May 2008

CE Marking of Construction Products Towards simplification for small construction enterprises

The Craftsmen and SMEs of the construction sector welcome the simplification measures contained in the proposal for a Regulation on Construction Products adopted today by the European Commission.

"The Commission proposal proves that the work undertaken by EBC and its members during the last two years has eventually lead to success. Although not all our demands have been met, the proposal contains true simplification measures, which will allow SMEs from the construction sector to CE mark their products more easily," said EBC President W.T. David Croft.

As proposed in the Commission text, small enterprises that have a manufacturing activity, such as joiners, will not be obliged to have their products tested by a notified body before placing their products on the market. Micro enterprises will be able to prove by any means at their disposal, in the form of technical documentation, that their products comply with the rules and regulations in place in the Member States where the product is marketed. The new Regulation proposal foresees the same procedure for enterprises producing non-series products. In addition, SMEs will have the possibility to make use of existing test results obtained previously by other manufacturers or operators without having to involve a notified body, as long as they produce equivalent products.

EBC is nevertheless disappointed that the definition of 'making available on the market' is not sufficiently explicit. Especially products manufactured and integrated into the construction works by the same company should not be considered to have been made available on the market.

Now it is important to ensure that these simplification measures are adopted by the European Council and Parliament. Afterwards, what remains is to work with small construction enterprises to explain to them how they need to proceed.

23 May 2008

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