The CE label
Today it is common to see CE labelling on various products. The CE label means that the manufacturer or importer guarantees that the product conforms to the European requirements. The product comes with a Declaration of Conformity that states, which standards the product have been tested to. CE labelling is not in itself a guarantee of quality, but explains that minimum demands have been met. Most Glamox products have third party certification, which means that an independent body has tested the products in accordance with the current product standards.
Product norms
Standardisation of product norms has been one of the EU’s most important goals, and not only for lighting. The IEC (International Electro-technical Commission), via its national sub-committees, which instigates the various norms. These are then sent for voting before finally being approved by CENELEC (European Committee for Electro-technical Standardisation). Each is thus defined as a European Norm (EN) before it becomes a national standard (BS-EN). For light fittings there are a number of standards to be complied with. The general product norm is called EN 60598-1 and the various versions then have the designation EN 60598-2-xx.
Product norms are largely concerned with user safety and are as such no criteria of quality in themselves. Individual product norms must however include criteria from installation and maintenance standards that concern user safety. Some examples of this are the product standard for emergency lighting (EN 60598-2-22) and the product standard for road lighting (EN 60598-2-3).
Product standards also refer to other standards, which might cover vital components used in the product for example.