FEATURE WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY
CHANGES TO RADIO RULES W
With the world going wireless radio equipment covers an increasing variety of products aimed at increasing our levels of connectivity, writes Jean-Louis Evans of TÜV SÜD Product Service
ith the world going wireless radio equipment covers an ever growing
variety of products driven by the growth of mobile devices and wearable applications aiming to increase our levels of connectivity. The new European Union (EU) Radio Equipment Directive (RED) 2014/53/EU came into force as of 13 June 2016, replacing the Radio and Telecommunications Terminal Equipment Directive (R&TTE). As both the requirements and number of products that fall under the RED have changed so many manufacturers find achieving compliance to be a significant challenge. However, they will have an additional
year to comply as equipment compliant with the old R&TTE Directive before 13 June 2016 may continue to be placed on the market until 13 June 2017. The RED’s new requirements are intended to clearly spell out the responsibilities and obligations for every economic operator involved in the supply chain (manufacturer, importer, distributor, authorised representative). The Directive is applicable to all electrical and electronic devices that intentionally emit and receive radio waves at frequencies below 3000 GHz. For the first time broadcast radio and TV receivers fall within its scope. The RED excludes equipment that is:
“radio equipment exclusively used for activities concerning public security, defence, State security, including the economic wellbeing of the State in the case of activities pertaining to State security matters and the activities of the State in the area of criminal law.”
Marine equipment that falls within the
scope of Council Directive 96/98/EC is excluded as are airborne products, parts and appliances falling within the scope of Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 216/2008, custom-built evaluation kits designed for professionals to be used solely at R&D facilities and radio equipment assembled or modified and used by radio amateurs.
KEY CHANGES To enable full traceability every economic operator within the supply chain must identify who has supplied them and to whom they have supplied radio equipment. There are new options for the
Declaration of Conformity (DoC): Include a copy of the full DoC covering all applicable Directives with each piece of
radio equipment. Include a simplified DoC which must include the exact website address where the full version can be obtained. The RED states that the product must be
accompanied by instructions in a language which can be easily understood as determined by the Member State in which the product is being sold. It requires that the manufacturer’s contact details are in a language easily understood by end-users and market surveillance authorities. For the first time a manufacturer must undertake a safety assessment that takes into account the reasonably foreseeable use, not just the intended use as outlined in the equipment’s instructions. New responsibilities for importers have
now been introduced as they are required to carry out sample testing of radio
MISSING LINK BETWEEN BOLTING AND DATA STORAGE
Information technology in a number of formats can make a massive difference to the calculation and recording of bolted industrial joints. From simple manufacturers apps providing bolt
load calculations, bolting patterns and tool selection recommendations to a fully live, unbiased, cloud based system with an extensive team of industry experts working in the background there are now a wide variety of software options out there. What is missing however, is a user friendly and robust hardware interface between the operator, tool and power pack and the data storage software. There is now a revolutionary, robust, cost
effective, wireless device of a similar size to a smart phone that can not only lead the operator through each bolt to the correct torque and in sequence and store the data real time to the cloud but actually control and operate the pump and tool
16 SPRING 2017 | IRISH MANUFACTURING
independently removing all potential for human error. As well as having its own software package the system can interface with others offering the flexibility to meet client’s preferences. It can store and provide work instructions and a supervisor can sit in his office in London monitoring a bolting operation real time in Dubai. With features including a high-resolution camera to record images of the operation at all stages this is the future of industrial bolting, says Torq-Comm. With more and more asset owners and the health and safety industry insisting on detailed data acquisition and storage for each and every bolted joint, everybody in our industry will be required to offer solution packages to provide this data.
Torq-Comm
www.torq-comm.com
equipment being sold as well as investigate and maintain a register of complaints and product recalls, keeping distributors informed of such monitoring. Importers are required to keep a copy of
the DoC 10 years after the radio equipment has first been placed on the market as the market surveillance authorities have a right to request a copy during that period of time. The RED introduces new rules regarding
rebranded radio equipment as importers and distributors now take on the responsibilities as if they were the manufacturer where radio equipment is supplied under their own name or trademark. The RED’s Essential Requirements state that: “radio equipment interworks with accessories, in particular with common chargers”, supporting the European Commission’s push for portable devices to be compatible with a single charger. A further significant change is that Telecommunication Terminal Equipment (TTE) i.e. fixed line terminal equipment now sits outside the scope of the RED and is instead covered by the EMC and Low Voltage Directives. Where technical documentation does not
comply a market surveillance authority may ask the manufacturer or importer to have testing carried out at a laboratory acceptable to the market surveillance authority and at the expense of the manufacturer or importer. Article 5 of the Directive (Registration of radio equipment within some categories) for the first time introduces the requirement to register products which fall within categories showing low levels of compliance with the Essential Requirements in a central database. It is intended that this will enhance the
efficiency and effectiveness of market surveillance and therefore contribute to a higher level of compliance with the Directive. The RED’s wide ranging changes are requiring significant adaptations to how radio equipment is manufactured and supplied. It is therefore vital that manufacturers and those within their supply chain, understand and comply with their specific obligations. This will ensure their equipment can continue to be sold on the European market.
TÜV SÜD T: 01789 731155
www.tuv-sud.co.uk
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