MachineBuilding.net has published a free guide to the new Machinery Directive, which comes into force on 29 December 2009. There will be no transition period, so companies that build or partly assemble machines, and those that perform final assembly or import machinery for use in the EU, need to start preparing for the changes. EC type-examination certificates issued under the current Directive will no longer be valid after 2009.
The third amendment to the Machinery Directive (2006/42/EC) is intended to simplify and clarify matters, but there are other significant changes. These relate mainly to the Directive`s scope, partly-completed machinery, fixings for fixed guards, and conformity assessment. In addition, there are new measures relating to "market surveillance" (enforcement) and certification.
MachineBuilding.net has cross-checked between the new and old Directives and produced a guide to the new version that highlights the differences and discusses their implications. This is available as a free downloadable PDF file that runs to 20 pages. The guide includes an introduction, the background to the new Directive, timescales, a general overview and detailed analysis. There is also a section devoted to sources of further information – such as a link to the text for the new Directive.
