Background
- There is no binding harmonisation of international markets for construction products which is not desirable for the branch as whole
- Harmonisation of international markets for construction products would help to make more easily materials comparable
- There is a rather big variation in construction products on international markets due to little harmonisation
Regulation
- The EU regulates product standards for construction products on general level, but members states can choose what to use
- Harmonised European standards on construction products are developed by technical experts from European Standardisation Organisations (CEN/CENELEC)
- With CE marking, a manufacturer can ensure that the properties of a construction product are in line with the harmonised European product standard, or the European technical approval (ETA)
- International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) standards give consumers confidence in the construction industry, providing reassurance that buildings and related structures such as bridges are built to internationally agreed safety and quality standards
Our actions
- We aim to improve the comparability of construction products => same standards for all
- Harmonisation of quality standards for international market of construction products
- We support the move from national standards to the EU and ISO standards
- We speak out about the benefits of standards for the construction sector We support the work of Technical Committees of CEN and ISO that work on completing the necessary set of European and international product and testing standards and further improving existing ones
- The construction product regulation (CPR) will be reviewed and revised on European level. We strongly support the process and work hard to improve the dysfunctional part of CPR