Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels
Phase 1: Does the Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels apply to your product?
As a manufacturer, you need to secure copies of the directives and judge whether they apply to your product. The European Commission does not publish a list of products to which their laws apply; they require the manufacturer to determine the applicability of directives to any given product. The purpose of the Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels directive is to assure that appliances burning gaseous fuels used for cooking, heating, hot water production, refrigeration, lighting or washing and having, where applicable, a normal water temperature not exceeding 105 degrees Celsius, and fittings as defined in Article 1 of the directive, are placed on the market and put into service only when they do not compromise the safety of persons, domestic animals and property when they are used normally. Chapter I, Article 1 of the directive describes products to which the directive applies.
Phase 2: CE Marking Requirements for the Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels Directive
The Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels Directive sets out the essential requirements for approval of these appliances in Annex I of the directive. General Conditions in the annex state that the appliances must be designed and built as to operate safely and present no danger to persons, domestic animals or property when used in a normal fashion. Materials used must be appropriate for their intended purpose and must withstand the technical, chemical and thermal conditions to which they will likely be subjected. Appliances must be designed and constructed so that no instability, distortion, breakage or wear is likely to impair their safety when used in a normal fashion. Member states shall presume compliance with the essential requirements when the appliances and fittings conform to national and harmonized standards as indicated in Article 5 of the directive. Annex II concerns means of certification of conformity with the required standards. “Notified bodies” are responsible for carrying out the certification of conformity. Certification of series-manufactured appliances are subject to the EC type-examination as referred to in Section 1, Annex II of the directive, while appliances produced in single units or small quantities may be verified as indicated in Section 6 of Annex II. After completion of the conformity certification, the CE marking of conformity is to be affixed to the conforming appliances in accordance with Article 10.
Manufacturers of Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels are NOT permitted to self-certify the compliance of their products. The U.S. manufacturer must hire a testing lab affiliated with a notified body; test results are subsequently sent to the notified body for evaluation and approval, following which the notified body issues a certificate. (Notified bodies are companies which have been selected by the EU member states and “notified” to the European Commission as being competent to test and certify products under a particular directive where third party testing is required. Notified bodies must be located in the EU and are the only entities allowed to give final product approval under directives requiring the CE marking, although their affiliates outside the EU are allowed to test products and send results to the parent for approval.)
The U.S. Government has NOT negotiated a Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) in the Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels sector.
To view the Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels Directive and see the latest list of standards for that directive, please go to the European Commission's website at http://www.newapproach.org and click on "directives and standards.”
This overview of the Appliances Burning Gaseous Fuels Directive is currently being developed. For additional information on this directive, please contact either of the U.S. Department of Commerce EU Specialists: Bob Straetz at 202-482-4496 or Sylvia Mohr at 011 32 2 508 2675