EEVblog #996 - What Is The CE Mark On A Product?

What does the CE mark on a product actually mean?
How do you get one?
What is it NOT?
What is a Declaration Of Conformity?
There might more to this mark than you realised!

The FCC mark is also discussed.

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[LazerLord]

I remember hearing the "China Export" mark as a sort of joke on how CE 'certification' doesn't mean much in certain contexts. I guess that joke got repeated so many times that people started believing it.

[berniwa]

The correct use of the CE symbol on a product is checked by several states in the EU. In Germany for example the BNA can request samples of any product at random in order to test for CE conformity and to verify that you didn't apply CE without proper verification. If not compliant, they can force you to pay fines and to scrap all your products.

[tohopes]

Great. Something other electronics channels don't cover. Breaking outside of the box 👍

[tomgeorge]

Hi Dave, many years ago I was working for a company that made a 10kW power unit of sorts, they sent it away for CE testing.
When it came back, any component that already had CE was carefully removed.
Any component that didn't was ripped or cut apart.
The 10kW toroidal transformer was cut through so that it could be determined if any of the components were not CE approved.
Basically what came back was a metal chassis, cut into various pieces, lots of components and the toroid cut in two.
Even the two PCBs had been guillotined.
A couple of videos on the other symbols would be most informative, even the double square, double insulated one.
Dodgey Bros.. brilliant

[shakaibsafvi]

Dave... Kindly do some follow-up videos on this... especially on how to get a CE emc and other tests...
also elaborate on UL....
thanks

[DarthChrisB]

"WANK BAND - THE POWER IS IN YOUR HAND"

[antalz]

Conformity can not always be attested by the manufacturer alone. For some product groups, like medical equipment, conformity must be assesed by an approved test house, but it still leads to the same CE mark that self-declared products get. Whether external testing is required is detailed in the standards.

[friedmule]

This is some of the official text about CE: "The individual EU member states conduct market surveillance to protect consumers against unsafe products and the wrong use of the CE marking. For example, it is checked whether the product is CE marked, if the product meets the requirements and if the mark is properly designed. If the product does not meet the requirements, there are more sanctions, such as incarceration, police report, fines or removal of the product from the market. The sanction possibilities depend on the legislation the product is subject to."

[stevetobias]

Those quality tested pass stickers don't mean the product has been tested either. Depending on the quantities of manufacturing only a small percentage actually get powered up. Usually a couple of random products per batch are sort of tested and this just means that they were powered up. It's lucky to be 1% but in reality it's much less than this, especially in China.

[mcconkeyb]

Very good summary of the CE mark. I've been designing and testing and dealing with many of the "marks" that appear on the back of electronics products. Its a big field and has many complications, getting products certified is not a game for beginners!

[ClarkKent-npsr]

Hey Dave +EEVblog interesting video. Here's an interesting fact about the CE marking. South Africa is not allowed to import products that don't have the CE marking. I believe this is mostly due to some EU ECC trade deal we have with the EU. A notable example is how South Africans can't import the Google Pixel phone because it lacks the CE marking.

[Ecobion]

Just missing one important piece of information, the 'CE Mark' is only part of the marking that may be required, as there may be the need for additional advisory warnings as part of the CE marking, including further symbols such as the 0-3 symbol if appropriate. Also, the CE marking must be visible at point of sale, so does not necessarily need to be on the product itself, so long as it is on the retail packaging (and in this instance, there would usually be a 'retain packaging for information' notice). Almost forgot, the manufacturers name and address need to be included. if the product comes from outside of the EU, the importer takes the legal responsibilities of the manufacturer (as if it had then come from the EU). Google a report we made on: 'ce marking of Mylar foil balloons' if you want to know more about the legal aspects of CE marking. ;-)

[iwtommo]

You know what would be really funny? Absolutley no #1000 video celebration at all, dont even mention it, then a nice big surprise video at 1024, because its a nice round number :)

[rbbm]

It is product and industry dependant, in the construction area, when the CE comes with a specific number in some cases this means it has been tested but to a set of minimum safety requirements and not self declaration, but this does happen too. CE is a safety mark only, not a quality mark.

[AndyMarsh]

This is a very good overview of the CE concept. One thing maybe worth noting in a future video... who is responsible for the CE Declaration? I'm sure you know it's the company bringing the product to market within the EU. The manufacturer in China or Hong Kong or wherever can slap the mark on the product but it's the seller in EU who is responsible. That's why many times on cheap toys you see a second product label stuck over the original packaging.

[MalcolmCrabbe]

one thing the video didn't cover was the typical cost of having an electronic product tested to enable someone to CE mark the product. Last time I got involved in this the three test averaged over £3k each which, given the small market the product was aimed at made the project non-viable. I was confident in the product, and the prototype ran for 5 years in my home without any issues, but as you can never predict what numpties are out there, and as the product controlled heating elements, I wasn't prepared to put it on the market without having the test reports behind me. I can see the reasons behind the conformity regulations, but it has killed off the small hobbyist who wants to sell a few items he's made.

[pinolec]

Dave.. There are some groups of products which can't be self certified. For e.g. medical products. These as you may notice have CE mark followed by four digits. Those four digits identify Notified Body involved in certifying product.

[foxsux]

A lot of countries also sometimes do random store bought inspections to test conformity, most products declared unsafe are a result of inspections.

[Sevalecan]

I think this is a good video series to start. Explaining the certifications and the reason for each one would be very helpful to anyone I think looking to develop and sell a product.

[ACElectrode]

As a process controls engineer who regularly has to deal with it, CE is like this--You can fudge it easily and not have a worry. But to do it right and truly meet the CE is damn near impossible! It will make you want to rip your hair out, and then your colleagues too!