Assembly made of CE-certified components

[dieselvette]

Hey all,
If I build a simple product in which all electrical components (not electronics - just switches and fans) are CE certified from the manufacturer, and it is assembled in such a way so as to conform to all manufacturer instructions/specifications for each component, then is there any need to have the unit inspected/tested as an assembly?

Perhaps one can declare the assembly as in conformance with each of the directives declared by the manufacturers of the components?

Nic Van Engen
Electrical Engineering

 

[HDS]

Yes you can in some cases. However, in most cases the components are declared to a different standard than you need to meet. Some standards such as EMC always apply to the assembly.

 

[cachehiker]

Sales.

Liability.

When you have third party certification that you meet the relevant standards, more buyers will likely be interested in your product and, should anything go wrong, a better legal footing to defend yourself in court. If there is minimal risk of litigation, you can also prepare documentation of conformance, self certify, and subsequently apply the CE mark.

Third party certification by an accredited testing agency is also required before shipping a large percentage of products to Europe and elsewhere. Don't forget about ROHS if shipping to Europe either.

 

[yasky]

In general, if you are a producer or an OEM, then you need to certify the equipment that YOU sell under YOUR (company) name. This means that if your equipment or device is an assembly of other parts and components, it doesn't matter what certifications the parts and components have, you need to certify the assembly under your company name and its part number/series/etc. Using certified components does help, otherwise you may have to (additionally) test critical components yourself (at your cost). There are always exceptions and it depends on what your end product is. Start there. What is your end product? Does it require certification to safety/other standards for your intended applications? If so, the certification will include some form of evaluation (construction and materials)and testing (electrical/mechanical safety, environmental, sometimes functionality, etc.) - this evaluation and testing is at the end product level, or in other words, the finished assembly level.

Liability is everything. It's the law across many countries that many types of equipment need to be certified for use before they can be sold and used and it is your responsibility to make sure that's taken care of. Check which certifications you need and if the law mandates 3rd party testing and certification (which means you cannot self-certify). Go from there. Good luck.