I read in !emc-pstc that John Woodgate <[email protected]> wrote (in <[email protected]>) about 'EN60950:2000 & EN60950-1 last dates of manufacture' on Tue, 5 Nov 2002:
I addressed this question to Peter Tarver, who replied by -email that he definitely needs an *official* document >Exactly what is still bugging you? I would have thought that everything >in doubt or obscure had already been explained. I know of no official document, so I asked someone in Brussels who would DEFINITELY know of such a document or could provide a better explanation that I could. You will understand that I am not in a position to say whom I asked, but this is as authoritative as you can get, IMHO. This is what I sent and the reply I received: QUOTE ENQUIRY/QUESTION I am trying to find an official Commission or Council document that explains or defines exactly what the 'date of cessation of presumption of conformity of the superseded standard' actually means. As new, younger people come into the EMC and safety standards field, some of the facts that are well understood and accepted by those of us who have ten or more years involvement are being challenged and documentary proof is being demanded. This is not unreasonable, because guesses and folklore are still creating confusion. In this particular case, the 'docopocoss' could be (in the minds of people new to the subject): - 1) the last date at which a product conforming only to the old standard may be manufactured; -2) the last date on which it may be shipped from the manufacturer's premises to a distributor, retailer or end-user; - 3) the last date that may appear on an invoice for the product; - 4) the last date on which it may be sold to an end-user by a distributor or retailer; - 5) the last date on which it may be 'taken into service'. The fact that they demand reliable official information can be appreciated. -- ANSWER I found the following definitions on the Web site of the Commission (http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise). Guide 25 of CENELEC is also very useful to be looked at (available on CENELEC web site) What does "Date of cessation [of presumption of conformity of the superseded standard]" mean? A product compliant with a given standard and placed on the market (see definition in section 2.3 of the Guide to the Implementation of Directives Based on New Approach and Global Approach) after the "date of cessation" of this standard will not enjoy presumption of conformity with the requirement of the EMC directive. My product enjoys presumption of conformity through compliance with standard "S", whose date of cessation is 01/01/2003. It is replaced by standard "T". What does it mean practically for my product ? The EMC Directive concerns the time of the placing on the market or putting into service of each individual apparatus. - Each individual apparatus placed on the market before 01/01/2003 will enjoy presumption of conformity if they comply either with standard "S" or standard "T". - Each individual apparatus placed on the market after 01/01/2003 will enjoy presumption of conformity only if they comply standard "T". The key point is thus the definition (plus comments) of 'placing on the market' as given in the New approach (see guide quoted above or Commission EMC guide 1997,clause 3.1, available on Commission web site): 'This means first making available, against payment or free of charge, an apparatus in the EEA market for the purpose of distribution and /or use in the EEA'. Among the 5 options given in your enquiry, the options 1), and 3) are thus not relevant. For normal ready-made products for general use, options 5) and 4) are normally not applicable and thus option 2) is generally the closest to the definition of placing on the market for those products, except that for products manufactured outside the EEA, 'manufacturer premises' is replaced by the 'importer or authorised representative in the EEA. ENDQUOTE In thanking my source for the information, I have added: It is important that manufacturers and importers clearly understand the matter, and it is clear from messages on the IEEE 'compliance' mailgroup that misunderstanding is widespread. I would therefore suggest that a 'semi-official' document (i.e. of the same status as the 'EMC Guidelines') on the subject should be published by the Commission. It is true that 'anyone' could have found the information that you very kindly provided, but 'anyone' would not know for certain where to look, and, more important, would not know if **all relevant** information had been obtained. -- Regards, John Woodgate, OOO - Own Opinions Only. http://www.jmwa.demon.co.uk Interested in professional sound reinforcement and distribution? Then go to http://www.isce.org.uk PLEASE do NOT copy news posts to me by E-MAIL! ------------------------------------------- This message is from the IEEE EMC Society Product Safety Technical Committee emc-pstc discussion list. Visit our web site at: http://www.ewh.ieee.org/soc/emcs/pstc/ To cancel your subscription, send mail to: [email protected] with the single line: unsubscribe emc-pstc For help, send mail to the list administrators: Ron Pickard: [email protected] Dave Heald: [email protected] For policy questions, send mail to: Richard Nute: [email protected] Jim Bacher: [email protected] All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at: http://ieeepstc.mindcruiser.com/ Click on "browse" and then "emc-pstc mailing list"
