power level or sound power level and sound pressure level, as appropriate, of the type of construction plant or equipment to which that item conforms ascertained by EOLAS in accordance with the Separate Directive relating to such construction plant or equipment, or by any other body having functions corresponding to those of EOLAS appointed under the law of another Member State, or on a review of the decision of EOLAS or other such body.
8 Fees
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paragraphs: (1) EOLAS may charge a fee (the "appropriate fee") which shall be equal to the amount which EOLAS estimates it will incur in, or in connection with, carrying out or causing to be carried out the functions referred to in these Regulations in respect of the application concerned.
(2) Where the costs incurred are greater than the appropriate fee, the difference between those costs and that fee shall be payable by the manufacturer to EOLAS, and where those costs are less than the appropriate fee, the difference between those costs and that fee shall be repayable by EOLAS to the manufacturer.
9 Conformity Checks of Construction Plant and Equipment
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paragraphs: EOLAS shall carry out periodic checks of construction plant or equipment of a type in respect of which an EEC-type examination certificate has been issued and is in force to ascertain whether such plant or equipment has been manufactured to conform with the type of construction plant or equipment so certified.
10 Refusal, Suspension or Withdrawal of EEC-Type Examination Certificate.
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paragraphs: (1) EOLAS shall withdraw an EEC-type examination certificate granted under Regulation 6, if it finds that the approval should not have been granted.
(2) EOLAS shall suspend or withdraw an EEC-type examination certificate granted under Regulation 6, if it has reason to believe that items of that type of construction plant or equipment for which an EEC-type examination certificate was granted fail to conform to that type and the manufacturer fails to comply with a written request from EOLAS to make the appropriate manufacturing changes necessary to conform to the EEC-type examination certificate within the time specified in the request.
(3) Upon the taking of a decision refusing, suspending or withdrawing an EEC-type examination certificate (including a certificate whose period of validity had been extended), EOLAS shall, as soon as practicable thereafter, send to the manufacturer a notice in writing of that decision stating the exact grounds on which it was based and informing the manufacturer of his right to apply for a review under Regulation 12 and of the time limit for making such an application.
11 Temporary Prohibition
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paragraphs: (1) The Minister may by order prohibit temporarily the marketing of construction plant or equipment covered by these Regulations where he is of the opinion that one or more items although satisfying the requirements of the Framework Directive and Separate Directives as implemented by these Regulations, constitute a safety hazard.
(2) The Minister may revoke or amend any order made under paragraph (1).
12 Review
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paragraphs: (1) Any person aggrieved by a decision of EOLAS—
(a) to refuse to grant an EEC type-examination certificate, or
(b) to suspend or withdraw an EEC type-examination certificate,
may appeal to the Minister for a review of the decision.
(2) On an appeal under these Regulations, the Minister—
(a) shall have the same powers and duties as EOLAS has under these Regulations,
(b) may hold an enquiry in connection with the appeal, and
(c) may appoint an assessor for the purpose of assisting him with the appeal or enquiry.
(3) An appeal under this Regulation shall be made by written notice to the Minister which shall be lodged with him not later than 14 days from the date on which the notice of the decision in respect of which the appeal is made was given.
(4) A notice of appeal under these Regulations shall state the grounds on which the appeal is made and shall be accompanied by the following documents: a copy of the application for an EEC type-examination certificate, or a copy of the certificate where an extension of the period of its validity is sought, together with every other document submitted to EOLAS in connection with the relevant application.
13 Authorised Officers
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paragraphs: (1) The Minister may appoint persons to be authorised officers for the purposes of these Regulations and may revoke any such appointment.
(2) An authorised officer shall be furnished with a warrant of his appointment and when exercising any power to which the provisions of these Regulations apply shall, if so required, produce the warrant to any person affected.
14 Powers of Authorised Officers
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paragraphs: (1) An authorised officer may, on production of his warrant of appointment if so required, at all reasonable times enter any premises, ship or other vessel, aircraft, railway wagon or other vehicle, in which he has reasonable grounds for believing that an item to which these Regulations apply is being manufactured, used, kept, stored, sold or prepared for sale or is being transported for sale and at such place, or at any other place—
(a) inspect and take copies of or extracts from any books, records or other documents which he finds in the course of his inspection,
(b) make such examinations, tests and inspections, and take samples of any materials or articles as he may consider appropriate for the purposes of these Regulations.
(2) A person in charge of any premises, ship or other vessel, aircraft, railway wagon or other vehicle and any person employed in connection therewith, shall—
(a) afford to an authorised officer such facilities and assistance as are reasonably necessary to enable the officer to perform his functions under these Regulations,
(b) produce to an authorised officer any books, documents or other records which are in that person's power or control and give to him such information as he may reasonably require in regard to any entries in such books, documents or records,
(c) give to an authorised officer any other information which he may reasonably require.
15 Offences
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paragraphs: (1) A person who:
(a) obstructs or interferes with an authorised officer in the course of exercising a power conferred on him by these Regulations or fails or refuses to comply with a request made by, or to answer a question asked by, an authorised officer pursuant to these Regulations or
(b) contravenes in any other way any provision or requirement of, or under, these Regulations,
shall be guilty of an offence.
(2) Where an offence under these Regulations is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of a person who is a director, member of the committee of management or other controlling authority of a body corporate or a manager, secretary or other officer of the body corporate or to have been facilitated by any neglect on the part of any such person, that person shall be guilty of an offence.
(3) A person guilty of an offence under these Regulations shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.
(4) Nothwithstanding section 10 (4) of the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act, 1851, proceedings for an offence under these Regulations may be instituted at any time within one year from the date on which the offence was committed.
16 ..
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paragraphs: An offence under these Regulations may be brought and prosecuted by the Minister.