News of 15 June 2021

Test results recognised for award of UKCA marking

The Brexit has changed a lot. One of them is CE marking: from 2022, the CE mark will no longer be recognised in the UK. Instead, the CE marking is to be replaced in the UK by the UKCA (United Kingdom Conformity Assessed) marking introduced in January 2021. As now officially confirmed by Warrington Fire, Warrington, UK, tests at the Testing Institute Locks and Hardware Velbert [Prüfinstitut Schlösser und Beschläge Velbert (PIV)] can be recognised as a notified body by institutes in the UK, so that permission to use a UKCA marking can be achieved. In the future, it will probably be the case that tests from German testing institutes in the notified area will be generally recognised.

"We are pleased that it has now been officially confirmed that we can carry out the necessary tests or that existing tests can be used so that our customers can continue to place their products on the market in Great Britain," explains Andrea Horsthemke, head of the Testing Institute Locks and Hardware Velbert [Prüfinstitut Schlösser und Beschläge Velbert (PIV)]. "However, reports on tests as well as results of in-house and external monitoring have to be submitted," the head of the institute continues. Certification on the basis of these reports and monitorings is then carried out by a body based in the UK – England, Wales and Scotland to be precise. The procedure is simpler for products in conformity assessment procedure 1, as these documents are available. The essential basis for the recognition of the tests is the DAkkS accreditation according to DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025. A recognition of our accreditation body in the UK is not sought. However, it is advantageous that an accreditation according to DIN EN 17065 also exists for PIV CERT. The UKCA marking can then be carried out by the manufacturer in a similar way to the CE marking. However, it should be noted that the operating instructions must also provide for UKCA.

PIV can act for the following products:

• EN 12209 Mechanically operated locks and locking plates
• EN 14846 Electromechanically operated locks and striking plates
• EN 1935 Single-axis hinges
• EN 179 Emergency exit devices operated by a lever handle or push pad
• EN 1125 Panic exit devices operated by a horizontal bar

For the EU, the UKCA marking does not change anything, as products for the EU market still require CE marking. No change is required for Northern Ireland either, where the CE mark will continue to apply. The UKCA mark, on the other hand, is not recognised on the EU market.