Jim Munro International Compliance Pty Limited

Obtaining Ex Certification

Getting your Ex equipment certified can be a challenge. For example, for the IECEx Scheme or the ANZEx Scheme you need to:

• Design and manufacture equipment that complies with the relevant standards
• Document that design
• Implement a Quality Management System for your manufacturing that ensures you consistently produce equipment complying with that design
• Produce a product quality plan
• Have your product tested for compliance with the relevant standards and your product quality plan audited

Almost inevitably you will find the certification and testing body has many questions and requirements that may be difficult to understand. Not dealing with these effectively can delay your certification dramatically and increase your costs. We can help you through the maze.

IEC

An important player in the development of international standards for the electrical and electronic field is the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). Founded in 1906, the IEC is the world organisation that prepares and publishes international standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.

The IEC’s mission is "to promote, through its members, international cooperation on all questions of electrotechnical standardization and related matters, such as the assessment of conformity to standards in the fields of electricity, electronics and related technologies".

The IEC makes extensive use of modern technology, including electronic transmission of documents, the provision of IEC standards over the Internet, the setting up of File Transfer Protocol (FTP) sites for its committees and of course the provision of a website. A visit to the IEC website is strongly recommended to anyone who wants to know more about their processes, published standards or committee work.

Its website can be found at www.iec.ch

IEC Technical Committee TC31

The committee concerned with development of the standards on equipment for explosive atmospheres at IEC is Technical Committee TC 31. The Secretariat for this committee is held by the UK. Jim Munro is Chairman of the committee.

The scope of TC31 is to prepare and maintain international standards relating to equipment for use where there is a hazard due to the possible presence of explosive atmospheres of gases, vapours, mists or combustible dusts.

TC31 has three sub-committees, seven working groups, one project team and 12 maintenance teams. It has 32 participating countries, called P-members, and 12 observer countries.

It is responsible for over 40 standards associated with hazardous areas.

IECEx Scheme

The objective of the IECEx Scheme is to facilitate international trade in electrical equipment intended for use in explosive atmospheres (Ex equipment):

• reduced testing and certification costs to manufacturer
• reduced time to market
• international confidence in the product assessment process
• one international database listing
• maintaining international confidence in equipment and services covered by IECEx Certification

The IECEx Scheme has two global programs: The IECEx Certification Program and the IECEx Certified Facilities Program. The availability of IEC standards that are very close to the national or regional standards used by countries is vital to the scheme.

Given that at present there are few countries using IEC standards without modification the first program has been introduced with a two-stage approach.

The first, called a transitional stage, makes use of testing to the IEC standards and defined national differences to allow certification to occur in the country of use, based on testing elsewhere. Hence a product may be tested in a test (ExTL) station in one country to the IEC standards and defined national differences for the country in which it is to be used. An accepted certifying body (ExCB) under the Scheme, in the country of use, will then issue a national certificate.

In 2003 the Scheme introduced the second stage with the provision to issue full certificates of conformity to the relevant IEC standards. These are based on a testing report (ExTR), establishing compliance of equipment with the standards, a quality assessment report (QAR) on the manufacturer's capablity to produce the equipment and ongoing surveillance.

The Scheme has 26 member countries and 34 ExCBs.

Its website can be found at www.iecex.com

AUS Ex Scheme

The AUS Ex Scheme is an Australian certification scheme for explosion-protected electrical equipment. Applications for new certificates for this scheme ceased to be accepted at the end of 2003.

Certificates were issued on the basis of a type test of an applicant’s equipment to establish compliance with the relevant Ex standards and an undertaking by the applicant to continue to manufacture equipment in compliance with the certificate and documentation of the equipment.

ANZEx Scheme

The ANZEx Scheme is an Australian and New Zealand Scheme that commenced in 2002.

It is very similar in concept to the IECEx Scheme. It is based on establishing compliance of equipment through testing, coupled with ensuring the equipment continues to comply, through auditing of a product quality plan and ongoing surveillance audits at the manufacturer's premises.

Details of the scheme are included in Standards Australia Miscellaneous Publication MP87.