Why is it important that products comply with the directive?
The aim of the Directive is to address the overall negative impact of products on the environment, including resource consumption and pollutant emissions, by considering the principles of sustainable development throughout the life cycle of a product.
Energy-related products account for a large part of the consumption of natural resources and energy in the EU. They also affect a number of other important environmental areas. Many energy-related products have significant potential for improvement in order to reduce environmental impact and achieve energy savings through better product design, which also leads to economic savings for companies and end users. In addition to products that consume, generate, transmit or measure energy, certain energy-related products, including building products such as windows, insulation materials or some water-carrying products such as shower heads or taps, may also be contribute to significant energy savings during the use phase.
This Directive aims to achieve a high level of environmental protection by reducing the potential environmental impact of energy-related products, which will ultimately benefit consumers and other end users. Sustainable development also requires adequate consideration of the health, social and economic consequences of the measures envisaged. Improving the energy and resource efficiency of products contributes to the security of energy supply and to reducing the demand for natural resources, which are prerequisites for healthy economic activity and thus for sustainable development.
Which products are covered by the directive and must bear the CE marking?
Directive 2009/125/EC applies to energy-related products. Article 2 defines the term "energy-related product", that is, any item that has an impact on energy consumption during use and is placed on the market and/or put into service as well as parts intended for installation in energy-related products within the meaning of this Directive which are placed on the market and/or put into operation as individual parts for end users and whose environmental compatibility can be independently assessed.
In addition to products that affect energy consumption, the Directive also covers products that use, generate, transmit or measure energy, as well as other energy-related products such as windows, insulation materials or certain products that consume water which can all contribute to significant energy savings during use.
Examples of such products include:
- Air conditioning and ventilation systems, including air conditioning pumps
- Electric and fossil fuel heaters
- Food preparation equipment such as household ovens and extractor hoods
- Industrial and laboratory furnaces and furnaces
- Machine tools
- Network, data processing and data storage devices such as computers and computer servers
- Refrigerators and freezers
- Household appliances such as washing machines and dishwashers
- Sound and imaging equipment
- Current transformers
- Water-consuming devices
- Electric lamps and luminaires, including LED lamps
- Electronic displays and televisions
- Vacuum cleaner
- Ventilators
- External power supplies
- Heaters
- Electric motors
Which products are NOT covered by the Eco design Directive?
The Directive does not apply to means of passenger or freight transport such as cars, railways. In addition, the Community legislation on waste management and the Community legislation on chemicals remain of the Directive and the implementing measures adopted in accordance with the Directive including Community legislation on fluorinated greenhouse gases.
What requirements or obligations does the directive require manufacturers or distributors to meet in order to be able to label their products with the CE marking?
It is the responsibility of the manufacturer to carry out the conformity assessment, to prepare the technical documentation, to issue the EU declaration of conformity and to affix the CE marking to a product. Only then can this product be placed on the EEA market.
The manufacturer / authorized representative / importer has the following tasks
- ensure that the product placed on the market and/or put into service complies with this Directive and the implementing measure in force
- keep and make available the EC declaration of conformity and the technical documentation
How can the conformity of the product with the Eco design Directive be identified?
Article 9 refers to the presumption of conformity. If a product bears the CE marking according to ANNEX, it is expected to comply with the relevant provisions of the applicable implementing measure. In addition, a product for which harmonized standards have been applied and whose reference numbers have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union shall be considered to be in conformity with all relevant requirements of the applicable implementing measure to which those standards relate. For products for which the EC Eco label is issued in accordance with Regulation (EC) No. Awarded in 1980/2000, they are considered to comply with the Eco design requirements of the applicable implementing measure, provided that these requirements are met by the Eco label.
How does the conformity assessment procedure of the Eco-design Directive look like?
Conformity assessment is essential before a product is placed on the market. The manufacturer must choose between the internal design control set out in Annex IV and the management system set out in Annex V to the Directive. Following the placing on the market of a product, the manufacturer shall be required to submit the relevant documentation on the conformity assessment carried out and the declarations of conformity issued for inspection by the Member States for ten years after the manufacture of the last product keep ready. The documentation must be in one of the official languages of the European Union institutions.
Internal design control
Annex IV describes the procedure by which the manufacturer ensures that the product complies with the relevant requirements of the applicable implementing measure. The EC declaration of conformity may apply to one or more products and must be kept by the manufacturer.
What technical documentation does the CE conformity assessment procedure require for an energy-related product?
The manufacturer shall compile technical documentation enabling an assessment of the conformity of the product with the requirements of the applicable implementing measure.
The documents shall include in particular
- a general description of the product and its intended use
- the results of relevant environmental impact assessments carried out by the manufacturer and/or references to environmental impact assessment literature or case studies carried out by the manufacturer in the assessment Documentation and definition of solutions used for product design
- the environmental profile, where required by the implementing measure
- elements of the product design specification relating to environmental design aspects of the product
- a list of the relevant standards referred to in Article 10 and a description of the solutions chosen to meet the requirements of each implementing measure
- a copy of the environmental design characteristics of the product
- the results of the measurements carried out on the eco design requirements, including information on the conformity of those measurements with the ecodesign requirements of the implementing measure in force
What is the EU declaration of conformity and what does it look like for an eco-design product?
The EC declaration of conformity shall contain the elements listed in Annex VI and refer to the relevant implementing measure.
The EC declaration of conformity must contain the following elements:
- the name and address of the manufacturer or his authorized representative
- a description of the model sufficient for its unambiguous identification
- where applicable, the references of the harmonized standards applied
- where appropriate, the other technical standards and specifications applied
- where appropriate, reference to other Community legislation providing for the affixing of the CE marking
- Identification and signature of the person authorized to oblige the manufacturer or his authorized representative
How should the CE marking be applied to an eco design device?
The CE marking consists of the initials "CE", as shown in Annex III. It is forbidden to affix markings on a product that could mislead the user as to the meaning or the typeface of the CE marking.
The CE marking must have a height of at least 5 mm. If the CE marking is reduced or enlarged, the proportions specified in the grid above must be observed.
The CE marking must be affixed to the product. If this is not possible, it must be attached to the packaging and accompanying documents.
In particular, which harmonized standards are often to be considered when assessing conformity under the Eco design Directive?
lighting products
- EN 60432 Safety requirements for incandescent lamps
- EN 60064 Performance requirements for tungsten incandescent lamps
- EN 61000 Electromagnetic compatibility
- EN 60357 Halogen bulbs (not for vehicles) - Performance requirements
Electronic Displays & TV
- EN 62301 Household appliances - Measurement of standby power
- EN 62087 Audio, video and related equipment - Determination of power
air conditioners
- EN 12900 Performance data of refrigerant compressors of the manufacturer
- EN 12102 Air conditioners - Airborne noise measurement
- EN 12900 Refrigerant compressors
- EN 15218 Test methods and requirements for air conditioners and liquid cooling units
Refrigerators
- EN 62552 Household refrigerators - Characteristics and test methods 2
