CEN TC 33 - WG1 External doors and windows NORMAPME Mirror Committee

This is the Mirror Committee for CEN TC 33 WG1 External doors and windows. The Mirror Committee is the group of SMEs that support the NORMAPME expert in presenting the views of SMEs during the drafting of standard.

WG 1 - External doors and windows

 The market of doors and windows consists mainly of a few large companies and many thousand SMEs and craft enterprises. It reflects largely the general situation of the construction sector. Micro enterprises account for 93% of construction companies, whilst SMEs are responsible for 78% of the annual turnover and 80% of the workforce. Worldwide demand for doors and windows was up to $125 billion in 2004 (22% in Western Europe, 26% North America, 37% in Asia/Pacific and 15% in other regions). Market growth in developing countries will outpace demand in industrialised regions, although the intensity of product use will remain comparatively low in most developing countries.

Construction standards, such as doors and windows standards are the basis for CE marking. On the one hand, large companies and test laboratories promote heavy conformity assessment requirements. On the other hand, SMEs need affordable and simple processes to have their non-series products CE marked. If custom made windows had to be fully tested in the same way as series production, a small window would cost more than 5 000€.

prEN 14351-1 standard (external doors and windows) was a key issue for small and medium sized manufacturers of doors and windows, as far as the CE marking for custom made products was concerned. This issue combined, with the obscurity of the Construction Product Directive (CPD) article 13.5, led NORMAPME to ask for clarification from the European Commission. Consequently, the European Commission released the Guidance Paper M (GPM) on conformity within the framework of the CPD. The Guidance Paper enables non-series production to be CE marked without excessive testing and administrative burdens. Nonetheless, this draft standard was adopted unanimously at the end of 2005, but under condition of being immediately revised. NORMAPME members are extremely concerned about the consequences of this standard when its application will become compulsory, as from the 1st of February 2010. These concerns have unfortunately been confirmed and even amplified at the presentation of the results of the above mentioned study commissioned by the European Commission on the impact of the Construction Products Directive. Although the study does not give specific numbers it is stated that SMEs producing doors and windows will have to leave the market.

************

Discussion documents, such as draft standards, can be found under [All documents], the [group forum] is where Mirror Committee members can discuss work in progress.

If you wish to download and read the documents posted here, or participate in the forum discussion, you will need to register (Go to "Update your profile">My Mirror Committee>I would like to register to the following mirror committees. Once we have evaluated your profile, you will be granted acces to the information and discussions in the mirror committee.

************

The NORMAPME expert is Mr Riccardo VIAGGI (riccardo.viaggi@eubuilders.org), the Secretary General of EBC, European Builders Confederation.

This Mirror Committee is managed by Amélie GAUTIER (a.gautier@normapme.com).