WRITTEN QUESTION E-2647/02

by Richard Corbett (PSE) to the Commission

(20 September 2002)

Subject: Uniform application of standards

Is the Commission aware that machinery certified in one Member State (e.g. Italy) as being in conformity with CEN standard, and purchased on that basis by a company in another Member State (e.g. the UK), sometimes fails inspections by the authorities in the Member State of purchase, who have a different interpretation of CEN rules?

Does the Commission realise that, in such circumstances, the company in question has no recourse against the manufacturer, as the latter points out that he has due certification that CEN standards have been met?

Has the Commission conducted any studies as to the uniform application of standards across the EU and the problems that arise from different interpretations by various national authorities thereof?

Does the Commission have any suggestions as to what a company should do if it is victim of such a situation as described above?

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(11 October 2002)

Machinery placed on the market in the European Economic Area (EEA) must comply with the essential health and safety requirements of the Machinery Directive(1). Application of the technical specifications of harmonised European standards remains voluntary. However, machinery manufactured according to these specifications is, as a rule, presumed to comply with the requirements of the Directive covered by the standards.

The Commission is particularly concerned to develop consistent application of the essential requirements. Within the Working Group of the Machinery Directive, Member States and the Commission seek to reach common interpretation. A group has also been set up to develop administrative co-operation between national authorities in matters of market surveillance. For machinery subject to type-examination before being placed on the market, the Notified Bodies concerned meet regularly to co-ordinate their activity and formulate common answers to questions of interpretation of the Directive and of harmonised standards.

Member States have the duty to ensure that machinery placed on the market does not endanger the health or safety of persons and, to this end, they carry out appropriate surveillance of machinery placed on the market. It may occur that, despite application of a harmonised European standard, the market surveillance authorities of a Member State find that a given model of machinery is not in compliance with the requirements of the Directive and is liable to endanger the health and safety of persons.

In practice, the matter is often raised with the manufacturer concerned and measures to bring the machinery into conformity are agreed between the manufacturer and the national authorities. This should enable a company which has purchased items of such machinery to have it brought into conformity by the manufacturer.

If such a case reveals a shortcoming in a harmonised standard, this should be drawn to the attention of the relevant national and European standardisation bodies. If necessary, the national authorities shall bring the matter before the Technical Standards and Regulations Committee(2), following the procedure laid down in Article 6(1) of the Machinery Directive. The Commission will then decide whether to withdraw the references of the standard concerned from the Official Journal and mandate the standardisation organisation to amend the standard as necessary.

When they ascertain that a machine is liable to endanger the health or safety of persons and a voluntary solution is not found, the national authorities can decide to order withdrawal of the unsafe machinery from the market, following the safeguard procedure laid down in Article 7 of the Machinery Directive. The Member State must inform the Commission of any such measure, indicating whether the non-conformity results from failure to satisfy the essential health and safety requirements, from incorrect application of a harmonised standard or from shortcomings in the standard itself.

After consulting interested parties, the Commission decides whether the measure taken by the national authorities is justified. If a harmonised standard proves deficient, the references of the standard are withdrawn from the Official Journal and a mandate is given to the relevant European standardisation body to amend the standard as necessary.

The possibility of redress open to a company that has purchased machinery subject to such a safeguard measure depends on the legal provisions in force in the Member State concerned.

(1) Directive 98/37/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to machinery, OJ L 207, 23.7.1998.

(2) Set up under Articles 5 and 6 of Directive 98/34/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations, OJ L 204, 21.7.1998.