Defining the correct standard for CE Marking can be tricky

There are now nearly 600 harmonised European Standards covering several thousand product types.

With the deadline of 30 June 2013 to get your products CE marked fast approaching, identifying the relevant standards for your products is not easy, especially as some have a wide ranging scope.

Take for instance BS EN 1090-1:2009 Execution of steel structures and aluminium structures as an example. This is a harmonised European Standard which deals with the design and manufacture of load bearing components and structures made of steel or aluminium. These components or kits have structural characteristics which make them fit for their particular use and function.

The standard does not contain rules for structural design and manufacture; such rules are called up from Eurocode 2 for steel and Eurocode 3 for aluminium. However, for certain steel and aluminium components, specific harmonised standards exist which will take precedence. An example is EN 13084-7 for single wall steel chimneys and steel liners.

So any structural steel or aluminium component must be CE marked in accordance with this harmonised standard, before it can be put on the UK and European market.

The BBA can help in identifying the relevant standards and, as a notified certification body and notified laboratory, we can carry out many of the tasks associated with CE marking.