Source: EURLEX
Language: en
Format: md

30 . 7 . 88 Official Journal of the European Communities No L 206 / 29

COUNCIL DECISION

of 29 June 1988
# adopting a research and development programme for the European Economic Community

in the held of applied metrology and chemical analysis ( 1988 to 1992 )

( 88 / 418 / EEC )

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
Whereas, to maximize the effect of this work, the results
achieved should be widely disseminated and publicized in
the appropriate circles ;

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Economic Community and, in particular Article 130Q ( 2 )
thereof,

Whereas work on metrology and chemical analysis in
progress in some EFT A States could usefully be
coordinated with Community work under the present
programme :

Whereas the Scientific and Technical Research Committee
( Crest ) has expressed its opinion,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION :

Article 1

1 . A research and development programme for the
European Economic Community in the field of applied
metrology and chemical analysis as defined in Annex I, is
hereby adopted for a period of five years with effect from
1 January 1988 .

2 . Experimental work shall be carried out under contract .
The participants may be industrial organizations, research
institutes, laboratories and universities established in the
Community .

Article 2

The funds estimated as necessary for the execution of the
programme amount to 59,2 million ECU, including
expenditure on a staff of 32 .

Article 3

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission ( J ),

In cooperation with the European Parliament ( 2 ),

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee ( 3 ),

Whereas the Community has assigned itself the objective of
achieving the internal market by the end of 1992 for which
it has undertaken the task of eliminating technical trade
barriers mainly through the harmonization of standard and
technical regulations ;

Whereas Article 13 OK of the Treaty provides for the
implementation of the framework programme to be carried
out by means of specific programmes developed within
each activity ;

Whereas the framework programme for Community
activities in the field of research and technological
development adopted by the Council in its Decision
87 / 516 / Euratom, EEC ( 4 ) for the period 1987 to 1991
includes support for the application of technical
standards ;

Whereas the elimination of supplementary technical
barriers requires that the laboratories of the Member States
have the technical means necessary to ensure the uniform
application of standards, technical regulations and
directives ;

Whereas, to achieve this aim, it is important that the
Community supports collaborative activities having as their
objective the harmonization of the measurements and
chemical analyses in the Member States so as to ensure
concordance of the results of tests and controls ;

The Commission shall be responsible for the execution of
the programme . It shall be assisted in its function of
programme management by the Management and
Coordination Advisory Committee ( CGC ) ( Scientific

i 1 ) OJ No C 304, 14.11.1987, p . 4 and OJ No C 66, < ind Technological Standards ) set up by Decision

11 . 3 . 1988, p . 5 . 84 / 338 / Euratom, ECSC, EEC (*).

11 . 3 . 1988, p . 5 .

( 2 ) OJ No C 13, 18 . 1 . 1988, p . 75 and OJ No C 187,

18 . 7 . 1988 .

( 3 ) OJ No C 35, 8 . 2 . 1988, p. 3 .
( 4 ) OJ No L 302, 24 . 10 . 1987, p. 1 . (') OJ No L 177, 4 . 7 . 1984, p. 25 .

30 . 7 . 88
No L 206 / 30 Official Journal of " the European Communities

Article 4

1 . The Commission is authorized to negotiate, in
accordance with Article 130N of the Treaty, agreements
with non-member States and international organizations, in
particular with those countries participating in European

cooperation in the field of scientific and technological
research ( COST ), and those having concluded framework
agreements in scientific and technological cooperation with
the Community with a view to associating them wholly or
partly with the programme .

2 . These agreements, which are founded on the criterion
of mutual advantage, are concluded by the Council,
deciding by qualified majority, in cooperation with the
European Parliament .

Article 5

The Commission shall address a report to the Council and
to the European Parliament at the end of the third year on
the basis of an evaluation of the results so far achieved .
This report shall be accompanied by suggestions for
changes which may be necessary in the light of these
results .

At the end of the programme, the Commission shall send to
Member States and the European Parliament a report on
the performance and results of the programme .

The abovementioned reports will be carried out having
regard to the evaluation criteria set out in Annex II to
this decision and in accordance with the provisions of
Article 2 ( 2 ) of the framework programme set out in
Decision 87 / 516 / Euratom, EEC .

Article 6

This Decision shall apply with effect from 1 January

1988 .

Article 7

This Decision is addressed to the Member States .

Done at Luxembourg, 29 June 1988 .

For the Council

The President

H. RIESENHUBER

30 . 7 . 88
Official Journal of the European Communities No L 206 / 31

ANNEX I

Programme summary

The objective of the programme is to improve the reliability of chemical analyses and physical measurements
( applied metrology ) so as to achieve agreement of results in all Member States .

The projects will be chosen from those fields which are of priority importance for the Community as judged
from an economic, environmental or public health view point .

The priority fields are the following :

( a ) analyses for food and agriculture, in particular :

— analyses in livestock ( foodstuffs, hormones, antibiotics, etc .) and of the quality of cereals, fruit and

vegetables,

— analyses of the quality of processed food ( nutritional properties, presence of dangerous substances,

bacterial contamination );

( b ) analyses related to the environment, in particular :

determination of traces of dangerous compounds ( in various matrices ),

— determination of air pollutants at the workplace,

— mutagenicity of chemical substances ;

( c ) biomedical analyses, with priority for :

— the determination of enzymes and hormones ( in human serum ),

— haematological tests ( e.g. blood coagulation ),

— analyses related to cardiovascular diseases,

— analysis of tumour markers and drugs in the human body ;

( d ) analyses of ( essentially non-ferrous ) metals and surface analysis of materials ;

( e ) applied metrology . The emphasis will be placed on the measurement and calibration of the most important

parameters for test laboratories and industrial laboratories, in particular for quality control . The subjects
covered will include in particular :

dimensional and mechanical metrology ( in particular, measurements that are becoming increasingly
necessary for the verification of automatic machines ) and the charaterization of surface states,
— mechanical parameters, such as force and pressure,

— study of the performance and accuracy of new temperature measuring devices,

— improvement of optical metrology in the visible, ultraviolet and infra-red ranges and in the field of fibre

optics and lasers,

— measurements of electrical magnitudes, in particular at high frequency,

— acoustic measurements, in particular as regards sound-proofing,

— measurements relating to ultrasonics,

— liquid and gas flow measurements,

methods of measurement of physical and material properties, such as thermal conductivity, viscosity, '
etc ., .

— methods of determination of the mechanical properties of metals ( the work will cover only the methods

required for the accurate determination of these properties and not the characterization of the
materials ),

— improvement of technological measurements in industry .

The activities include in particular :

— execution of measurement programmes involving the cooperation of laboratories in several Member States

( inter-comparisons ),

— improvement of methods of analysis and measurement,

No L 206 / 32 Official Journal of the European Communities 30 . 7 . 88

improvement of instruments necessary for high precision measurements,

development of transfer standards,

preparation and certification of reference materials,

storage and distribution of reference materials,
support for the setting-up at Community level of inter-laboratory circuits for quality assurance,

research grants in subjects covered by the programme,

exchange and training of scientists in subjects covered by the programme, taking into account the needs of
the Member States that wish to improve their capabilities in these fields,

dissemination of the results of the projects,

well-targeted advertising of the reference materials and promotion of their sale .

30 . 7 . 88 Official Journal of the European Communities No L 206 / 33

ANNEX II

Evaluation criteria

The programme will be evaluated in relation to the following criteria :

1 . the extent to which the programme contributes to the development of the internal market, especially bv
providing support for : 77

— the setting up of directives or standards,

— the application of directives or standards,

removing difficulties in relation to the application of commercial specifications ;

2 . the extent to which the participants benefit from their collaboration on projects ( the acquisition of

know-how, the diffusion of information and improvement of methods, etc .). Any additional benefits, apart
trom the results obtained, will also be assessed ;

3 . the extent to whiclrthe programme contributes to the development of collaboration between Member

states, especially in the areas of metrology and standardization ( harmonization, coordination, collaboration
in the development of new methods, etc .);

4 " th £ e f xten ; to which the Programme contributes effectively to the improvement of concordance in the results

or clinical chemistry and leads to closer interlaboratory cooperation .