CENELEC facts and figures

CENELEC in a nutshell

CENELEC is the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization. Officially recognized by the European Commission as the competent European Standards Organization in this field, CENELEC creates both voluntary and harmonized Standards (supporting the guidelines of a New Approach Directive). By doing this, CENELEC is shaping the European Internal Market with high quality Electrotechnical Standards that:

· allow direct access to at least 32 European countries
· guarantee the safety and health of consumers
· encourage technological development

CENELEC Standards are technologically neutral and are developed thanks to the contributions of experts coming from all over Europe. They guarantee market accessibility and economic exchange because with CENELEC Standards there is no more need to test or add/remove any specifications for your product depending on the country of sale. All possible requirements are already included in the text. The whole process is based on consensus among members which at the same time becomes the driving force and strength of the final text.

32 Members:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom.

12 Affiliates:
Albania (01/2002), Belarus (01/2010), Bosnia-Herzegovina (09/1999), Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (03/2005), Georgia (06/2010), Israël (01/2008), Libya (01/2010), Montenegro (06/2009), Morocco (01/2012) Serbia (10/2005), Tunisia (11/2006), and the Ukraine (11/2011).
For more information on CENELEC Affiliates, please check CENELEC list of Affiliates

48 Cooperating Partners that represent the interest of major European industries. They advise on and state standardization priorities, propose drafts as a contribution to the European standardization process and may deliver expert advice on legislative consequences of new standards. More information on CENELEC cooperating partners can be found here [Link to the page: About CENELEC/WhoWeAre/CENELEC Communities/Cooperating partners]

 

CENELEC standards

CENELEC ended up the year 2011 with a total figure of 6004 active Standards. During the year 2011, 412 standards were published. 

 

For the year	ENs	HDs	Total standards published*
2009	413	5	418
2010	415	10	425
2011	407	5	412
At the year end, overall			Total active CENELEC standards*
2010	5537	297	5834
2011	5715	289	6004
net increase			170

* These figures include amendments  

Total number of active CENELEC Deliverables at the year end:

	In the year 2011	End of 2011, overall
CENELEC Deliverables
Standards (EN & HD)	425	6004
ENV (pre-standards)*	-	3
Interpretation sheets	-	19 (already counted in the ENs here above)
Reports*	-	5
Technical reports	6 (1 CEN/CLC/ETSI)	95 (included CEN/CLC/ETSI - CEN/CLC)
Technical Specifications	6	68
ES*	-	0
CECC Specifications	-	297
CENELEC Guides	2	30
CEN/CENELEC Guides	2	23
CENELEC CWA	-	2
CEN/CENELEC CWA	-	2
Total Deliverables	428	6529

* ENVs/Reports/ESs are not published any more

 

Note: The total number of overall standards figures at the end of 2011 does not result from summing up the overall standards figures of 2010 (5834) to the total output of standards of 2011 (412). This is due to the fact that CENELEC only counts as standards those that are currently active and stops counting those that have been withdrawn after the date of withdrawal or DOW.

Total number of pages of active CENELEC Standards in 2011	194896
Total number of pages of active CENELEC Deliverables in 2011	207000

CENELEC Standards ratified, awaiting publication: 86
                                              
The overall figures only take into account active Standards (Standards that are currently valid) and stops counting those that have been withdrawn.

Links with the IEC
In a world like today’s where markets become global and products are being sold worldwide, CENELEC makes sure that the majority of its Standards are identical to the Standards developed by the IEC, the International Electrotechnical Commission. This is achieved thanks to the intense cooperation between both organizations, laid down in the Dresden Agreement, and through the participation of CENELEC members directly in IEC work.

The added value for the manufacturer in applying CENELEC Standards emanating from the IEC is that, besides granting access to all 31 CENELEC countries, these same Standards are also recognized worldwide thanks to the work of the IEC.
Sometimes CENELEC adopts IEC Standards that are slightly modified with some specifications added for the European marketplace. Normally, these common modifications include tougher guarantees of health and safety to be applied for the European market.

In overall terms, 79% of CENELEC Standards are identical to or based upon IEC’s. Next charts clearly show these trends.

Level of equivalence between IEC and CENELEC Standards in 2011 (only EN and HD)

Identical to the IEC	286	69.42%
Based on the IEC	27	6.55%
Purely European	99	24.03%
Total	412	100%

 

Overall level of equivalence between IEC and CENELEC Standards (only EN and HD) at the end of 2011

Identical to the IEC	4333	72.17 %
Based on the IEC	418	6.96 %
Purely European	1253	20.87 %
Total	6004	100%

Links with the European Commission and EFTA
To provide a means for demonstrating conformity with European Directives, CENELEC and the European Commission have reached agreements for CENELEC to develop appropriate Standards - Harmonized Standards -over a wide range of electrotechnical areas including:                       

 

Directive Area	Directive reference
Electromagnetic Compatibility	2004/108/EC
Explosive Atmospheres	94/9/EC
Gas Appliances	2009/142/EC
Interoperability of the rail system within the Community	2008/57/EC
Low-Voltage Equipment	2006/95/EC
Machinery	2006/42/EC
Measuring Instruments	2004/22/EC
Medical Devices	93/42/EEC
Medical Devices: Active Implantable	90/385/EEC
Medical Devices: In Vitro Diagnostic	98/79/EC
Non-automatic Weighing Instruments	2009/23/EC
Personal Protective Equipment	89/686/EEC
Pressure Equipment	97/23/EC
Radio & Telecom Terminal Equipment	1999/5/EC
Recreational Craft	94/25/EC
Safety of Toys	2009/48/EC

Total CENELEC Harmonized Standards at the end of 2011

Total CENELEC Standards	6004	100 %
Of which harmonized	1632*	27.18 %

* These figures include amendments

Harmonized Standards are those that fulfill the requirements set by New Approach Directives. These Standards are unique in the sense that they provide presumption of conformity with the European legal framework. In other words, and this is a specific feature of the European Standardization System, Harmonized Standards help manufacturers comply with the applicable law.

In addition to the New Approach, CENELEC also prepares standards in support of the Ecodesign Directive (2009/125/EC), Waste from electrical and electronic equipment directive (WEEE).

To assist manufacturers and other interested parties, the Official Journal of the European Communities provides a list of Harmonized Standards giving presumption of conformity for each Directive.

More information about the New Approach Directives and the harmonization process can be found at:

· http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/policies/european-standards/harmonised-standards/index_en.htm
· http://www.NewApproach.org/


Technical bodies and Manpower
CENELEC standardization work is carried out in different Technical Bodies in which a wide range of interests is represented.

 

Technical Bodies	2010	2011
Technical Committees / Sub-Committees	73	75
TCs / SCs Working Groups (WGs)	249	268
BT Task Forces and WGs	22	16
Total	344	359

The CENELEC Online Info Service: info@cencenelec.eu
Since its creation in the beginning of 2001, the CENELEC Online Info Service has proved to be an essential tool for responding efficiently and timely to inquiries received relating to CENELEC’s work. This online service contributes to the visibility of all CENELEC activities and promotes a forward-looking image according with the age of real-time information and tailor-made responsiveness.

This online service has been dealing with an increasing number of questions and has become a reference point for international industry.

The number of queries received increased steadily since its creation to reach stability in 2006. In 2009, the Infoservice has become a joint service with CEN in an effort to harmonise our services provided to stakeholders.


The CEN-CENELEC Meeting Center: www.meetingcentre.org
The meeting centre had a successful year 2011 with 1 106 meetings and a total of 16 227 partcipants.
Technical Meetings in Brussels, 2011: 34 (*)
Technical Meetings not in Brussels, 2011: 43 (*) (providing CCMC has been advised of the meetings)
Total:77*