CENELEC

At the European level, the national organizations from both the EU (European Union, formerly the EEC) and the EETA (European Free Trade Association) are grouped in the CEN (European Committee for Standardization) and its counterpart for the electrical industries CENELEC. The standards published by these two organizations have authority in all EU countries as well as the EFTA countries who have voted their approval, which means that these standards have replaced their corresponding national standards. 

CENELEC Comite Europeen de Normalisation des Industries Electriques... 

Certified testing and approval for control-valve devices used in hazardous locations is normally procured by the manufacturer of the device. The manufacturer often goes to a third party laboratory for testing and certification. Applicable approval standards are available from CSA, CENELEC, EM, SAA, and UL. 

Also, the electronic control-valve device s level of immunity to, and emission of, electromagnetic interference (EMI) can be an issue in the chemical-valve environment. EMI requirements for the control-valve devices are presently mandatory in the European Community but voluntary in the United States, Japan, and the rest of the world. International Electrotechnical Commission (lEC) SOI, Parts I through 4, Electromagnetic Compatibihty for Industrial Process Measurement and Control Equipment, defines tests and requirements for control-device immunity. Immunity and emission standards are addressed in CENELEC (European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization) EN 50 081-1 1992, EN 50 081-2 1993, EN 50 082-1 1992, and prEN 50 082-2 1994. 

The European Commission has mandated CEN/CENELEC to develop many standards to support manufacturers in the realisation of the essential requirements of the Directives. If the Commission determines that an adopted standard is fit for this purpose, then a reference is published in the Official Journal of the EU, which elevates the status of the standard to that of a harmonised standard for European regulatory purposes. 

CEN/CENELEC (1989) General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories. EN 45001. 

However, the standard used in the United States and the standards used in Europe do not coincide. The dissimilarities are due to a difference in the manner in which hazardous environments are classified and to a divergence in philosophy over the safety factor employed. NFPA 493 uses a safety of 1.5 pertaining to the total energy, while the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) require a safety factor of 1.5 for the voltage or current, which relates to a 2.25 factor of safety for the energy. 

Regarding electrostatic ignition sources, see the subsection Static Electricity, later. In addition, see CENELEC CLC/TR 50404, Electrostatics—Code of Practice for the Avoidance of Hazards due to Static Electricity, June 2003. 

Safe Automation and ANSI/ISA 84.01-1996 served as significant technical references for the first international standard, IEC 61511, issued by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). In the United States, IEC 61511 was accepted by ISA as ISA 84.00.01-2004, replacing the 1996 standard. In 2004, the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) recognized IEC 61511 as a consensus standard for the process industry. IEC 61511 covers the complete process safety management life cycle. With its adoption, this standard serves as the primary driving force behind the work processes followed to achieve and maintain safe operation using safety instrumented systems. 

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION, General Criteria for the Operation of Testing Laboratories - European Standard EN 45001, Brussels, CEN/CENELEC, 1989. 

Beyond perfonnance optimization, issues relative to packaging and the need for compliance with certain safety and electronics regulatory codes are cited as reasons for a customized solution. In the latter case, a systems approach is required, especially when attempting to meet the code or performance requirements for compliance with European Certification (CE) mark or electrical and fire safety codes such as National Eire Prevention Association (NFPA) and CENELEC (European Committee for Electrotechiucal Standardization). Off-the-shelf electronics may provide the necessary performance characteristics for generic applications, and their use eliminates large expenses related to product development, plus the associated time delays. Photonics-related components are solely addressed in this section because they are used to customize instruments for application-specific systems. 

European Communities are presumed by Member States to comply with those aspects of the essential requirements that are covered by the standard. Harmonised standards are those adopted by the EC standards bodies pursuant to a mandate issued by the Commission, in this case the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) and the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation (CENELEC). A large number of standards are contemplated but may take time to be written and adopted. Standards may be horizontal (covering aspects common to all or a number of product types) or vertical (dealing only with a specific aspect or specific product type). Important harmonised standards exist on the following ... 

European countries have to take note of The European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) which was founded in 1961 and comprises the national standards bodies of EC and EFTA plus some eastern European countries. CENELEC is the equivalent body in the electrical field. To many people, the concept of European standards, or any other national grouping, is an unnecessary complication, it being argued that there is no need for any activity in between ISO and the national bodies. However, the work of CEN assumes great commercial importance because EC countries are bound to adopt them to replace national standards and they can be used to demonstrate compliance with EC Directives. The CEN web site can be found at www.cenorm.be. 

A maintenance of EN 50128, the Cenelec norm for dependability of railway applications software, was initiated in September 2004 by SC9XA Cenelec group to start the work on 2005. 

Blechinger, Ch., ProCEN - A tool to manage the CENELEC RAMS Process, SIGNAL + DRAHT (96) 4/2004, p. 15-16. 

CENELEC (European Commission for Electrotechnical Standardization) Safety of Machinery—Guidance and Recommendations for the Avoidance of Hazards Due to Static Electricity, CLC/TC44X (Secretariat) 161. 

European Standard EN50160, (1994). Voltage Characteristics of electricity supplied by public distribution systems. Cenelec... 

As time passes, national standards for area classification have been superseded by international standards (IEC, International Electrotechnical Commission, Geneva/Switzerland, and EN, European Standard or European Norm, established by CENELEC, Comite Europeen de Normalisation Electrotechnique, Brussels/Belgium), which have been adopted as subsequent national standards. In the member countries of the European Community (EC), a joint area classification is defined by a directive (Directive 1999/92/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, dated 1999-12-16). 

In recent times, CENELEC (Brussels) started work establishing a zone 0 standard for electrical apparatus which resulted in European Standard EN 50284 1999-04 with the title ... 

The approval for this type of mining equipment shall be established by BVS, Bergbau-Versuchsstrecke, Dortmund/Germany Similar to zone 0, this national forerunner initiates international activities in this field. This leads to a first European Standard 2000-07 EN 50303/1998-04, produced by a joint CEN/TC/305 and CENELEC/TC 31 /WG, titled Group I, category Ml equipment intended to remain functional in atmospheres endangered by firedamp and/or coal dust. ... 

Following the IEC activities, CENELEC, Brussels, has drawn up standards covering construction, testing, selection, installation and maintenance of such apparatus based on a three-zone classification ... 

Speaking in the classification scheme of ATEX 100a Directive, these standards cover equipment Group II, categories ID, 2D and 3D. It may be expected that CENELEC will complete this set of standards in the future. 

In the course of the integration of European states and the removal of trade barriers, national standardization loses importance considerably. The majority of electrical standards comes into existence by international cooperation with IEC, International Electrotechnical Commission, Geneva/Switzerland. On the basis of IEC Standards many European Standards have been developed in the past. This work has been done by CENELEC, Comite Europeen de Normalisation Electrotechnique, Brussels/Belgium. European Standards or Norms (EN) often deviate from their IEC origins in their technical content. To avoid double action and to ensure a more effective standardization procedure, IEC and CENELEC are now working in closer cooperation. CENELEC is a private organization and does not act as an institution of the European Union at all. This fact indicates that European Standards need a legal act to come into force. Members of CENELEC are the national committees for standardization of the member states (not identical with the European Union). 

---