Have I built a Machine or a quasi-Machine? There is often confusion among manufacturers about the difference between the two products.
A recurring phrase is: ‘to this day we still declare units without a switchboard to be machines, as their purpose is defined, and if these units were connected to the power supply on site, the units would fulfil their purpose (unless they are less efficient than a switchboard sized specifically for the machine).’
In these cases, the question that often arises, from a liability point of view, concerns possible damage to property and/or persons due to incorrect installation, operation and maintenance of the switch cabinet and/or the control and command system retrofitted by the customer.
First of all, it is good to clarify the concept of machinery. The first two points of Article 2(a) of Directive 2006/42/EC read as follows:
- an assembly, fitted with or intended to be fitted with a drive system other than directly applied human or animal effort, consisting of linked parts or components, at least one of which moves, and which are joined together for a specific application
- an assembly referred to in the first indent, missing only elements for connection to the site of use or for connection to sources of energy and motion
It is clear, therefore, that machines without a control cabinet do not comply with the definition of a machine. The fact that the machine is designed with a ‘defined purpose’ must also guarantee that this is achieved by a control system with a level of reliability calculated on the basis of the risk analysis.
The Machinery Directive allows the installation of site connection elements or connection to energy sources to remain the responsibility of the customer (see second point above).
The aspect of responsibility so dear to the manufacturer and the customer is realised depending on the type of certification process undertaken on the product:
- Annex II part 1.B: Declaration of incorporation of Quasi-Machines
The product cannot be used by the customer as delivered as it has to be completed in a new assembly that will be CE marked and declared compliant with Directive 2006/42/EC through ANNEX II part 1.A.
- Annex II part 1.A: EC Declaration of Conformity of a Machine
The product can be used by the customer as it is complete and ready for service.
In intermediate situations, where the manufacturer supplies an appliance without its own control panel (since the latter will be installed on the construction site), two routes can be taken, depending on whether one or more manufacturers are involved:
- The manufacturer XYZ sells a complete machine and declares it in conformity with the machine requirements (Annex I Directive 2006/42/EC); however, in a first step, only the main unit is shipped. This will be completed on site, at a later stage, with the installation of the control cabinet/control system, enabling it to fulfil the function for which it was designed.
In order to be covered in terms of liability, in the first step it is necessary to deliver, with the individual unit, also the operating and maintenance manual and the EC Declaration of Conformity linked to the definition of commissioning, by means of a composed footnote as in the example below:
This EC Declaration of Conformity only becomes effective after the manufacturer (Manufacturer XYZ) or his delegate has notified by means of a declaration of putting into service the positive completion of the final report of conformity in the customer and manufacturer’s sections, as referred to in Article 2 letters h and k and Article 5 of the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC.
On completion of the machine on site with the electrical panel supplied by the manufacturer XYZ, and on completion of any tests, the EC Declaration of Conformity delivered in the first stage becomes valid, and the machine may be put into service by the user.
- Manufacturer XYZ sells a unit, and a third party supplier completes it on site with the control cabinet/control system. Manufacturer XYZ, in this case, will supply a quasi-machine without CE marking, and as such must deliver the unit with its own Declaration of Incorporation and respective assembly instructions to the third party, who will complete it at a later date.
The third party, i.e. the integrator, must complete the new assembly with its own risk assessments of the interfacing between the partly completed machinery and the control cabinet (including the reliability of the control system). He then issues the EC Declaration of Conformity of the new complete and CE-marked assembly.
At Advolo, we provide you with a team of experts in the field of machine certification who can assist you from design to the adoption of the relevant standards, through to certification in accordance with the applicable product directives. Please do not hesitate to contact us for more information at: commerciale@advolo.it
