From July 2013, all construction products covered by European standards will need to be CE marked to be legally sold in the UK and Ireland. Obtaining the CE mark can be a long process requiring testing and certification, especially for fire safety products under attestation level 1. Manufacturers and importers should start the CE marking process now if they haven't already to meet the deadline. Purchasers should also check that suppliers have or are working towards the proper CE marking, as products without it may no longer be available after the deadline. The transition to mandatory CE marking could reduce choice as the process can be expensive, potentially making some low volume fire safety products too costly.

1. Construction products regulations – are you ready?
A year can seem like a long time but it’s amazing how fast it can go when there’s a deadline. And
there’s an important deadline looming. From July 2013 all construction products covered by
harmonized European Standards under the Construction Products Regulations will have to be CE
marked to be legally sold in the UK and ROI.
Of course many products are already CE marked as
the CE mark is already mandatory across most of
Europe, but certainly not all are. For fire safety
products, certified under attestation level 1, obtaining
a CE mark can be a long process, requiring
independent testing, factory production control and
certification.
What do you need to do?
So what should you be doing? Well, if you’re a
manufacturer or importer and haven’t started the
process yet my advice is START NOW. If you’re a
purchaser then now might be a good time to start checking that your suppliers have the right CE
marking or are progressing towards it. If not then maybe they’re not the right supplier for you.
One effect of mandatory CE marking might be a reduction in choice. Any CE marking process can be
expensive, but the costs of level 1 attestation for fire safety products may mean that low volume
products become too expensive to keep legal, especially in the current economic climate. Buildings
can have a long gestation period. Are you sure the products you are specifying now will still be
available when you need to order them in 18 months time?
Mandatory CE marking has been with us under other European Directives for some time so it’s well
established and we know how to live with it. It’s the transition that can be difficult and will no doubt
catch people out. Make sure you’re not one of them.
There’s a useful introductory guidance paper from the CPA available via this link but if you have any
questions please send me a message and I will be happy to help:
www.constructionproducts.org.uk/publications/industry-affairs/display/view/construction-products-
regulation/
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