European Directives Machinery

The European directive 89/655/EEC provides for minimum requirements for the use of work equipment with regard to safety and health [6-15]. Work equipment can be any machinery, tools, apparatus, instrumentation, and installation which are used at work by workers. This includes all machinery typically used while manufacturing or processing chemical agents. The employer is obliged to select or install only such work equipment which is suitable and complies with all ap-phcable EU directives. It has also to be in compliance with the harmonized techni-... 

In some cases, other laws may apply such as the Simple Pressure Vessels (Safety) Regulations 1991 or the Gas Appliances (Safety) Regulations 1995. All these Regulations implement European Directives and contain various requirements. The existence of CE marking on machinery should indicate that the manufacturer has met all of the requirements that are relevant. 

Legislation enacted in recent years to implement the provisions of European Directives has had a major impact in the health and safety field. Whilst only the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations are targeted specifically and uniquely at electrical safety, many of them have requirements that have an influence in this field including, in this context, the safety of electrotechnical control systems on machinery. The purpose of this chapter is to identify those Regulations that have explicit and implicit electrical and control system requirements. 

The European Union Machinery Safety Directive (enacted under the Frameworic Directive on Health and Safety at Work) places similar duties on designers, manufacturers and suppliers as the UK H and SW Act and is in force within the regulatory systems of all Member States ... 

The pressure equipment directive was adopted by the European Parliament and the European Council in May 1997. It harmonises the national laws of the 15 Member States of the European Union relating to equipment subject to the pressure risk. That directive is one of the series of technical harmonisation directives such as for machinery, medical devices, simple pressure vessels, gas appliances and so on, which were foreseen by the Communities programme for the elimination of technical barriers to trade. It therefore aims to ensure the free placing on the market and putting into service of the equipment concerned within the European Union and the European Economic Area. At the same time it permits a flexible regulatory environment, allowing European industry to develop new techniques increasing thereby its international competitiveness. 

Directives are the European laws published in the Official Journal that give us the essential health and safety requirements (EHSRs) that shall be followed by product suppliers. These are commonly called the Essential Requirements (ERs). The directives deal with legal and procedural issues, such as assessment procedures, certification, implementation, enforcement, technical files, declarations, CE marking, and other basic concepts. Examples of primary directives are the Low-Voltage, Machinery, and EMC directives. The General Product Safety and Product Liability Directives are basic directives dealing with enforcement and civil prosecution that are applied to all products. The directives also mandate the publication and mutual recognition of harmonized standards. 

Product-specific directives (type C). Product-specific directives apply to regulated products, such as telecom and medical, as well as other products where extreme hazards exist, such as machinery listed in Annex IV of 89/392EEC. Involvement of a EU body may be mandatory, but not in all cases. If the class or type of product is regulated by the directive, then a European body must assess it and issue a Type-Exam Certificate prior to CE marking. Product-specific directives cover machinery, pressure vessels, medical products, telecom devices, toys, and others. It is necessary to refer to the relevant directive to see whether the involvement of a EU-notified body is mandatory for the product or machine in question. lYpe C directives take precedence over types A and B directives and refer to them as needed. 

EC, 1998. Directive 98/37/EC of the European Partiament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to machinery. Official Journal of the European Communities, Luxembourg. 

EC 2006. Directive 2006/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2006 on machinery, and amending Directive 95/16/EC (recast). Official Journal of the European Conununities, Luxembourg. 

Currently the content of EU Directives are incorporated into UK law by means of Regulations. Those concerned with employment, i.e. the use of machinery and equipment, are drafted by the HSC and made under HSW. Those concerned with the standard of safety of goods are made by the Department of Trade and Industry under the European Communities Act 1972. 

With the UK s integration into the European Community the influence of Community-based legislation (Directives) on UK laws has become a major factor in current health and safety legislation. This is particularly true with regard to machinery and work equipment. 

Harmonised standards, known as European Norms (EN), provide solutions that enable compliance with the essential requirements of New Approach, or other relevant, Directives. They provide a presumption of conformity but for this to apply the standard must have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). Standards are produced by the European Standards Organisation for a technical sector, e.g. electrical and machinery, and published by national standards bodies, e.g. British Standards Institute (BSI), DIN in Germany, NF in France. 

The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) is working to produce a complex of European standards at three levels in support of the Machinery Directive. The first (A) level comprises general principles for the design of machinery. The second (B) level covers specific safety devices and ergonomic aspects. The third (C) level deals with specific classes of machinery by calling up the appropriate standards from the first two levels and addressing requirements specific to the class. 

The Machinery Directive, as amended, requires Member States to inform the European Commission of any specific enforcement action taken. The Commission will consider whether the action is justified and advise the parties concerned accordingly. 

European Union, Council Directive No. 89/392/EEC, on the approximation of the Jaws of Member States relating to machinery (Machinery directive), EU, Luxembourg (1989)... 

When the first Machinery Directive was adopted, it excluded a number of special purpose machines because of pressure from specialist sectors on the grormds that they had special needs that could not be covered in the general safety requirements that applied to run-of-tiie-mill machines. To prevent dela3ung adoption of the directive these exclusions were allowed. However, since 1993 the European Commission has studied these particular cases and amended the directive to include additional conditions having specific application so that these particular cases could be brought witiiin its compass. 

The Machinery Directive was drawn up using the new approach to legislative harmonisation whereby the main body of the directive itself lays down broad objectives to be achieved, lists in annexes the areas to which safety attention should be directed and relies on European harmonised (EN) standards to specify the conditions to give conformity. 

Additional requirements for batteries in electric vehicles result from the legislation of the European Union, e.g. Essential Safety Requirements of the Machinery Directive . This results in requirements like battery marking and declaration of precise battery weight (because of the counterweight of the battery in forklift trucks). Ventilation is also required during vehicle operation due to residual gases after charging. 

The European parliament the council of the European Union 2006. Machinery Directive 20061421EC. 

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