The European Polycarbonate Sheet Extruders (EPSE, Brussels / Belgium; www.epse.org) trade association representing polycarbonate sheet suppliers and producers in Europe says the CE marking on PC products made by its members should not be subject to additional and costly certification schemes or testing, which are sometimes asked for by national public authorities in countries like France and Germany.

“The CE marking indicates that sheets bearing the CE mark meet EU safety, health or environmental requirements. It guarantees the free movement of safe products within the European market and is a key indicator of a product’s compliance with EU legislation,” EPSE said. According to the association, placement of the CE marking on a product is a declaration of the product’s conformity with the applicable legal requirements valid in Europe. Additional testing is “against the spirit of CE, which stands for a harmonised and unified European market without any extra national requirements,” said EPSE.

PC sheets produced by EPSE members with a CE marking for construction products are regulated by the “EU Construction Products Directive 305/2011” and its amendments, which came into effect in 2013 – see Plasteurope.com of 05.08.2013. Multiwall PC sheets with a CE marking follow the European standard “EN 16153”, and solid PC sheets labelled with the CE marking follow the “EN 16240” European standard.

EPSE launched its own quality label for multiwall PC sheet in 2018. This was based on research and European technical standards that set minimal performance values for mechanical strength, light transmission, durability and fire resistance – see Plasteurope.com of 04.04.2018.