EU EMC Directive Compliance

Classify the item as apparatus, fixed installation, a component or sub-assembly intended for end-user incorporation, or a mobile installation. The Directive defines apparatus as a finished appliance or combination made available as a single functional unit for the end-user and liable to generate electromagnetic disturbance or be affected by it.

Record exclusions and overlaps before choosing the compliance route. The Directive excludes equipment whose inherent physical characteristics mean it cannot generate relevant disturbance and operates without unacceptable degradation under normal disturbance, certain amateur-radio equipment not made available on the market, covered aviation equipment intended exclusively for airborne use, and professional custom-built evaluation kits used solely in research and development facilities. Where more specific Union legislation lays down the same essential requirements, the EMC Directive does not apply to those requirements.

The core design question is whether the equipment is built, with regard to the state of the art, so generated electromagnetic disturbance does not exceed the level at which radio, telecommunications, or other equipment cannot operate as intended, and so the equipment has enough immunity for its intended use without unacceptable degradation.

For apparatus, the electromagnetic compatibility assessment must consider the relevant phenomena and all normal intended operating conditions. If the apparatus can be used in different configurations, the assessment should cover the representative configurations identified by the manufacturer.

For apparatus, Article 14 allows either Module A internal production control or Module B EU-type examination followed by conformity to type based on internal production control. The manufacturer may use EU-type examination for selected aspects of the essential requirements while using internal production control for the remaining aspects.

Module A keeps the conformity assessment under the manufacturer's sole responsibility. Module B involves a notified body examining the technical design for the selected essential-requirement aspects and, where successful, issuing an EU-type examination certificate. That notified-body certificate does not supersede the manufacturer's technical documentation, EU declaration of conformity, CE marking responsibility, or production conformity controls.

Equipment that conforms with harmonised standards, or relevant parts of them, whose references have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union is presumed to conform with the essential requirements covered by those standards or parts. The presumption only reaches the requirements actually covered, so the file still needs a standards applicability record.

When harmonised standards are applied in full or in part, list the exact references, dates, amendments, and the parts applied. Where a harmonised standard is not applied or only partly applied, the technical documentation should describe the solutions and other technical specifications used to meet the essential requirements.

The technical documentation must make it possible to assess whether the apparatus conforms to the relevant requirements and must include an adequate analysis and assessment of risks. It should cover the design, manufacture, and operation of the apparatus as far as relevant to the EMC assessment.

A useful EMC technical file links the legal route to the engineering evidence: product description, drawings and circuit information, explanations needed to understand operation, standards or other specifications used, design calculations and examinations, test reports, manufacturing controls, and change-control records.

After conformity is demonstrated, the manufacturer draws up the EU declaration of conformity and affixes the CE marking. The declaration states that the Annex I essential requirements have been demonstrated, follows the Annex IV model structure, is kept continuously updated, and is translated into the languages required by the Member State where the apparatus is placed or made available.

The CE marking must be visible, legible, and indelible on the apparatus or its data plate. If that is not possible or not warranted because of the nature of the apparatus, it goes on the packaging and accompanying documents. It must be affixed before the apparatus is placed on the market.

The apparatus must be accompanied by instructions and Article 18 information in a language easily understood by consumers and other end-users as determined by the Member State concerned. Instructions should include the information needed to use the apparatus according to its intended purpose and any precautions required during assembly, installation, maintenance, or use to maintain conformity.

Where residential-area conformity is not ensured, the apparatus must carry a clear restriction-of-use indication, where appropriate also on the packaging. For fixed-installation-only apparatus that is not otherwise made available on the market, the accompanying documentation should identify the fixed installation, its EMC characteristics, and precautions for incorporation.