Machinery Update | March / April 2021

10 MACHINERY UPDATE MARCH/APRIL 2021 www.machineryupdate.co.uk
Regulations
Keeping machinery
compliant post-Brexit
Paul Taylor
HEAD OF INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS (UK)
Now that the UK has left the EU, machinery end-users will start to see a UKCA mark appearing
on compliant products and here, we cover what to look out for, and action, post-Brexit…
Today, the vast majority
of UK law is made
through Statutory
Instruments. The European
Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018
and the European Union
(Withdrawal Agreement)
Act 2020 allow Statutory
Instruments to be made which
rescind and amend legislation
which originally emanated
from Europe. These Statutory
Instruments are referred to
as the ‘EU Exit’ Statutory
Instruments.
Now that the United
Kingdom has left the EU,
machinery end-users in the
UK will slowly start to see
a UKCA mark appearing on
compliant products. UKCA
marking was specified in the
original EU Exit Statutory
Instruments and indicates
that a product placed on the
market meets the UK’s new
regulatory requirements. For
most products this is defined
in UK Statutory Instrument
2019 No 696, with the original
CE marking regulations being
amended rather than replaced.
SAME STANDARDS
While references to
“harmonised standards”
have changed to ‘designated
standards’, for now the UK
standards remain the same
as EU harmonised standards
and have simply been carried
across as UK designated
standards in order to maintain
a single model. This means
that in the UK, procedures
have changed very little from
the CE marking structure.
However, while initially these
requirements will align with
the CE marking ones that they
replace, overtime divergence
is still possible.
The CE marking will of
course remain in the EU.
In both jurisdictions the same
rules will apply for designers,
manufacturers and importers
– everyone must understand
their legal duties and their
responsibilities.
Since the EU exit transition
period came to an end on 31st
December 2020, the UKCA
marking is now required for
new machinery placed on
the market for the first time
in Great Britain (England,
Scotland and Wales), but
CE marking will continue
to be accepted in Northern
Ireland. However, machinery
manufacturers do have
10 months grace in the form
of a further transitional
arrangement for the
acceptance of CE marking
until 1st January 2022.
After this time any machinery
sold in the UK, irrespective
of when that model was first
placed on the market, must
carry a UKCA marking.
It is therefore vital that
machinery end-users are
aware of what their suppliers
should be doing.
This means that all machinery
should meet all relevant
essential health and safety
requirements (EHSRs).
These are detailed in the
UKCA Regulations and include
the provision of sufficient
instructions in the language
of the end user. A technical
file for the machinery should
also be available.
Machinery will additionally
require a UK Declaration of
Conformity, or in the case of
partly completed machinery,
a Declaration of Incorporation.
This will need to list UK
legislation and UK designated
standards for compliance.
For specific higher risk
machinery that requires
New UKCA marking presents
machine builders with the challenge
of complying in a tight timescale
type-examination by a
certification body, a UK
Approved Body will be required.
From the 1st January 2021,
UK-based EU notified bodies
automatically became
UK Approved Bodies for
their previous scope of EU
accreditation, allowing UKCA
certification work to commence.
As we do not have an EU/UK
Mutual Recognition
Agreement (MRA), UK-based
approved bodies will no longer
be recognised in Europe for
CE marking, and EU-based
notified bodies will not be
recognised as UKCA approved
bodies after the 1 January 2021.
However, the most significant
impact has been on the
location of the manufacturer.
UK companies exporting
CE marked equipment into
the EU must appoint a
responsible person that is
authorised to compile the
technical file, and they
must be physically located
within the EU.
SELF-DECLARATION
The manufacturer is still
allowed to self-declare a
product’s compliance where
applicable. This responsible
person or entity is the same
requirement that has been
applied for many years to any
other country outside of the
EU. This is reciprocated for
EU entities importing into
the UK. Quite simply,
post-exit from the EU, the
UK is operating a separate
regulatory regime just like
the rest of the world.
Despite this additional
time, the introduction of the
new UKCA marking presents
machinery manufacturers
with the challenge of
ensuring compliance with
a new conformity assessment
mark within a relatively tight
timescale. As UKCA markings
are a visible sign that a
product complies with all the
relevant UK regulations, it is
essential that machinery endusers
understand both their
responsibilities and those of
their machine’s manufacturer.
i For more information contact
W www.tuv-sud.co.uk
TÜV SÜD is the PPMA
Group’s technical and
legislative partner